Despite some fine attempts from other race and road car manufacturers to steal the limelight at this year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed, Aston Martin Racing and parent company Aston Martin Lagonda have again pulled out another fine repertoire of new (and indeed old) race and road cars to woo the crowd and viewers at this year's event.

With 2019 also marking the 70th anniversary of the company having first raced at the Goodwood circuit close to the south coast of England, no expense or viewpoint has been spared as the company celebrates that fact with its customers and fans with both demonstration runs and static displays of cars past and present to drool over.


From the Aston Martin Racing side of the equation, we have seen examples of the now historically classified DBR9 GT2, the now outgoing V12 Vantage GT3 from R-Motorsport (in its Bathurst 12Hr livery) through to an example of the new 2019 specification and turbo charged V8 Vantage GT3 from Optimum Motorsport.

These beauties have been bolstered by another appearance of the factory teams new V8 Vantage GTE, a car that only raced for the first time just over a year ago but since then has gone on to secure its first class pole and then class wins in etc World Endurance Championship over the course of the 2018-19 Super-season.


Familiar faces likes AMR factory drivers Darren Turner and Jonny Adam as well as many guesting drivers have com to support the team over the four day event on the Goodwood Estate.

As a ticket only event, unless you are lucky enough to have applied for and been accepted for tickets the best we can hope for is to watch the incredible live stream available HERE











With the WEC, there is no time to lose as the next season to the Championship resumes in just three weeks at the Prologue - this time from the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona, Spain over the 23rd and 24th July ahead of the season start at Silverstone on the 1st September.

Photo credits - FOS / AMR / AML

Another good job done for Aston Martin after four days of terrific display of both road and race cars to die for and all demonstrated with vigour up the legendary hill of Goodwood House at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.

For 2018, emphasis was very much upon the new road cars being released out of the Gaydon factory including the  all new DBS Superleggera, the extremely exclusive V12 Vantage V600 as well as various models from the AMR Performance range including the Rapide and DB11.


Aston Martin Racing factory drivers Darren Turner and Nicki Thiim have been on hand throughout the weekend to run demonstration laps aboard the Vulcan AMR Pro and the new V8 Vantage GTE. The teams yet to be finalised V8 Vantage GT3 was there but surprisingly only as a static display.

An Aston Martin of old grabbed the news headlines earlier this weekend by becoming the most expensive car ever sold in a European auction room when a 1961 DB4 GT Zagato was sold for over £10 million to an undisclosed European buyer.


Finally and in a totally outlandish display of technical ability, we saw the 'ultimate city car' get fitted with a V8 engine from a Vantage S as a bespoke commission from a customer with Aston Martin's Q service to race up the hill in a time its smaller engined 'cousin' could only dream!


This weekend also draws the early summer break to an end with many national, European and World championships resuming over the coming weeks. For many of the factory AMR drivers, that resumption of customer team duty starts just next weekend as the British GT Championship returns with their annual excursion to Spa Francorchamps before many stay behind for the Blancpain GT Endurance Spa 24 headline event just the week later.

As for the World Endurance Championship - that resumes at Silverstone in just four weeks time! Its all going to get rather busy - very quickly!!

#TeamAMR

Photo credits - Drew Gibson / Aston Martin / Goodwood FOS

Aston Martin will be taking the Goodwood Festival of Speed by storm in 2018, with nine cars confirmed to take on the world-renowned hillclimb. Between 12th and 15th July, there will be no fewer than three public debuts, as well as the new Vantage and the entire DB11 family, at the famous home of the Duke of Richmond.

Aston Martin’s new flagship Super GT, the DBS Superleggera, will be making its first public appearance at the festival. Not only will it be on static display in the Supercar paddock where visitors will be able to get a closer look at its muscular carbon fibre bodywork, but it will also be driving up the 1.16-mile hillclimb. As the 211mph DBS accelerates away from the start line, spectators will be treated to the sound of its 725PS, 900NM, twin-turbo V12 as it thunders between the lime trees.

Making its dynamic debut from the First Glance paddock will be the Rapide AMR. The 205mph four-door is the latest car in the exciting new AMR stable that draws direct engineering and aesthetic links to Aston Martin’s successful race team – Aston Martin Racing. In a first for a Rapide it has both 21-inch wheels and carbon ceramic brakes, which will help it to slow in time for the fearsome Molecomb corner.



Also making its dynamic debut will be the stunning V12 Vantage V600. This car made its static debut last month at Le Mans but now the public will be able to to see and hear this incredible limited-edition car in motion. Only 14 examples (seven coupes and seven roadsters) of the V600 will be made, so Goodwood provides a rare opportunity to see this special customer commission created by Q by Aston Martin. With a naturally aspirated V12 it should sound wonderful as it negotiates the famous flint wall.

All three members of the DB11 family will be in attendance at the Festival of Speed. The V8 and the Volante will be joined by the latest, range-topping DB11 AMR in the Supercar Paddock. Sitting alongside them will be the striking new Vantage with its 510PS, twin-turbo V8. All of the current production car range will also be in action from Thursday to Sunday, tackling the Birdless Grove as they climb through the final turns of the hillclimb.



In addition to Aston Martin’s renowned sportscar range, Aston Martin Racing will also be bringing its latest Vantage GTE to the Goodwood hill, fresh from the 2018 24 Hours of Le Mans. Based in the Motorsport Paddock, the #95 will be piloted by the 2016 GTE Pro champion Nicki Thiim throughout the weekend. The Dane will be sure to wow the crowds in the lime-liveried World Endurance Championship ‘Super Season’ racer from Friday onwards.

Finally, the wildest model the company has ever produced, the Aston Martin Vulcan AMR Pro, will be taking part in the timed runs up the hill, driven by Aston Martin Racing veteran Darren Turner. Its 820BHP V12, huge levels of downforce and, perhaps most importantly, its shorter gearing should all give this uprated version of the Vulcan the best possible chance of setting an impressive time on the short, technical course. As it sprints under the famous chequered finishing arch and breaks the timing beam at the top of the hill there will no doubt be more than a few people intrigued to see what the stopwatch says.



While Aston Martin is more than well represented on track, visitors will also be able to get closer to the brand’s latest models at a dedicated stand with six models on hand - DBS Superleggera, Vantage, the DB11 family and Rapide S. The stand is located close to the Cricket Pitch, which serves as the Festival of Speed Silver Jubilee Display throughout the weekend.

The action kicks off at Goodwood Festival of Speed on Thursday 12 July.


Source material - Aston Martin

We would like to think that we have a relatively balanced social media stream coming into The-Advantage covering most lines of motor sport and the marques competing within them, but having watching four days of 'awesomeness' coming out of Goodwood last weekend you would be hard stretched to beat the achievements of Aston Martin.

Featuring four days of sheer indulgent, inclusive and sometimes exclusive access from not just the Aston Martin Lagonda parent company but also that of Aston Martin Racing, fans of motor cars and motor racing cars alike bore witness to everything that it good about the English marque, with some featuring the added bonus of a celebrity figures of note.




This years Festival of Speed event saw the exclusive launch of the heavily revised and extremely exclusive Aston Martin Vulcan AMR Pro at the hands of AMR works driver Darren Turner as well as the first public running of the even more exclusive Vantage AMR Pro track car.

Mixing these two beasts with that of the 2017 Le Mans 24Hour GTE Pro winning car as well as the latest hard wear from the road car business running up the twisting hill track through Lord March's country estate, we're sure that all who attended and those who watched the live stream were left suitably contented.






For Aston Martin Lagonda - its back to the development bubble ready for the next iconic model whilst for Aston Martin Racing - its back to the grindstone in readiness for the next round of the World Endurance Championship from Germany in two weeks time.

Photo credits - Aston Martin / Aston Martin Racing

Glancing through the various streams of social media, it was obvious that those at the Goodwood Festival of Speed today (and this weekend to be exact) have had an absolute treat as Aston Martin unleashed some of their latest machinery up that infamous hill.

Using the event to launch their latest extreme track day 'weapon' in the form of the re-engineered and upgraded Vulcan AMR Pro option, the brand also went onto to showcase cars like the Vantage AMR Pro, another car never previously seen run in public till now.


The Vulcan AMR Pro upgrade package is now available to any of the owners of the 24 Vulcan cars that were produced by AML in 2016 and will allow an already monster car experience greater acceleration of the corners as well as greater aerodynamic stability - if it ever needed it.


The even more limited edition AMR Vantage Pro, one of just seven in existence also saw its first public outing today although the lane through the private estate is hardly conducive for any significant pace from any vehicle without paying a hefty price.


Those attending the four day event will also benefit from the spectacle of Aston Martin running a number of their most recent road car editions as well as runs from the #97 Aston Martin Racing Le Mans GTE Pro winning car in the hands of Jonny Adam.

Photo credits - Aston Martin / FOS

Those fortunate to be going to the Goodwood Festival of Speed this weekend will be treated to the sights and sounds of the #97 AMR V8 Vantage GTE fresh from its adventures at Le Mans, being thrashed up the hill by Aston Martin Racing Evolution Academy winner and Beechdean GT3 racer Ross Gunn. With the teams four Le Mans cars only being received back at the Prodrive factory yesterday a quick turn around will be needed ready to ship that car out again for the event that starts tomorrow.

He will be joined over the weekend by at least Darren Turner and Peter Dumbreck, who shall each share the driving of the Aston Martin Vulcan as it returns to 'the hill'. The IQ Option liveried V12 Vantage GT3 is also due to be run over the four day event as well as the highly successful Vantage GT8. The all new DB11 is also due to make its FOS debut.


Having only finished her A level exams this morning, seventeen year old Jamie Chadwick became the youngest person to drive an Aston Martin Vulcan at Silverstone this afternoon under the watchful eye of AML and AMR driver Darren Turner as nine other hypercars also hit the Nothamptonshire track.


Monday saw celebrity TV chef Paul Hollywood let loose with an AMR V12 Vantage GT3 at a very wet Silverstone (at least under the watchful eye of Jody Fannin though) as part of a making of a further BBC documentary about the baker cum aspiring race driver. This car would have needed extensive repair following its race ending damage sustained during the Nurburgring 24H earlier this month.


Both Hollywood and Chadwick are due to join driving forces in a second Beechdean AMR Vantage GT4 as the British GT Series returns to the tracks at Spa Francorchamps in early July.

Photo credits - Driver social media