Sebastien Loeb and Peugeot targeting Goodwood hillclimb record

Mon, 24 Mar 2014

Sebastien Loeb and the more motorsport-obsessed elements of the PSA Peugeot Citroën group seem hellbent with breaking records. Together they've accumulated an unprecedented nine World Rally Championship titles, 78 rally wins and the all-time record for climbing Pikes Peak. And this season they'll be taking on the World Touring Car Championship together as well, hoping to apply their winning form to another racing discipline. But before they do, they'll be going for another trophy: the lap record for the famous hill-climb course at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.

The record currently belongs to Nick Heidfeld, who drove a McLaren MP4/13 – the car that won both the drivers' and constructors' titles in the 1998 Formula One World Championship with Mika Hakkinen behind the wheel – up the hill in a blistering 41.6 seconds back in '99. The accomplishment sets Heidfeld apart after a dozen seasons on the F1 grid but not a single grand prix victory to his name. But that's just what Loeb and Peugeot aim to strip him of when this year's festival kicks off in late June.

Loeb's weapon of choice will be the same Peugeot 208 T16 with which he took the Pikes Peak record. With 875 horsepower on tap, just as many kilos to motivate and bigger wings than an Airbus A380, the T16 is one of the only cars out there capable of beating a modern F1 machine, and Loeb is just the man to drive it. There are plenty more drivers lined up for Goodwood, and you can read about some of them below.

F1 champions Surtees and Fittipaldi head sensational line-up

A cavalcade of superstars from motor sport's past and present will wow a capacity crowd at the Goodwood Festival of Speed on June 26-29, which celebrates the theme: 'Addicted to Winning'.

Formula 1 world champions Emerson Fittipaldi and John Surtees, and Sebastien Loeb – the Frenchman the most successful driver in the history of FIA World Championship motor sport – will head an all-star line-up at Goodwood.

The 50th anniversary of Surtees' 1964 F1 crown, which made him the only man to win world titles on two wheels and four, will be celebrated with a display of 11 cars and three motorcycles raced from his unique career; among them his championship-winning Ferrari 158.

Fittipaldi's 1974 F1 World Championship – his second, and the first of 20 for McLaren – is now 40 years old. This milestone will be marked by the Brazilian driving one of his race-winning M23s from that season.

Frenchman Loeb, who has won a record nine World Rally titles and 78 individual rally wins, will drive Peugeot's monstrous 208 T16 Pikes Peak car up the iconic 1.16-mile hillclimb in pursuit of Nick Heidfeld's 41.6-second record that has stood since 1999. He will also drive a Citroen, for whom he is competing in this year's World Touring Car Championship.

Richard Petty and Al Unser will bring American showmanship to the event. Indy car legend Unser will drive the 1978 Penske Lola-Cosworth in which he took the third of his record-equalling four Indy 500 victories. Meanwhile, NASCAR's 'King' Richard Petty, with an astonishing 200 race wins and seven championships to his name, will get back behind the wheel of his most winning car of all – the #43 Plymouth Belvedere in which he won astonishing 27 races during the 1967 season.

The Le Mans 24 Hours plays a strong part in proceedings with multiple winners of the event – including the most successful driver in the history of the race, Tom Kristensen – taking to the hill in a variety of machinery. Joining the nine-time winner will be fellow Audi legend Emanuele Pirro, Derek Bell, Henri Pescarolo and a host of others, including new Porsche sportscar recruit Mark Webber.

Goodwood owner Lord March said: "To have assembled such a staggering line-up of drivers, who completely typify what the 2014 Festival of Speed theme – 'Addicted to Winning' – is all about, is an indication of the enduring appeal and popularity of the event. I'm incredibly excited about seeing the world's greatest drivers reunited with some truly iconic vehicles."

By Noah Joseph