Alfa Romeo takes the scene at the "Goodwood Festival of Speed 2014"

• From 26 to 29 June, the British county of West Sussex will host one of the most prestigious international motorsport events, which every year attracts over 150,000 people including fans, experts connoisseur, collectors and VIPs from the automotive world
• There will be eight Alfa Romeo cars present, both from the past and the contemporary production, to face the track of Goodwood Hillclimb
• Time to set off for the 4C supercar - the modern icon of the brand - and the brand-new high performance versions of Giulietta and MiTo Quadrifoglio Verde. Additionally, there are five precious historic cars belonging to the Museo Storico Alfa Romeo: Gran Premio Tipo B "P3" (1932), Gran Premio Tipo 159 "Alfetta" (1951), 750 Competizione (1955), Giulietta SZ "stub tail" (1960) and GTA 1300 Junior (1971)
• The British event is also an occasion to celebrate the 60th birthday of the Giulietta (1954-2014)
• The guest star behind the steering-wheel of the GTA 1300 Junior will be Toine Hezemans, called "The Flying Dutchman", who was one of the winning drivers at the beginning of the 70s and among the best drivers ever to drive a "GTA 1300 Junior"

Alfa Romeo will attend the "Goodwood Festival of Speed 2014", which will be held from 26 to 29 June in the British county of West Sussex, one of the most important international events dedicated to motorsport. Every year the Festival, with its uphill race, theme shows, vintage displays and exhibitions of historic and contemporary cars, attracts over 150,000 people including fans, collectors and experts from all over the world.

For the occasion, a great Alfa Romeo booth will be set up so that the public can get to know the new Alfa Romeo 4C, the new versions of Giulietta and MiTo Quadrifoglio Verde, as well as five precious historic cars belonging to the Museo Storico Alfa Romeo , placed in the Cathedral Paddock: Gran Premio Tipo B "P3" (1932), Gran Premio Tipo 159 "Alfetta" (1951), 750 Competizione (1955), Giulietta SZ "truncated tail" (1960) and GTA 1300 Junior (1971).

All Alfa Romeo cars will have to face the main attraction of the Festival of Speed, the "mixed-fast" track of Goodwood Hillclimb. This course of almost 2 km opens with a tree-lined run through the southern corner of the Goodwood Estate, before turning sharply in front of Goodwood House. Thereafter the course climbs up a straight, narrow road enclosed between stone walls and dense woods towards the racecourse, which stands at the top of the majestic South Downs. The height difference between the beginning and end of the route is nearly 100 m and the route itself is so technical and difficult that it provides a tough test for the concentration and reactions of the best drivers in the world.

The British event is also the ideal occasion to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Giulietta (1954-2014), the ancestor - "Giulietta Sprint" - of an entire model series and also one of the most iconic products of the Alfa Romeo brand. It was in fact Giulietta that in the 50s realised the dream of motorists all over the world, since it made the desire of owning an Alfa Romeo more accessible for the first time.

Lastly, Toine Hezemans will be the guest star behind the steering-wheel of the GTA 1300 Junior; he is one of the most successful drivers who knew best how to interpret the "GTA" 1300 Junior on the track. Hezemans, who was nicknamed "The Flying Dutchman", won the European Touring Car Championship in 1970 with the model 1750 GT Am, which derived from the American version of the Alfa Romeo coupé, and then he won again in 1971 with the 2000 GT Am. This champion is one of the approximately 90 drivers, some from the past, some still racing, who will be present at the Goodwood Festival of Speed 2014 which has a particular slogan this year: "Addicted to winning".

Precious historic cars from the Museo Storico Alfa Romeo

Below follows a description of the five cars from the Museo Storico Alfa Romeo that the public can admire both at the Alfa Romeo booth and during the spectacular route of Goodwood Hillclimb.

Gran Premio Tipo B "P3" (1932)

"Tipo B", better known as "P3", is one of Vittorio Jano's masterpieces. This single-seater car is equipped with a dual turbocharger compressor "8C" engine and the dynamics of the car, which is particularly efficient, benefits from an innovative rear suspension solution, one of the technical features of the "P3" type. All the most famous drivers of the 30s have been sitting behind the steering-wheel of Tipo B cars: Nuvolari, Varzi, Caracciola, Trossi, Chiron and Moll were among the serial winners of the major international competitions during the racing seasons in 1932 and 1933. Tazio Nuvolari's victory at Nürburgring in 1935, at the end of his career, in which P3 and the Ace of Mantua beat the really strong German cars with a Tipo B car, is truly epic in its kind.

• Engine: 8 cylinders in line, 2654 cc, twin shaft, dual compressor
• Power: 212 HP at 5600 rpm
• Top speed: 232 km/h

Gran Premio Tipo 159 "Alfetta" (1951)

"Alfetta" 159 won the F1 World Championship in 1951 thanks to Juan Manuel Fangio, who with the single-seater Alfa Romeo won the first of his five titles. The 159 is an evolution of the previous 158, World Champion in the 50s with Giuseppe "Nino" Farina: the 8-cylinder 1.5 l engine in line is equipped with a dual-stage compressor, which allows the car to reach a power of 450 HP (during tests), whereas the rear suspension adopts a "De Dion" scheme and the body benefits from an improved aerodynamic configuration.

• Engine: 8 cylinders in line, 1479 cc, twin shaft, dual-stage compressor
• Power: 425 HP (450 HP during tests) at 9300 rpm
• Top speed: 305 km/h
• Bodywork: assembled by Zagato

750 Competizione (1955)

In order to compete in the category "sport 1.5 litres", Alfa Romeo designed the "750 Competizione", a two-seater roadster racing car. The Alfa Romeo establishment in Portello, which has the primary objective of focusing and consolidating the production volumes of "Giulietta", does not plan to produce a small series of it. The "750" is equipped with a 1.5 litre engine derived from the contemporary "Giulietta" which together with its particularly low weight, allows the driver to achieve top level performances. If it had run, it would certainly have been a highly competitive car.

• Engine: 4 cylinders in line, 1488 cc, twin shaft
• Power: 145 HP at 9500 rpm
• Top speed: 220 km/h
• Bodywork: Boano

Giulietta SZ "stub tail" (1960)

The "Giulietta SZ" is one of the most uncommon versions and it is more racing-oriented than the model which is celebrating its 60th anniversary this year. The significant performance level that characterises this compact and aerodynamic coupé depends on the twin shaft 1.3 litre engine with 100 HP and a weight of 740 kg, which combined with an efficient aerodynamics. Aerodynamics is partly due to the solution with the stub tail perfected by Zagato and allows the car to reach 200 km/h. The "SZ" was the favourite car for gentlemen drivers: great road holding, responsiveness and a brilliant driveability. 

• Engine: 4 cylinders in line, 1290 cc, twin shaft
• Power: 100 HP at 6500 rpm
• Top speed: 200 km/h
• Bodywork: Zagato

GTA 1300 Junior (1971)

The power of 170 HP from a 1.3-litres normally aspirated engine is the result of top level engineering by the standards of the 70s; this also explains why the incredible "GTA 1300 Junior" won the title in the European Touring Car Championship in 1971 and 1972, being brought to the race with the Autodelta colours, the racing department of Alfa Romeo. This model is an evolution of the original "GTA" of 1965, equipped with a 1.6 litre engine, and has kept the aluminium body, with the later addition of flared wheel arches. One of the most successful drivers who have interpreted the "1300 Junior" in the best possible way was undoubtedly Toine Hezemans, "The Flying Dutchman". 

• Engine: 4 cylinders in line, 1290 cc, twin shaft, dual ignition, direct injection
• Power: 170 HP at 8200 rpm
• Top speed: 220 km/h
• Bodywork: Bertone

Alfa Romeo 4C: the perfect synthesis between the past and the future of brand

The award-winning Alfa Romeo 4C returns to the Goodwood Festival of Speed, after making its first dynamic appearance at the 2013 edition of the British event. The public will be able to admire the modern icon of the brand, which represents the essential sportiness that is embedded in the "Alfa Romeo DNA": great performance and technical excellence for a maximum driving pleasure combined with a breath-taking style. This is the secret of both the numerous international awards that the brand has won at a relentless pace and of the appointment as Official Safety Car in the thrilling SBK Superbike World Championship in 2014 and in the highly competitive World Touring Car Championship (WTCC) in 2014.

The Alfa Romeo 4C is a true driving machine without compromise, that delivers its best right on track where speed, short braking distances and transverse acceleration are essential to get first-rate lap times: from 0 to 100 km/h in 4.5 seconds flat, 258 km/h of top speed, deceleration peaks in the range of 1.2 g and lateral acceleration peaks over 1.1 g. All this is achieved also owing to an optimum weight distribution - 40% on the front axle and 60% of the rear axle - and to a total dry weight of just 895 kg - for the most part made up of carbon fibre, aluminium, steel and SMC - in addition to an extraordinary weight to power ratio of less than 4 kg/HP.

The first-rate performance is also due to the combination of the new 240 HP 1750 Turbo Petrol engine with the latest-generation 'Alfa TCT' dry twin clutch transmission and the advanced Alfa DNA selector with the brand-new Race mode. More specifically, the new '4 cylinder' 1750 Turbo Petrol with direct injection at 200 bar and aluminium engine block achieves amazing performance: torque and specific power set new records for this category, at over 200 Nm/l and 137 HP/l respectively, while maximum power of 240 HP (176 kW) is reached at 6,000 rpm.

Quadrifoglio Verde: a symbol of Italian motor racing since 1923

Also the new high performance versions of Giulietta and MiTo "Quadrifoglio Verde" will be present at the Goodwood Festival of Speed​​. The new models that were recently launched on the Italian market and will progressively be launched in other European countries, provide an essential style, compact and powerful engines, the right weight/power ratio and technical Alfa Romeo contents that vouch for driving pleasure. Furthermore, the new high performance versions are a tribute to the legendary history of the "Quadrifoglio Verde", the symbol that has been associated with the top performing cars manufactured by Alfa Romeo ever since 1923. Not only on many cars that have graced the world's race circuits, but also on numerous special production models too.

With respect to the other versions in this range, the new Giulietta Quadrifoglio Verde, which is the pure expression of the Alfa Romeo DNA - is characterised by a decisive look and a strong personality. In addition, it features the exclusive engine inherited from the Alfa Romeo 4C supercar: the new 240 HP direct injection 1750 Turbo Petrol with aluminium engine block combined with the innovative Alfa TCT 6-speed twin dry clutch transmission. Equipped with the enhanced DNA selector and the Launch Control function (the only segment to offer this function), the Giulietta Quadrifoglio Verde accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in just 6 seconds.

The MiTo Quadrifoglio Verde - the most dynamic of all compact sports cars - is equipped with the new 170 HP 1.4 MultiAir Turbopetrol and the innovative Alfa TCT transmission. The pièce de résistance of this engine version is its exceptional weight-to-power ratio (6.7 kg/HP), which has always been one of the key factors behind the success of Alfa Romeo cars - in addition to a segment-leading specific power (124 HP/litre).

The 'Quadrifoglio Verde' versions of MiTo and Giulietta have assumed a place in the tradition of the best Alfa Romeos, drawing on the heritage of dynamic performance, without compromising on efficiency, respect for the environment and convenience in everyday use. Alfa Romeo cars have always been dedicated to those who expect a response from the car that goes beyond the concept of 'useful means of transport' to cross over into that of the truest 'excitement'.

Turin, 20 June 2014