At Goodwood, on the hill where British automotive heritage celebrates its own legend every summer, Maserati chose to unveil its new lineup to the public for the first time—and, more discreetly, to offer a glimpse of a project that speaks volumes about the times: a return to racing scheduled for 2028. Blending aesthetics and endurance, the Modena-based brand is closing a loop that it had, for a time, left open.
The Goodwood Festival of Speed is not like other auto shows. Nothing is sold there, and nothing is negotiated: on the slope of an English hill transformed into a temporary racetrack, it showcases the most historically rich aspects of a brand. It was there, on July 9, that Maserati chose to unveil to the public—for the first time—its new road car lineup, the culmination of a design language that began with a vehicle not intended for the road. It all began with the MCXtrema, a track car designed as a test bed, on which the Maserati Centro Stile experimented with a more horizontal, sharper, and more assertive front end. A design language that, season after season, eventually permeated the entire lineup: first the GT2 Stradale, then the MCPURA, followed by the iconic GranTurismo and GranCabrio, and finally the Grecale SUV.
This stylistic spillover—from the track to the road—is by no means insignificant: it reverses the usual commercial logic, in which luxury automakers first develop toned-down versions for the road before, sometimes, offering a racing variant. At Maserati, it is the most radical car that has set the standard for the everyday models. The new GranTurismo and GranCabrio bear this hallmark, featuring a redesigned body and a refined interior, powered by the 3.0-liter V6 Nettuno engine—delivering up to 590 chevaux, a top speed of over 320 km/h in the GranTurismo Trofeo, 650 Nm of torque, and a reworked exhaust note thanks to the standard sport exhaust on the Trofeo versions. All-wheel drive and variable-height air suspension, standard across the entire lineup, further demonstrate what the brand calls its Grand Tourismo DNA: four genuine seats, unapologetic everyday practicality, without sacrificing the radical mechanical performance inherited from the track—right down to the prechamber combustion technology imported from Formula 1. The Grecale, for its part, reaffirms its position as the Trident’s most versatile SUV, powered by a turbocharged V6 with specific power output that is remarkable for its class.
But the most revealing announcement at Goodwood isn’t about the road: it’s the world premiere of Project GT4, developed in Modena, in the heart of Motor Valley. Derived directly from the engine and body of the new GranTurismo—a requirement imposed by GT4 regulations, which also has the advantage of keeping operating costs in check—this new race car builds on the experience gained with the GT2. Its ambition, stated plainly by the brand: to return to competition in 2028 with a program capable of challenging for the top spots. Powered by the same Nettuno V6 engine featuring pre-chamber technology, weighing approximately 400 kilograms less than the production model, and equipped with a roll cage and GT4-approved wheels, Project GT4 draws on the expertise of Maserati Corse and chief test driver Andrea Bertolini. This is not merely a public relations exercise: for a century-old brand that has long had to choose between its road-going glamour and its racing heritage, this announced return by 2028 appears to be a way of reconciling the two sides of its identity.
Goodwood brings this story to life, right down to the finest details. The special “100 Trident” livery, unveiled to mark the centennial of the famous logo, features a massive trident stretching from the roof to the rear of the car, surrounded by one hundred small, tone-on-tone blue tridents—a way of reminding us, number by number, that the brand has a hundred years of history to fit into a single livery. Surrounding it in the Supercar Paddock, the MCPURA Cielo, the GT2 Stradale, and the spectacular MCXtrema—produced in a limited run of just 62 units and approved for track use only—complete a tableau in which each car tells a chapter of the story. It remains to be seen whether, by 2028, Goodwood Hill will have witnessed the dawn of a new chapter in racing for the Trident, or merely the promise of a comeback yet to be written.
Cette publication est également disponible en :
