F1 champion making comeback with iconic Adrian Newey car

Damon Hill, Williams, 1996 — Photo: © IMAGO

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F1 champion making comeback with iconic Adrian Newey car

This F1 champion is set to get back behind the wheel of an Adrian Newey-designed car

Kerry Violet F1 News Editor

F1 editor and journalist covering motorsport since 2024.

Tuesday 14 April 2026 15:54

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An F1 champion and icon of the sport is set to be reunited with his title-winning machinery this summer, designed by none other than Adrian Newey.

Newey may be cursed to spend 2026 losing his mind over the endless issues at his new team Aston Martin, but across his esteemed career, the British engineer has contributed to 26 world championship titles.

Before his days of domination with Max Verstappen and the RB19, one of Newey's most successful designs was the Williams FW18, which he worked on alongside the team's technical director Patrick Head.

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After joining Williams as chief designer in 1991, Newey-designed F1 cars won seven of the 10 championships on offer between 1992 and 1997, with Damon Hill's 1996 season cementing him as an icon of the sport in his own right.

The FW18 won 12 out of 16 races across the 1996 season, with Hill taking home eight race victories and his team-mate Jacques Villeneuve securing four, contributing greatly to Williams' constructors' championship victory that year.

The dominant F1 car helped Hill make history as the first son of a champion to win the title, with his Williams-Renault allowing him to mimic the success of his father Graham Hill, who won the drivers' championship in 1962 and 1968.

This feat has since only been matched by Mercedes' Nico Rosberg, who won the drivers' title in 2016, something his father Keke Rosberg had managed with Williams in 1982.

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Damon to take on the hill at Goodwood in FW18

After retiring from F1 at the end of the 1999 championship, Damon Hill turned his attention to punditry work, but the 65-year-old has now returned to his former Williams squad as an ambassador.

In February 2026, James Vowles' F1 outfit announced Hill's return, with the 1996 champion joining an ambassadorial lineup that already features three-time W Series champion Jamie Chadwick, and Hill's former team-mate Villeneuve.

And Williams have now confirmed that Hill and Chadwick will both take on the iconic hillclimb at this summer's Goodwood Festival of Speed, alongside F1 team principal Vowles and reserve driver Luke Browning.

All four of the Williams representatives will get behind the wheel of Hill's legendary FW18 at the event between July 9 and July 12, which is a staple on the British motorsport calendar.

As part of the celebrations, Hill will also be honoured on the balcony of Goodwood House on Saturday, July 11, to mark 30 years since his historic championship victory.

Ahead of his appearance at the event which this year is hosting the theme: The Rivals – Epic Racing Duels, Hill said: "I am delighted and very excited to be reunited with my championship-winning FW18 and Williams who made it all possible at this summer's Festival of Speed.

"To see the car return to Goodwood 30 years later, and to share that moment with the fans, is truly amazing. Thanks to the team at Grove for their work in getting the FW18 back on track. I’m looking forward to getting back behind the wheel!"

F1 Adrian Newey Williams Damon Hill Goodwood Festival of Speed