Damien Smith

They say it was the start of the modern era, when NASCAR emerged from its regional southern roots to begin its journey into the heart of the US national consciousness. Let’s reel back to the day when the NASCAR boom exploded, in a blur of flying fists and crash helmets: the combustible 1979 Daytona 500...

Sky Sports F1’s veteran on 23 years surviving the paddock and chasing motorsport's greats

America's best-known racing driver is still flat out at 85. We catch up with him to reflect on his astonishing life

Is anything more evocative or emotion-stirring than Can-Am, the original big-banger sportscar series that ran across North America for nine glorious seasons between 1966-74? Those glory days will play a suitably raucous and colourful part of Goodwood’s star-spangled Americana Celebration at this year’s Festival of Speed on the 60th anniversary of the series’ formation, so let’s scroll back and remind ourselves why it was so special...

The 110th running of the Indianapolis 500 will fire into life this coming Sunday as still surely the biggest and most famous motor race of them all, which is why The Brickyard will be centre stage at the Festival of Speed presented by Mastercard this July, as part of our Americana Celebration presented by Bank of America...

Kyle Busch was one of NASCAR’s greatest talents and characters. His death at just 41 years old has robbed US motorsport of a racer who carried genuine star power — and he will never be forgotten..

Formula E is stepping off the sidelines with its fearsome new 210mph racer - and more emphasis on proper racing

You can’t beat keeping it in the family, and for decades that’s particularly been the case in American motorsport. Ahead of the Americana Celebration at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, here are five great US racing dynasties who have kept the flame burning from generation to generation...

The Le Mans 24 Hours is spoilt for choice in the modern Hypercar era, but scroll back 20 years and things were far more predictable. Audi ruled, and had done since the turn of the millennium by winning six of seven races up to 2006. Thank goodness, then, for Peugeot, and the emergence of one of the most intense rivalries from any era of Le Mans...

He was a swashbuckling hero who raced with a twinkle in his eye, among the ‘big beasts’ of 1980s and ’90s Formula 1, winning Grands Prix for Benetton, Ferrari and McLaren. As his Balcony Moment at the 2026 Festival of Speed reminded us, of course we love Gerhard Berger! How could we not...?