Maserati vs Ferrari: Modena's oldest rivalry returns at Goodwood Revival

Ferrari and Maserati have been trading blows for close to 90 years.

Both come from Modena, both built their early reputations on the same grand prix and sports car grids, and for a stretch in the 1950s, beating the other was as much a measure of success as beating anyone else.

That is the story that the Goodwood Revival is leaning on this year: as Maserati marks the centenary of its Trident logo and its first major racing victory, the 2026 event is producing an actual race around the rivalry between the two Italian car makers.

The revived Lavant Cup, back for the first time since 2023 when it ran as an all-Ferrari grid, has been reformatted as a straight fight between the two marques on Saturday afternoon, billed as the “Battle of Modena.”

It sits alongside three heritage Maseratis on static display across the weekend, presented by Maserati Classiche from the Panini Collection.

Between the race and the display, it will be a fitting stage for the brand’s Trident centenary celebrations.

1957: the peak of the rivalry

The Ferrari vs Maserati rivalry’s high point came in 1957, a year after the two companies had effectively swapped their drivers.

In 1956, Juan Manuel Fangio left Maserati for Ferrari, driving the Lancia-derived D50 to that year’s title, while Stirling Moss went the other way, back to the 250F.

For 1957, Fangio returned to Maserati, and the 250F carried him to his fifth and final title, a record that stood alone until Michael Schumacher equalled it in 2002.

Maserati’s cars won four of that season’s eight grands prix, including a 1-2-3-4 finish at the Argentine season-opener.

The rivalry’s defining afternoon came at the Nürburgring in August 1957.

Fangio, needing a mid-race tyre stop that Ferrari’s Mike Hawthorn and Peter Collins didn’t, rejoined the German Grand Prix around a minute behind the two Ferraris with roughly 10 laps to go.

What followed is still widely cited as the greatest drive of his career: Fangio broke his own lap record repeatedly on the run to the flag, caught both Ferraris, and passed them in the space of a single lap to win, a result that clinched the title with two races still to run.

That Nürburgring result gives the “Battle of Modena” its edge as a piece of framing ahead of this weekend.

The Battle of Modena

The confirmed entry list for the Lavant Cup runs to 15 cars, split almost evenly: eight Maseratis against seven Ferraris.

On the Maserati side, the grid includes a 1957 200Si, a 1956 450S, and a 1957 250S, alongside three separate A6GCS entries and two 300S cars.

Notably, three of the eight Maseratis are entered by members of the Rettenmaier family.

Ferrari’s line-up includes a 1958 250TR, a 1954 750 Monza, a 1954 250 Monza, and a 1953 250 MM, plus a 1957 500 TRC and a Cegga-bodied 250 TR – an unusual French special built on Ferrari mechanicals.

Revival races are rarely fought at full speed, but the entry list alone justifies the “Battle of Modena” billing.

The cars on display

Alongside the racing, Maserati has chosen three machines for static display that each represent a different chapter of its history, all drawn from the Panini Collection and presented by Maserati Classiche:

Berlinetta A6GCS-53

Unveiled at the 1954 Turin Motor Show, the Berlinetta pairs Pininfarina’s work with the racing pedigree of the A6GCS chassis. Only four were built, and it stands as the last Pininfarina-bodied Maserati for more than 50 years – as much a design statement as a competition car.

Tipo 420M/58 “Eldorado”

Built in 1958 specifically for the Race of Two Worlds at Monza, the Eldorado was the first single-seater in Europe to carry a commercial sponsor’s livery, a detail that makes it a curious footnote in motor sport’s commercial history as well as its engineering one. Its V8 was good for speeds beyond 217mph.

Tipo 61 “Birdcage”

The most technically significant of the three, the Tipo 61 takes its nickname from a spaceframe chassis built from around 200 small steel tubes. It remains one of the most innovative racing car designs of its era, and one of the most instantly recognisable Maseratis.

Between them, the three cars span road-going elegance, oddball commercial history, and genuine engineering radicalism, a fair summary of Maserati’s century as a whole.