‘It’s not just about racing’ – Jade Goodwin on the unique role sponsors play in her success

Racing has always been more than just a sport to me – it is a way of life. The passion and the pursuit of perfection have shaped who I am.

However, being a racing driver is not just about speed and results; it is about building connections, creating value and working with incredible sponsors who believe in my journey.

My journey into racing began with a simple dream: to compete at the highest levels of motorsport. I fell in love with go-karts (an obsession which has led to myself and my father becoming restorers and collectors of historic karts). Restoring our own together, to which I then stuck on pole, the first woman to do so in that class. Starting small, I worked my way up from karting.

My journey this year

I stepped up to circuit racing this year for my first full season competing in the BRSCC Fiesta ST150 Vinyl Detail Challenge, facing challenges, broken bones and growing with every lap. I grew up watching my heroes race on these iconic UK circuits to then race on them myself has been phenomenal in a way I cannot describe. Now, when I watch those races, I can feel every turn, bump, and overtake just like they do.

Racing is an incredible but expensive pursuit. The costs of equipment, entry fees, travel, crash damage, and team support add up quickly. My Dad and I shared a dream so deeply that we have often put everything we have into racing. His belief in me and the many weekend road trips, the lows of losing and the exceedingly high highs of winning, are memories I will hold dear for all my life. My dad David would often say he was glad he had racing as it’s hard to have something in common with a teenage daughter.

Which brings me to my (unobtainable) next step – circuit racing and sponsors. Sponsors are not just a bonus; they keep my wheels turning. Without them I would have never been able to sit in a race car.

Beyond the financial aspect, sponsors provide validation and encouragement, showing that others believe not just in my potential but me and my journey. At first, I thought sponsorship was about asking for money, but I quickly learned it is so much more. It is about building a partnership where both sides benefit. I focused on improving my communication skills and building a relationship that, to me, feels like friendship. I still struggle with the imposter syndrome and disbelief that, in some cases, total strangers liked me and wanted to support me based on what my manager Simon Nicholson told them about me.

Crafting proposals do get you started, but I’ve come to realise that it’s about building a relationship with someone who likes you, your journey, enough to support you to get to places you could never be without them. It is a strange, but amazing, feeling and cannot not be put into words. I give regular updates on my progress, and genuine appreciation for their support. I also aim to evolve these relationships, finding new ways to provide value, like incorporating their branding into my social media or collaborating on creative projects. My favourite part is offering them the chance to sit beside me and simply hold on.

Unique roles

Each sponsor I work with has a unique role in my journey.

Like Noel Sweeney from Chasetown Civil Engineering Ltd. Noel would help me purchase Go-Karts for each of my seasons in racing. Noel was my dad’s boss and, with a handshake, he helped me take some of my first steps into racing. After a meeting with my dad, Noel also gave me £60 for some sweets when I was too young to remember but I did not forget and, boy, did I get some sweets with that!

Paige Collins from Warren House Accounting was my first sponsor who was not a friend or a boss. She was a total stranger. After a single zoom call Paige gave me the opportunity to compete in my first car race. Paige, a petrolhead herself, also arranged a track day where she allowed me to drive her fisher fury. The coolest thing to date I have ever driven!

Next came Paul from Devassist. Paul has, like Paige, seen my progress over the years – from my sponsor day at Goodwood to my last at Brands Hatch where I had the pleasure of scaring him and his family. I think I may have forgotten to tell them it was a ‘scream if you want to go faster’ scenario.

I was lucky enough to meet Eloise from Skerritts Wealth Management, now Shackleton, Britain’s Financial Advisor, at a Best of British Events’ dinner. Eloise was not only great company, she also helped me through the nerves of my first public speaking event.

Matt from Optimize Webtrends, whom I finally got to meet at Brands Hatch where he kept his cool riding shotgun into Paddock Hill Bend.

Sam Thomas, of SBT and his podcast Different Hats, is another supporter. I got to know Sam through our podcast episode together, sharing my experience racing, my deepest struggles and simply putting the world to rights. Sam has helped me with so much connecting – and his reward? I gave him three scary laps of Goodwood before he remembered he had not updated his will.

Ryan Heal from Best of British Events has allowed me to speak at his events and enjoy the show. The food was not bad either! From these events, I have spread awareness of the trials of being in a very male dominated sport.

Without my father, David, would have never been able to drive at all. He has given such a gift in helping me discover this passion – running a small one-driver race team from our small garage with zero knowledge on how to run a go-kart to winning the British Open and becoming SouthWest champion. The journey, so far, has made me who I am and secured him as my greatest friend. Simon Nicholson was a competitor when I first pinged on his radar by winning said British Open. Simon loved to see the regular winners and champion come second to a girl who “came out of Nowhere”. Sharing a tent, our friendship grew; Simon helped our knowledge with this new series of karts. We would often try to sit down for a nice meal at the end of testing as most times we were so flat out off and on track. We struggle to grab food in our fast-paced environment.

I then began to talk about an old competitor, whom I have sometimes beaten, who had signed to an F1 team. “Why not me?” I did not know it at the time, but this got Simon thinking. A few months later, I was sitting in my first race car on the track, where I had watched from the sides as a young girl wondering if girls could even race.

Whilst some focus on financial backing and others exposure opportunities, I view these relationships as true partnerships, friendships and alliances. I try to understand what our goals could be to achieve the best outcome for us both. But most of all, I ensure they know their support matters deeply to me in ways I could never put into words. Sponsors are the lifeblood of my racing career. They are not just logos on my car — they are part of my story.