Committing to a quick run up the narrow, pockmarked, 1.16-mile stretch of blacktop at the Goodwood hillclimb is difficult in a narrow, diminutive formula car. Trying the same thing in a NASCAR-spec Toyota Tundra borders on insanity, since most of the course is only wide enough to accommodate the truck’s girth when it’s traveling straight, not when it breaks sideways. When it does — and with 700 horsepower driving a pair of unweighted wheels, it often does — it takes superhuman skills to keep the car out of the hay bales.
Only a superstar like Mike Skinner can take this monster by the scruff of its neck and come out on the other side with the Tundra in one piece. Even former wrestling icons like Bill Goldberg can’t quite cut the mustard, though he definitely made a respectable attempt.
Through the course’s final corners, known as “Birdless Grove,” accuracy is paramount. To snag a competitive time, the driver must commit to those corners and leave nothing on the table; the quickest laps always show the cars displacing the surrounding haybales without actually touching them.
With no shortage of chutzpah, Goldberg tried just that, but ended up turning in a hair early and tagging the hay bale at high speed. Considering the weight of the car, the cold tires, and the confines of the course, it’s completely understandable — but that hasn’t stopped the YouTube comment section from raking the WCW legend over the coals. It’s a tough world out there for a retired wrestler taking a stab at hillclimb racing.