Contributing Photographers: Stephanie O’Callaghan, Sam Todd, Drew Gibson, Dominic James, Jayson Fong, Nicole Hains, and Steve String.

As ever the Goodwood Festival of Speed served up a never ending stream of motor racing heroes coupled with mouth-watering classics and awe-inspiring supercars.  Our image gallery picked up some of the ‘special moments’ created in bringing together those celebrated drivers, their cars and fans.

Some of the highlights included:

As part of the Ferrari’s spectacular collection for their 70th anniversary the fabulous 375 ‘Grant Pistons Ring Special’ took to the hill. A modified version of a Grand Prix titan which star driver Johnny Parson attempted to qualify for the 1952 Indianapolis 500. It failed to make the cut and has made only sporadic public appearances since, it now resided West Sussex courtesy of The Louwman Museum.

Other standouts among the many scarlet Formula One cars participating in the single-seater Ferrari class include the delightful 246 Dino which Derek Bell raced in the Tasman series in 1969. The evergreen veteran was reunited with the car for the weekend and has revelled in driving the jewel-like machine almost half-a-century on since he last raced it in anger.

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This year’s honoured guest, Bernie Ecclestone, received a boisterous reception on Sunday afternoon as he joined Lord March on a fast run up the hillclimb course, chased by a cavalcade of Grand Prix icons. The racer turned team manager turned entrant (via his purchase of Brabham) and latter-day F1 czar was then joined outside Goodwood House by grandees of Formula One, past and present. These included the likes of Brabham old boys John Watson and Herbie Blash, former F1 team boss Peter Sauber and reigning F1 World Champion, Nico Rosberg.

Former Red Bull driver Mark Webber interviewed him in front of a packed crowd. “Lord March’s attention to detail is incredible. You have to admire the way he fixed the weather,” Ecclestone said, laughing. “I started racing on two wheels and it went from there. I used to race motorcycles at Brands Hatch – on the grass in those days against guys like John Surtees and then got an upgrade and switched to cars.”

Webber recalled later: “I remember phoning Bernie up in 1999 when I was trying to break into F1. His PA said: ‘Mr Ecclestone will call you back in 20 mins. I thought, ‘Yeah, sure’, but he did call me back and said, ‘Sometimes, Mark, life is just unfair. You may not make it.’ Yeah, thanks for the motivational pep talk, Bernie. That said, he gave me great support subsequently as he has to a lot of other people in F1.”

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Reigning Formula One World Champion Nico Rosberg put on a tyre-shredding display aboard a 2014 Mercedes-Benz F1 WO5 Hybrid this afternoon. The ever-smiling German was on stellar form, and said later: “It’s a special day for me. I love it here. I’ve been to the Festival maybe eight times, but this time it’s different and awesome to be here as World Champion.” Asked if he might return to the cockpit as a race driver at some point in the future, he didn’t completely bat away the idea. “Right now, I’m taking a step back after 20 years of intensity. I loved getting back in my old car, and the crowd here is just the best, but right now I’m thinking only as far as the next few days. Beyond that, who knows?”

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John Surtees was a great supporter of the Goodwood Festival of Speed, but sadly the great all-rounder died earlier this year. He remains the only man ever to win World Championships on two- and four-wheels and Goodwood paid tribute to ‘Il Grande John’ and his extraordinary career. Vehicles campaigned by the motor sport legend over the weekend include the Vincent Grey Flash on which he began racing in the early 1950s, the Ferrari 158 aboard which he scored two Grand Prix wins en route to the 1964 Formula One drivers’ title, and the Honda RA300 which he drove to victory on the car’s debut at Monza in 1967.