Jamiroquai, Nico Rosberg and Valentino Rossi end the Goodwood Festival of Speed

Thousands of fans were treated to guest appearances from two of the biggest names in motorsport on the final day of the Goodwood Festival of Speed.
Fiat S76 in front of Goodwood House and Mazda Sculpture.PICTURE BY MICHAEL REEDFiat S76 in front of Goodwood House and Mazda Sculpture.PICTURE BY MICHAEL REED
Fiat S76 in front of Goodwood House and Mazda Sculpture.PICTURE BY MICHAEL REED

Formula One star Nico Rosberg was joined by MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi for the end of the four-day celebration of speed.

And the pair even enjoyed lunch together.

F1 star Rosberg spent more than half an hour signing autographs and greeting his fans, fresh from celebrating his 30th birthday only yesterday.

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Meanwhile, Goodwood welcomed nine-times World Champion, Valentino Rossi to the event for the very first time.

The Italian legend put on some spectacular ‘Flat-out and Fearless’ displays in front of a sell-out crowd on both two and four wheels.

Also at the event was car lover and Jamiroquai lead singer Jay Kay, while Olympic gold medallist Salley Gunnell enjoyed the atmosphere amongst thousands of fellow racing enthusiasts.

For his Goodwood debut on two wheels, Rossi - ‘The Doctor’ - rode his Yamaha YZR-M1 MotoGP bike carrying a special livery to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Yamaha Motor Co, and then rode the machine into Goodwood House before appearing on the balcony with Lord March and Suzi Perry.

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On four wheels, Rossi drove the legendary 1991 Le Mans-winning Mazda 787B - the same car seen soaring out of the sky above Goodwood House in this year’s Central Feature, as well as an ex-Henri Toivonen Lancia Delta S4 Group B rally car.

The renowned ‘Festival of Speed Sunday Shootout’ was declared open by Rossi as he paraded up the Hillclimb in an ex-Jacky Ickx/Jochen Mass Porsche 962C. Following his run, the clocks were set and 35 cars ascended the iconic 1.16-mile course in a bid for 2015’s fastest time.

British Time Attack Champion, Olly Clark, claimed victory in his Subaru Impreza ‘Gobstopper II’ with a time of 44.91 seconds. The son of twice-RAC Rally winner, Roger Clark, defeated the Mitjet Mini Pikes Peak of ice racing king Jean-Philippe Dayraut and the Toyota Celica ‘Pikes Peak’ of New Zealander, Rod Millen.

Current Mercedes F1 title contender, Nico Rosberg, celebrated his 30th birthday weekend with a blast up the Hill in his 2013 race-winning grand prix car, the Mercedes F1 W04.

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Kris Meeke, who became a World Rally winner for the first time in 2015, took overall victory on the Forest Rally Stage in his Citroen DS3 WRC while fellow WRC competitors, Elfyn Evans, and twice British Rally Champion, David Llewellyn, were among the other famous faces.

In the annual Cartier ‘Style et Luxe’ concours d’elegance a judging panel that included Ferrari design chief Flavio Manzoni, TV presenter, Jodie Kidd, and Queen drummer, Roger Taylor, chose the exquisite Peter Mullin-owned Talbot-Lago T150 C SS as overall winner.

And in the GAS (Goodwood Action Sports) Arena powered by TomTom Bandit, victories in the competitive Freestyle Motocross and BMX categories went to Luc Ackermann and Ben Wallace respectively.

Gallery: Star riders defy gravity Riders

Click here for our round-up of the event: Festival of Speed 2015

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Watch a video of Lord March talking about this year’s Festival of Speed: Lord March

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