The Central Feature at the 2014 Goodwood Festival of Speed – the sculpture soaring 26 metres over Goodwood House, weighing 160 tonnes and measuring 90 metres in length – has been unveiled in spectacular style by Lord March and Head of Mercedes-Benz Classic, Michael Bock.
Created by artistic genius Gerry Judah, the sculpture is the most complex and ambitious yet conceived and is a fitting celebration of 120 years of motorsport heritage by Mercedes-Benz and its founding fathers.
Swooping over Goodwood House, the curve – which spans 45 metres – tested the artistic and engineering ingenuity of the team of specialists assigned to making Gerry Judah’s concept a reality.
Two cars spanning 80 years form an integral part of the sculpture – a replica of the 1934 Mercedes-Benz W 25 Silver Arrow, like that raced by Manfred von Brauchitsch to victory “first time out” at the Nürburgring Nordschleife, and a MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS F1 W04, the same chassis raced by Lewis Hamilton in 15 
Grands Prix in 2013. The car forms a special part of recent racing history, having taken Lewis Hamilton to five pole positions, and to victory at the Hungarian Grand Prix. Together, the W25 and the F1 W04 show the first – and currently last – of the eight-cylinder Silver Arrows Grand Prix machines. This years’ car, the F1 W05 HYBRID, has a 1.6-litre V6 turbo PowerUnit, and is currently leading the F1 Constructors’ and Drivers’ Championships.
The unveiling was accompanied by spectacular fireworks and a pack of Mercedes-Benz road and race cars making a dramatic and unique run up the Goodwood Hill in darkness.
A century-old Mercedes Grand Prix car, an SSK from 1928, the mighty W 196 R from 1955 and a fire-breathing Sauber-Mercedes C9 from 1989 were joined by a distinctive SLS AMG Black Series, emerging from the darkness with striking glowing bodywork for the occasion.
All five cars will be joined by an array of iconic Mercedes-Benz cars from over the decades as the track action kicks off on Friday.
