John Bolster Award: John Force

The award, reflecting a lifetime of excellence in motorsport by an individual or group, was given to the 56 year-old by five-time Le Mans winner Derek Bell for his incredible drag racing career.

Force has scored 119 races victories in American drag racing and took his staggering 13th career NHRA Powerade Funny Car World Championship at Las Vegas in 2004.

"I'm honoured just to be here," Force said to the award evening crowd. "I'm proud to accept this and I accept this as part of the National Hot Rod Association. But there is something wrong with the picture of me you are showing  - I look much younger!

"To be recognised on the same stage as Dale Earnhardt, Mario Andretti, Leo Mehl, and all the great Formula drivers is something I never dreamed of. I don't think it's as big a credit to me as it is to the sport. It just shows how the drag racing audience is expanding, not just in America but around the world."

Previous winners of the Gregor Grant Award include Sir Frank Williams, founder of the Williams Formula One team; Alain Prost, the four-time Formula One Champion; Eric Broadley, founder of Lola Cars; and a handful of Americans including Mario Andretti, Bobby Rahal, the late Dale Earnhardt Sr., and former Goodyear Tire executive Leo Mehl.