Relive the FIA Awards Ceremony

The FIA gala is the moment when all the FIA world champions officially receive their trophy. It’s an opportunity to gather the greatest current and past champions under one roof. After Monaco, New Delhi, and Istanbul, the FIA had decided this year to organize this grand gathering in Paris, following the World Council that approved the re-election of Jean Todt as head of the federation.

The grand evening took place within the Cité du Cinéma, created by Luc Besson in Saint-Denis. To honor the master of the place, the theme of the evening naturally revolved around cinema. Thus, to show the fortunate guests to their seats, we witnessed a Joker tumbling down scaffolding while Batman performed a swan dive.

The grand dinner began with a film directed by Luc Besson, where he blended some of the most famous films in history around the stars of the evening. We see Michael Schumacher acting as Don Carleone’s henchman from The Godfather to gather the various world champions: Sebastian Vettel thus replaces Bruce Willis in The Fifth Element, Allan McNish alongside Steve McQueen in the famous chase scene of Bullitt through the streets of San Francisco, while Yvan Muller takes on the role of 007 speeding through the roads around Monaco as Sébastien Ogier races with an old Beetle. A certain unease gripped the room when Loic Duval was seen taking on the role of Paul Walker in the final scene of Fast & Furious…

The champions of the past are not forgotten as Sébastien Loeb takes on the role of Luke Skywalker and Alain Prost tells the Godfather that he taught everything to Michael Schumacher! Self-mockery was in order as, to convince Sébastien Loeb to attend the evening, Michael Schumacher is forced to loudly admit that the Frenchman has more titles than him. The Frenchman’s response: “It must really be a big favor I’m doing for you!” To close the show, the seven world champions cram into the big Ford of the Blues Brothers, allowing them to arrive on stage to join David Coulthard and Pedro Pinto, the two hosts of the evening.

Jean Todt thus declared: « The gala tonight is special in several ways. To begin with, it’s the first time in years that it is taking place in Paris, the historic home of the FIA. Then, the association of automobiles and cinema under one roof is wonderful. Both require creativity, innovation, and style, and these attributes are beautifully showcased in the clever and amusing short film by Luc Besson. »

Then, the organizers honored another symbol of Paris, the Moulin Rouge: the troupe from the famous Parisian cabaret performed a demonstration of their talents, and their dancers were present in all the official photos taken during the evening. The trophy presentations alternated with the different courses. We were able to see a familiar face from the paddocks, Robert Kubica, who was crowned WRC2 champion. He also received the Personality of the Year trophy, presented by Emerson Fittipaldi.

After the introduction, another film was shown highlighting the five best moments of the year. It was interesting to note that the second-best moment chosen was the loss of a wheel by Audi during the endurance race in Brazil while the FIA imposes a 60,000 euro fine on F1 teams that lose a wheel following a pit stop. The best moment was Sébastien Ogier’s massive jump during the Sardinia rally. The fact that Volkswagen is a sponsor of the event may not be unrelated to this choice…

We were then able to watch a film about the school teacher Yvan Muller, who gives lessons on the WTCC to a young newcomer arriving next year. A certain Sébastien Loeb… The highlight of the lesson was the startling statement: “You are not allowed to touch. So you have to touch without touching!” A compilation of crashes was then shown to illustrate the point of the four-time world champion… The association of the two Frenchmen within Citroën is certainly promising for next season!

It was then endurance’s turn to be highlighted, with the awarding of trophies to the top three crews of the championship. Allan McNish, Loïc Duval, and Tom Kristensen thus outpaced their Audi teammates André Lotterer, Benoît Tréluyer, and Marcel Fässler, and their Toyota rivals Anthony Davidson, Sébastien Buemi, and Stéphane Sarrazin. A film was also shown to announce Porsche’s return to LMP1, arriving with high ambitions.

Then, it was rallying that received the honors of the stage. For the first time in ten years, it was not Sébastien Loeb and Citroën who received the precious trophy. But it stays in France as it goes to Sébastien Ogier: « Now that the season is over, I can reflect once more on what has been an incredible year. If someone had predicted before the start of the season that Julien and I would finish with nine victories and the world championship title, we would probably have sent them straight to our doctor! For Julien and me, it’s a dream come true, and we are both extremely proud and honored to have received the FIA trophy tonight. But it also goes to the team, who did an excellent job in our first year. They made this success fantastic by providing me with an outstanding car. »

Once the dessert was consumed, it was time to make way for the true stars of the evening: the F1 champions! The top three in the standings, Sebastian Vettel, Fernando Alonso, and Mark Webber, gathered on stage. Mark Webber took the opportunity to bid farewell to F1 while announcing his eagerness to embark on new adventures in endurance racing. Fernando Alonso then insisted that the audience give another round of applause for the Australian, announcing how much he would be missed. Is it a coincidence that the Spaniard and his engineer Andrea Stella were later seen taking a close interest in the Audi R18?

As for Sebastian Vettel, he was obviously thrilled with his record-breaking season: “When I think about the moments we’ve had with the team over the past few years, it’s incredible. It’s a pleasure to jump into the car every weekend and give it my all. I’m pushing very hard with the team, and what makes us strong is that we love what we do and we are passionate about racing. It hasn’t been an easy year, but being able to overcome it and respond on the track makes me very proud. I have no words to describe how incredible it is to win the drivers’ championship once again. I would like to say a big thank you to the whole team and everyone who supports me.” The four-time world champion then recalled that his first experience in F1 dates back to 2005 when he had his first tests with Williams, in the car of… Mark Webber!

Bernie Ecclestone then asked Sebastian Vettel to revisit his statements from last week at the Autosport Awards regarding his on-track donuts. The German had stated that he contacted Jean Todt after his 25,000 euro fine from the Indian Grand Prix and received confirmation that the fine was only for not bringing his car back to Parc Fermé, not for doing donuts. However, it seems he got carried away during this ceremony, and Jean Todt announced that financial penalties would return next year. Sebastian Vettel then responded that, in any case, Christian Horner was happy to pay the bill! He then performed his impression of Jean Todt while the FIA president was still on stage!

It was then time to start the after party, hosted by DJ Kavinsky, the composer of the soundtrack for the film Drive…