The results of the 2016 Professional MotorSport World Expo awards are in! Following two years of awards dominated by a single brand (2014, 2015) this year’s event saw a wide variety of motorsport achievements celebrated in style.
Ford Performance was the evening’s biggest winner, picking up the Motorsport Team of the Year and Motorsport Engineer of the Year accolades. The awards were collected by Tyrone Johnson, vehicle engineering manager, Ford Performance. Facing stiff competition in the Team of the Year category from ABT Sportsline, HWA AG, Peugeot Sport, Renault e.Dams, and Team Porsche amongst others, it was Ford Performance’s incredibly diverse portfolio of factory supported programs that found favour with the judges.
The highlight of 2016 for the team came via its Chip Gannassi ran Ford GT program which was able to take victory at Le Mans, repeating the performance of the original GT40 some 50 years prior. Strong performances in IMSA’s WeatherTech Championship, and the FIA’s World Endurance Championship have also been reasons for the team to celebrate. Ford Performance backed programs and cars also enjoyed success in other championships such as the NASCAR, Pirelli World Series, Formula Drift, Baja 1000, World Rallycross, and Stock and Super Stock drag racing categories.
Ford’s second award came in the Motorsport Engineer of the Year category, with GT program leader, George Howard-Chappell taking top honours ahead of Formula 1 engineers Andy Cowell and Bob Bell, with Hyundai WRC head-honcho Michel Nandan also in contention.
The 25-strong judging panel were impressed with the way that Ford Performance has established itself in a number of disciplines, as well as provides extensive support and retail options to club-level racers and individuals. At its highest-level, Ford Performance as a team has also impressed, taking several race victories with the all-new Ford GT endurance racer.
Several new race cars introduced in 2016 meant that the Race Car of the Year category once again served up a shortlist that was anything but short. With thirteen entries jostling for position, it was Toyota’s TS050 that emerged victorious ahead of BMW’s M6 GT3, Ford’s Focus RS WRX and GT GTLM cars, McLaren’s 570S GT4, Hyundai’s i20 WRC, and Volvo’s S60 WTCC amongst others.
The TS050’s strong performance throughout the 2016 World Endurance Championship found favour amongst judges, as did its valiant showing at Le Mans, where victory was cruelly robbed from the team when in sight of the chequered flag.
Judge Andrea Toso, technical director of Dallara said that the TS050: “exemplifies why we go racing, as both professionals and fans. Enduring, losing, regrouping, improving and brand recognition. I think most people will remember Toyota’s unfortunate loss, rahter than Porsche’s win at Le Mans 2016. Most engineers in motorsport would now love to work with Toyota for its ethics, as well as its respect for other competitors and the market. I would be honoured to get to know the Toyota guys better!”
Magneti Marelli took top honours in the Motorsport Technology of the Year for its game-changing high-speed camera. The device operates at 25 times the speed of European TV cameras, it allows for accidents to be analysed in higher detail than ever before, and is helping the FIA institute further improve driver safety in the sports top-flight.
In other categories the, expanded for 2016, Race Series of Year title went to Germany’s DTM championship, in a line-up featuring global heavyweights such as the SRO Group’s Blancpain GT Series, Australia’s Virgin Supercars, and Japan’s Super Formula. The Powertrain Innovation of the Year award went to Mahle Powertrain for its Turbulent Jet Ignition combustion process, which has revolutionised the power delivery of the current forced induction Formula 1 power units.
The now familiar Young Rally Driver of the Year award was collected by the championship’s leading Nissan Micra driver, Tommi Meadows. Displaying a maturity and approachability in and out of the car single Meadows out as a real future prospect, Consistent points scoring has placed Meadows in a strong position going in to the final rounds of the 2016 Kick Energy Formula 1000 rally championship.
New for 2016 is the Outstanding Contribution to Motorsport category, which was won by Ginetta’s charismatic owner, Lawrence Tomlinson. One of the most prominent figures in UK motorsport, Tomlinson has overseen the transformation of the Ginetta brand, rebuilding it around a motorsport orientated business model. As a result, Ginetta has over 300 G50 GT4 models in competition around the world currently, In addition to this, Ginetta’s LMP3 chassis has helped established the category as a solid entry in to prototype racing.
John O’Brien, editor of Professional MotorSport World was on the judging panel: “2016 has been a great year for motorsport, regardless of which series piques your interest, the diversity of this year’s winners shows that. Ford Performance’s ethic of using its varied motorsport activities to directly market its road cars is something that has to be admired, particularly in this era of increasing regulation. The advances in ‘greener’ technology, and the explosive performance it can deliver is something that has increased in presence in the awards of late, and the coming years are certainly an exciting prospect.
The close fight for Race Series of the Year proves that despite what is written in mainstream press, motorsport is not in a bad shape globally, and when you look at the viewing figures of these championships it proves that people still watch motorsport in abundance. Whilst it’s easy to point out what ‘needs’ to be improved without solution, we prefer to celebrate the achievements of what makes this industry so great. The breadth and depth of the nominations in all the categories this year shows that there’s an awful lot to be proud of.”
The winners of the Professional MotorSport World Expo Awards:
Race Car of the Year
Winner: Toyota TS050
Shortlisted:
• BMW M6 GT3
• Callaway Corvette C7R
• Ferrari 488 GTLM
• Ford Focus RS WRX
• Ford GT GTLM
• Hyundai i20 WRC
• McLaren 570S GT4
• Mercedes-AMG GT3
• Opel Astra TCR
• Skoda Fabia R5
• Subaru Levorg BTCC
• Volvo S60 WTCC
A high-resolution image gallery of all the finalists in this category can be found on the PMW Expo Facebook page.
Motorsport Team of the Year
Winner: Ford Performance
Shortlisted:
• ABT Sportsline
• Barwell Motorsport
• HWA AG
• Peugeot Sport
• Prodrive
• Renault e.Dams
• Team Porsche
A high-resolution image gallery of all the finalists in this category can be found on the PMW Expo Facebook page.
Powertrain Innovation of the Year
Winner: Mahle Turbulent Jet Ignition
Shortlisted:
• Bosch Motorsport MS7.4 ECU
• RenaultSport Z.E.15 powertrain
• Ricardo 750T-GT3 transmission
• Toyota TS050 powertrain
A high-resolution image gallery of all the finalists in this category can be found on the PMW Expo Facebook page.
Engineer of the Year
Winner: George, Howard-Chappell, Ford Performance
Shortlisted:
• Andy Cowell,
• Bob Bell
• Michel Nandan
• Yusuke Hasegawa
• Yves Matton
A high-resolution image gallery of all the finalists in this category can be found on the PMW Expo Facebook page.
Motorsport Facility of the Year
Winner: Circuit de la Sarthe
Shortlisted:
• Base Performance Simulators
• Daytona International Speedway
• iZone
• Multimatic
• Watkins Glen
A high-resolution image gallery of all the finalists in this category can be found on the PMW Expo Facebook page.
Motorsport Technology of the Year
Winner: Magneti Marelli high-speed camera
Shortlisted:
• HANS Pro FHR
• Motegi Racing MR630
• Porsche 919/ Osram lighting unit
• Racelogic HD2
• Sparco Hocotex
• SKF Imx-T
A high-resolution image gallery of all the finalists in this category can be found on the PMW Expo Facebook page.
Race Series of the Year
Winner: Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters
Shortlisted:
• Blancpain GT
• European LeMans Series
• IMSA WeatherTech
• Super Formula
• TCR International
• Virgin Australia Supercars Championship
• VLN
A high-resolution image gallery of all the finalists in this category can be found on the PMW Expo Facebook page.
UK Young Rally Driver of the Year
Winner: Tommi Meadows
Shortlisted:
• Adam Ripper
• Alex Holliday
• Ed Lewis
• Ewan Tindall
• James Hall
• Peter Bennett
• Tom Llewellin
• Zak Hughes
Outstanding Contribution to Motorsport
A new category for 2016, the Outstanding Contribution to Motorsport Award honours those who have gone above and beyond what is required in this industry – often at great personal expense.
Winner: Lawrence Tomlinson, Ginetta
Shortlisted:
• Gian Paolo Dallara – Dallara
• Stephane Ratel – SRO Group
For a live stream of the entire Awards ceremony, head to the Professional MotorSport World Expo Facebook page!
