President Kagame, FIA President Ben Sulayem and Max Verstappen, the biggest winner of the night.
It was an evening of glitz and glamour as the world turned its attention to Rwanda on Friday evening for the FIA Awards Ceremony and Dinner, which coincided with the 120th anniversary of the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), bringing together the very best in the world of motorsport at the transformed BK Arena.
President Paul Kagame, looking dapper in a black suit and bowtie joined global figures to award the winners of the night -from top drivers, manufacturers and teams, cutting across FIA Championships including Formula One World Championship, FIA World Rally Championship, FIA World Endurance Championship, FIA World Karting Championships, FIA World Rallycross Championship, amongst others.
It was a major milestone event for Rwanda, which hosted the awards ceremony for the first time in Africa. President Kagame and FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem awarded four time Formula One World Champion, Max Verstappen and
McLaren F1 Team with their ninth Constructor’s Championship after 26 years at a ceremony attended by global figures.
The winners pose for a group photo.
During the landmark event, President Kagame and Mohammed Ben Sulayem also awarded Michèle Mouton with the FIA inaugural Lifetime Achievement Award, recognizing her extensive achievements within the motorsports industry.
More than 53,000 people watched the ceremony live as the Head of State joined Verstappen on stage as the Red Bull driver received his champion’s trophy for the fourth year in a row, taking time to explain how challenging a season it was, but his skills on the track made the difference
As the winning cars were wheeled onto the stage, it reiterated President Kagame’s earlier declaration that Rwanda has submitted a bid to host F1 as the race looks to return to Africa.
“It’s amazing, four titles is definitely incredible. Of course I also hope it doesn’t stop here. I hope we can be successful for a longer period of time. This year the competition is very close, but then again in 2026 a lot is going to change,” Verstappen said when asked about the season.
Verstappen, who is one of only six drivers to have won four or more titles since the championship started in 1950, said he was proud of his season and everyone in the team as a smiling Christian Horner, the Red Bull principal looked on, despite the team not winning the constructor’s title this year.
Verstappen fought hard to secure his fourth Formula One Drivers’ title this year, overcoming the challenges of a less dominant car compared to previous seasons by relying on his unmatched consistency, skill, and race craft to prevail in a fiercely competitive season.
McLaren’s Lando Norris, who finished 2nd this season said that he looked forward to stepping up the battle next season, congratulating the Dutch driver for his huge win. Verstappen’s Mexican teammate Sergio Perez was voted Action of the Year winner for an overtake in China but did not attend the event in Kigali.
Brazilian F2 champion Gabriel Bortoleto, who will be making his debut with Sauber in Formula One next year, was named Rookie of the Year.
