The 2024 Motorsport Australia National Awards Gala, presented by Shannons Insurance, brought together over 250 guests at Doltone House in Sydney with hosts Greg Rust and Charlie Barlow to celebrate the outstanding achievements of the past season.

The evening recognised national champions from a variety of disciplines, along with officials, volunteers, and the broader community who have made a lasting impact on Australian motorsport.

Many of the sport’s finest competitors were acknowledged for their 2024 performances across circuit racing, rally, off road, speed and autotests – with both returning champions and first-time winners receiving well-deserved accolades.

In addition to the national title holders, honours were awarded across a broad generation of participants reflecting multiple roles. 

Motorsport Australia’s highest ranking award, the Award of Merit, was awarded to Garry Connelly AM in recognition of his contribution to Australian and global motorsport.

Trevor Neumann was named 2024 Australian Motorsport Official of the Year for his exceptional dedication to mentoring and developing the next generation of motorsport officials.

Carol Armstrong was also recognised for her 2024 FIA Outstanding Official of the Year honour in front of a home crowd, after accepting her trophy at the 2024 FIA Awards in December.

Two individuals were named as Members of Honour in recognition of their lifelong contributions to Australian motorsport:

• Dr Rik Hagen, for his exceptional work in motorsport medicine and his role in elevating health and safety standards in motorsport disciplines worldwide.
• Tony South, for his leadership in motorsport governance, including his service on the Motorsport Australia board and his influential work in executive roles.

A further two individuals received Motorsport Australia Life Membership for their contributions to the sport, including:

• Peter Drew, for his distinguished service as a steward, ensuring fairness and integrity in Australian motorsport.
• Roger Chirnside, for his lifelong dedication to motorsport officiating, including his leadership in the Victorian Flagmarshalling Team.

A highly esteemed Presidential Citation was given to rallying legend Ed Ordynski, in recognition of his leadership as Chair of the Officials Working Group – which was instrumental in developing strategies to support and strengthen the Motorsport Australia Officials community.

Collecting her sixth Australian Rally Championship (ARC) crown alongside three-time ARC drivers’ champion Harry Bates, Coral Taylor was also awarded the Peter Brock Medal in recognition of her phenomenal achievements in rallying.

Coral Taylor joins her daughter, Molly, in the prestigious ranks of those honoured with the Peter Brock Medal. Molly received the award in 2015, making this a remarkable mother-daughter achievement.

Formula 1 star Oscar Piastri was also awarded his third Sir Jack Brabham award, in recognition of his success in 2024.

While Oscar Piastri proudly represented Australia globally, closer to home Kai Allen was judged to be the 2024 Young Driver of the Year, with Allen accepting the award fresh from his Grove Racing debut in what is his first full-time Supercars season.

Emmy Drew was recognised with the FIA Girls on Track High Achiever Award, after encountering success on the global stage with Monash Motorsport securing victory at Formula Student in Germany – demonstrating her technical skills, business acumen, and impressive team leadership.

Australian media were another group of individuals to receive honours across the event for their contributions of bringing the sport to fans around the country.

Named as Journalist of the Year for the fourth time was Speedcafe.com’s Andrew van Leeuwen, who also won the Breaking News Story of the Year for reporting the bombshell story of Brodie Kostecki’s split with Erebus Motorsport prior to the 2024 Supercars season start.

Thomas Lam received the Photograph of the Year Award and South Australian photographer Daniel Kalisz was named Photographer of the Year.

Dialing in the Best Use of Digital Media Award was Tickford Racing, whose blend of high-production values and humorous content made them a popular choice.

Another popular victory was in the form of the Personality of the Year Award, with Supercars’ Mark Larkham recognised for his engaging presence on television screens for almost a decade.

Amongst a cavalcade of championship and series winners, the evening was rounded out with the formal acceptance of the 2024 Australian Touring Car Championship trophy by Supercars Champion Will Brown.

2024 Award Winners

Member of Honour	Dr Rik Hagen
Member of Honour	Tony South
Life Member	Mike Breen (to be awarded later)
Life Member	Peter Drew
Life Member	Roger Chirnside
Presidential Citation	Ed Ordynski
Australian Motorsport Official of the Year	Trevor Neumann
Peter Brock Medal	Coral Taylor
Young Driver of the Year	Kai Allen
FIA Outstanding Official of the Year	Carol Armstrong
FIA Girls on Track High Achiever Award	Emmy Drew
Sir Jack Brabham Award	Oscar Piastri
Personality of the Year	Mark Larkham
Photographer of the Year	Daniel Kalisz
Photograph of the Year	Thomas Lam
Journalist of the Year	Andrew van Leeuwen
Breaking News Story of the Year	Andrew van Leeuwen
Best Use of Digital Media	Tickford Racing Media Team

2024 Champions and Series Winners

Bosch Motorsport Australia Rally Championship – Outright Driver	Harry Bates
Bosch Motorsport Australia Rally Championship – Outright Co-Driver	Coral Taylor
BFGoodrich Motorsport Australia Off Road Championship – Outright Driver	Mel Brandle
BFGoodrich Motorsport Australia Off Road Championship – Outright Navigator	Liam Brandle
TSS Side by Side (SXS) Championship – Driver	James Mogford
TSS Side by Side (SXS) Championship – Navigator	Michael Mogford
Motorsport Australia Motorkhana Championship	Scott Bennett
Motorsport Australia Hill Climb Championship	Dean Amos
Motorsport Australia Khanacross Championship	Barry Nowell
Australian Touring Car Championship	Will Brown
Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia Championship – Outright	Harri Jones
Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia Championship – Am	Adrian Flack
GT World Challenge Australia Powered by AWS – Pro Am	Liam Talbot / Chaz Mostert
GT World Challenge Australia Powered by AWS – Am	Mike Sheargold / Garth Walden
FIA Formula 4 Australian Championship	Jimmy Piszcyk
Dunlop Super2 Series	Zach Bates
Dunlop Super3 Series	Cody Burcher
Supercheap Auto TCR Australia Series	Josh Buchan
Touring Car Masters	Adam Garwood
Trico Trans Am Series	Todd Hazelwood
Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge Australia – Outright	Oscar Targett
Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge Australia – Pro-Am	Lachy Harburg
Tyrepower V8 SuperUte Series	Adam Marjoram
Battery World Aussie Racing Cars Super Series	Joel Heinrich
Meguiar’s Australian Production Cars – Outright	Dean Campbell / Cameron Crick
Monochrome GT4 Australia Series – Silver	Marcos Flack / Tom Hayman
Monochrome GT4 Australia Series – Am	Jacob Lawrence / John Bowe
Monochrome GT4 Australia Series – Pro Am	Lachlan Mineeff / Shane Smollen
TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Australia GR Cup	Max Geoghegan
First Focus Radical Cup Australia	Peter Paddon
Precision National Sports Sedan Series	Peter Ingram
Giti Australian Formula Open	Ryan MacMillan
Australian Formula Ford Series	Edison Beswick
TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Australia Scholarship Series	Max Geoghegan
Motorsport Australia V8 Touring Car Esports Championship	Dylan Rudd
Motorsport Australia GT3 Esports Championship	Kody Deith
Motorsport Australia Formula 4 Esports Championship	Damon Woods
FIA Motorsport Games  – Formula 4	Griffin Peebles
FIA Motorsport Games  – Auto Slalom	Reece McIntosh
FIA Motorsport Games  – Auto Slalom	Corinne East-Johnston
FIA Motorsport Games  – Esports F4	Jake Burton
FIA Motorsport Games  – Esports GT	Philippa Boquida
FIA Motorsport Games  – Karting Sprint Senior	Pip Casabene
FIA Motorsport Games  – Karting Sprint Junior	Riley Harrison
FIA Motorsport Games  – Karting Sprint Mini	Jay Kostecki