Autosport Awards
MotoGP world champion Joan Mir wins Autosport's Rider of the Year Award
MotoGP world champion Joan Mir is the winner of Autosport's 2020 Rider of the Year Award
In an incredibly hard-fought and unpredictable season during which nine riders took victories, Mir's consistency lifted him above the opposition.
He took his first win in November's European Grand Prix at Valencia and clinched the crown with a round to spare, in just his second MotoGP campaign. The Spaniard is also the first Suzuki rider to lift motorcycle racing's top crown since 2000.
PLUS: How Mir became Suzuki's humble MotoGP hero
Autosport readers have voted Mir the best rider of the season, ahead of fellow MotoGP title contenders Franco Morbidelli and Alex Rins, and World Superbike dominator Jonathan Rea.
"It feels great, thank you to all the people that voted for me," said the 23-year-old.
"I think we were the surprise of the year. We didn't have the fastest bike, but we got an opportunity and we took it.
"Since my first podium in Austria [in August] I was able to be on the podium on every track, in different circumstances, and this was the key. In Aragon [in October] I thought maybe we can get this."
Autosport's Rider of the Year Award, which has introduced in 2016, is open to riders competing in any of MotoGP's three racing categories or equivalent.
Mir is the first person other than Marc Marquez, who sat out 2020 following a crash in the opening event, to take the accolade.
The 2020 edition of the Autosport Awards is taking place online, with increased digital coverage, and continues the tradition of highlighting the best of the motorsport season.
Other categories include International Racing Driver of the Year presented by Pirelli, Racing Car of the Year, International Rally Driver of the Year, Rally Car of the Year, British Competition Driver of the Year, Richard Mille Rookie of the Year, National Driver of the Year, Moment of the Year presented by Marelli, and the Pioneering and Innovation Award presented by Mahindra.
The Esports Driver of the Year Award presented by Motorsport Games has also been introduced this year.
To find out which other winners Autosport readers have voted for, go to
autosport.com/awards
Previous article
Why electronics are key to managing modern engines in motorsport
Next article
DTM team makes prototype racing debut on record Asian Le Mans Series grid
About this article
| Series | General |
| Author | Haydn Cobb |
LEGO Ferrari 488 GTE
Why Campos Never Made It Into Formula 1
The F1 and Indy 'nearly man' that found contentment in Japan
Having had the door to F1 slammed in his face and come within three laps of winning the Indianapolis 500, the collapse of a Peugeot LMP1 shot meant Japan was Bertrand Baguette's last chance of a career. But it's one which he has grasped with both hands
The female all-rounder who arrived "too early"
From Formula 3 to truck racing, Dakar and EuroNASCAR via a winning stint in the DTM, there's not much Ellen Lohr hasn't seen in a stellar racing career that highlights the merit in being a generalist. But she believes her career came too early...
How Radical's latest machines fare on track
The lightweight sportscar manufacturer has not rewritten the rulebook with its latest machines, but the new SR3 XX and SR10 still provide a step forward on its previous successful models
The real-life racing rogues stranger than fiction
The forthcoming Netflix film linking the world of underworld crime and motorsport plays on a theme that isn't exactly new. Over the years, several shady figures have attempted to make it in racing before their dubious dealings caught up with them
How a GP is thriving in a COVID-free territory
The New Zealand Grand Prix's mix of rising talent and big-name stars thrilled the crowds (yes, remember crowds?) assembled for the Toyota Racing Series meeting at Hampton Downs last weekend and left distant observers craving a repeat
How a much-changed Macau GP kept the party going
OPINION: The 67th edition of the Macau Grand Prix might have been a largely muted affair to the outside world without its international influx and star line-ups, another victim to the COVID-19 pandemic, but organisers deserve huge credit for keeping the party going
Engineer's view: Motorsport's revolutionary braking tool
Although brake pressure and temperature logging is commonplace, measuring and understanding braking performance hasn't been so straightforward. But that's about to change following the introduction of a groundbreaking new sensor
The high-tech materials helping Renault in its F1 rise
The Renault F1 team is at the vanguard of innovative solutions pushing development of the V6 turbo hybrid engine rules, embracing the full potential of material science in its bid to get back to the top
