This week the FIA opened its new Hall of Fame in Paris, created to honor Formula One world champions and, naturally, a number of them attended the event.
While the majority of the 33 champions inducted couldn’t be there in person, nine were: namely Sir Jackie Stewart, Mario Andretti, Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell, Damon Hill, Jacques Villeneuve, Fernando Alonso, Sebastian Vettel and Nico Rosberg.
The evening started with the induction of drivers who won a single world championship, followed by the two- and three-time champs, then four-time winners Prost, Vettel and Hamilton, five-time winner Juan Manuel Fangio and, finally. seven-time champion Michael Schumacher.
“We all know Michael should be here and I am totally sure he would love to be here,” said Schumacher’s longtime manager Sabine Kehm, who accepted the award on his behalf. “He always had the highest respect for everyone in this room and he would be very honored.”
“It’s been incredible to see all these names, all these faces,” echoed Vettel. “There’s so much history in the sports, it’s still so alive, and thanks to events like tonight’s, we’ll keep it like that.”
On display outside were Schumacher’s Ferrari F1-2000, Alonso’s Renault R25, Senna’s McLaren MP4/5, Jim Clark’s Lotus Climax 25, Phil Hill’s Ferrari 156, and Nino Farina’s Alfa Romeo 158.
The Hall is situated at the Paris headquarters of the Automobile Club de France, where the original F1 regulations were first written in the 1940s, with the gallery designed by prominent French architects Wilmotte and Associates. The plan is to create similar galleries for past winners of other FIA-sanctioned world championships at the FIA offices in Geneva.