The first car to exceed 200mph, the Sunbeam 1000hp, has been named Car of the Year at the 2026 International Historic Motoring Awards (IHMA), presented by Lockton.
The winners were announced on November 13 in front of nearly 400 guests at a sold-out ceremony at The Peninsula London hotel, hosted by racing driver and broadcaster Amanda Stretton. The awards are organised by Hothouse Media, publisher of Magneto and Octane.
Car of the Year: Sunbeam 1000hp
Car of the Year was the only award decided by public vote at the 2026 International Historic Motoring Awards. Sir Henry Segrave’s Sunbeam, known as ‘The Slug’, took the title 99 years after its record run at Daytona Beach in 1927, powered by twin 22.4-litre Matabele aero engines.
The car made its public debut at this year’s Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance after a painstaking three-year restoration by National Motor Museum engineers at Beaulieu, led by Ian Stanfield. Next year it returns to Daytona Beach to mark the centenary of its record. It beat a shortlist that included Donald Campbell’s Bluebird K7 hydroplane and the McLaren F1 GTR that became the most expensive British car ever sold at auction.
Lifetime Achievement: Sandra Button
The Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2026 International Historic Motoring Awards went to Sandra Button, executive director and chairman of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance from 1986 to 2026. Over those 40 years she expanded the concours’ international reach and created its associated tours and forums. August’s 75th Concours was her last in charge before she retired from the day-to-day running of the event on October 1 to become its brand ambassador and strategic advisor.
Pebble Beach also won Motoring Event of the Year at the IHMA 2027. Best of Show at its 75th edition went to the 1935 Duesenberg SSJ Special Speedster delivered new to Hollywood actor Clark Gable.
The other 2026 International Historic Motoring Awards winners
Restoration of the Year was awarded to the 1949 Talbot-Lago T26 Grand Sport (chassis 110109). Having starred at the Geneva and London shows in-period, it later became one of the stars of the Baillon barnfind collection that was auctioned in 2015 at Rétromobile.
Following the auction, Retromotive performed a comprehensive 11-year restoration that returned the car to its original livery and specification, retaining its original running gear and firewall, as well as more than half of its original sheet metal.
Paul Russell and Company was named Specialist of the Year after a concours season led by three Lampredi V12 Ferraris from the America and Superamerica series. The 375 America Vignale Cabriolet – the only cabriolet of the series – took first in class and a Best of Show nomination at its Pebble Beach Concours debut. A 410 Superamerica Series I won Best of Show Gran Turismo at the Palm Beach Cavallino Classic, and a 410 Superamerica Series III took the top prize at the Philadelphia Concours d’Elegance.
Bespoke Car of the Year, presented by sister title Octane, went to the Auto Union Lucca. No part of the original 1935 V16 streamliner survives, so Crosthwaite & Gardiner had little more than period photographs and limited records to work from. Having established that the Lucca was built from a Type A Grand Prix car raced in 1934, the team spent three years recreating it for Audi Tradition, and the car made its public debut at this year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed.
Jay Leno was honoured with the Personal Achievement of the Year prize for getting ‘Leno’s Law’ over the line. Working with SEMA and California state senators Dave Cortese and Shannon Grove, Leno’s work saw the biggest change to the state’s collector-vehicle policy in more than 20 years. Signed by governor Gavin Newsom on September 16, the law allows Californians to keep and enjoy limited-use collector vehicles built between 1976 and 1985, in addition to earlier cars.
The new Youth Initiative of the Year award was presented to the Piston Foundation for its commitment to bringing young people into the US collector car industry. Of the 362 students who applied this year, 60 received scholarships worth $160,000 in total – twice as many as in 2025.
Museum or Collection of the Year, presented in partnership with Magneto, went to M24 – Musée du Sport Automobile at Le Mans. The museum at the Circuit de la Sarthe was transformed between the 2025 Le Mans Classic and this year’s Le Mans 24 Hours. Built in 1961, the museum was renovated and improved with an extension designed by architect Frédéric Audevard.
Anantara Concorso Roma won Breakthrough Event of the Year. Staged at Rome’s Anantara Palazzo Naiadi hotel, it gathered 70 historic Italian cars, among them three Le Mans-winning Ferraris, for a police-escorted tour past the Colosseum. Adolfo Orsi led the judges, and Best of Show went to the 1932 Maserati V4 Sport Zagato.
The WeatherTech Vintage Weekend with Brian Redman at Road America took Motorsport Event of the Year. It drew 372 historic cars and a tribute to Dan Gurney that brought together more than 30 Eagles.
The Winter Trial was named Rally or Tour of the Year and IROC was Race Series of the Year. Club Lotus won Club of the Year in its 70th year. Mark Brinker’s four-volume Heroes of the Forest: The Complete History of the Pebble Beach Road Race was Motoring Book of the Year, Brooklands Museum’s Grand Prix Centenary campaign won Digital Media of the Year, and Aramco was named Industry Supporter of the Year.
2026 International Historic Motoring Awards winners:
- Lifetime Achievement: Sandra Button
- Car of the Year: Sunbeam 1000hp
- Bespoke Car of the Year: Auto Union Lucca (Audi Tradition)
- Restoration of the Year: Talbot-Lago T26 Grand Sport, chassis 110109 (Retromotive)
- Motoring Event of the Year: Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance
- Motorsport Event of the Year: WeatherTech Vintage Weekend with Brian Redman (Road America)
- Breakthrough Event of the Year: Anantara Concorso Roma
- Race Series of the Year: IROC
- Rally or Tour of the Year: The Winter Trial (Classic Events)
- Museum or Collection of the Year: M24 – Musée du Sport Automobile
- Specialist of the Year: Paul Russell and Company
- Club of the Year: Club Lotus
- Motoring Book of the Year: Heroes of the Forest by Mark Brinker
- Personal Achievement of the Year: Jay Leno
- Youth Initiative of the Year: Piston Foundation
- Digital Media of the Year: Brooklands Museum Grand Prix Centenary
- Industry Supporter of the Year: Aramco
