Auburn Hills, Michigan, May 16, 2022 - BorgWarner presented the coveted BorgWarner Championship Driver's Trophy™ to the 2021 Indianapolis 500 winner, Helio Castroneves, at a ceremony in Indianapolis, Indiana last Friday. The Trophy, also widely known as the ‘Baby Borg’, is a 19-inch miniature version of the iconic, 110-pound sterling silver Borg-Warner Trophy® with the winning driver’s sculpture on it. The Baby Borg weighs five pounds, rests on a cylindrical stained wooden base and is inscribed with the winner’s name, team name, average speed for 500 miles and year of his win.
The fourth addition of Castroneves’ likeness on the Borg-Warner Trophy – crafted by William Behrends – was unveiled during a ceremony that took place on March 3 at the Indiana Statehouse in downtown Indianapolis. Castroneves’ most recent Indy 500 victory making him the 108th placement on the Borg-Warner Trophy, which was commissioned in 1935 and sports the faces of every Indy 500 winner.
In addition to Castroneves, his team owners, Michael Shank and Jim Meyer of Meyer Shank Racing, also received a trophy: the Championship Team Owner's Trophy™. This is a significant memento for Meyer Shank Racing, as it marks the team owners’ first time receiving the Trophy.
“Presenting the Baby Borg and Championship Team Owner's Trophy is always a momentous occasion,” said Frédéric Lissalde, President and CEO, BorgWarner. “While the driver’s legacy and Borg-Warner Trophy lives on forever, permanently on display at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum, the replica trophies are personal keepsakes that can be enjoyed by those that earn them for years to come.”
The Baby Borg was first created in 1988, with the Championship Team Owner’s Trophy established 10 years later.
“Winning the Indianapolis 500 and seeing the Borg-Warner Trophy in Victory Circle is one of the most amazing feelings as a driver,” said Castroneves. “I am incredibly proud to have my face permanently on the trophy four times and am thrilled to be presented with the 2021 Baby Borg. It's a reminder of the significant milestone I achieved in last year’s Indy 500 – joining A.J., Al and Rick. I’m looking forward to another exciting race and hope to meet the BorgWarner team in Victory Circle again!”
“We could not be more proud of Helio and his successful career as a driver,” said Shank. “He not only has won the biggest race in history four times, but he also gave me and everyone at Meyer Shank Racing our very first IndyCar win - it's something that we will remember forever. His performances over the years have given him the recognition as one of the greatest drivers in history and we’re very proud to have him as a member of Meyer Shank Racing. Thank you BorgWarner for helping us commemorate our 2021 Indianapolis 500 win and including us in the Baby Borg presentation. We will always treasure our Baby Borg and we already have a very special place for it in our trophy case in the shop."
If Castroneves wins this year’s Indy 500 race, he would go down in history as the first driver with five Indianapolis 500 wins. Currently, he is one of four drivers to win the race four times, along with A.J. Foyt, Al Unser and Rick Mears. Helio’s wins have come in 2001, 2002, 2009 and 2021. Additionally, he is one of four drivers that has ever won an Indy 500 back-to-back. In addition to a new record in the history books, Castroneves could also be the recipient of BorgWarner’s $400,000 rolling jackpot, destined for the next back-to-back Indy 500 winner.