Williams Racing and Michelob ULTRA win Cannes Lions for 'Lap of Legends' Partnership

Williams Racing and partner Michelob ULTRA are celebrating after being honoured with four prestigious Cannes Lions awards for our innovative Lap of Legends collaboration.

The groundbreaking television special used cutting-edge artificial intelligence and augmented reality technology to stage the world’s first real vs virtual Formula 1 race between drivers from past and present.

It enabled current racer Logan Sargeant to have an epic showdown at Silverstone against virtual avatars of Williams Racing legends Mario Andretti, Nigel Mansell, Alain Prost, Damon Hill, Jacques Villeneuve and Jenson Button who have nine Drivers’ World Championships between them.

This week the project which fused Williams’ title-winning heritage with our mission to return to the front of the grid achieved remarkable recognition at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity – the world’s foremost advertising awards – scooping two Gold and two Silver prizes.

It earned Gold Lions in the ‘Entertainment Lions for Sport – Broadcast/Live Streaming’ and ‘Digital Craft – Real-time Usage and Targeting’ categories, and Silver Lions in the ‘Entertainment Lions for Sport – Metaverse, New Realities & Emerging Tech’ and ‘Digital Craft – Technological Achievement in Digital Craft’ categories.

The awards recognised the enormous creativity and innovation required to bring the project to life. Michelob ULTRA analysed every Grand Prix the legends raced in so the avatars could think, react and drive like their real-life counterparts. The total research included more than 720 races, 1,260 hours of footage and 144,000 miles of racing to mimic the speed, racing style, technique, and strategy of these drivers and their cars. Unique in-helmet AR technology then allowed Logan to race the legends as he drove a real car around Silverstone, while 28 cameras brought the battle to TV screens in May.

It is the latest awards success for Williams Racing’s innovative partnership activations. Our iconic Gulf x Williams Fan Livery Campaign which saw fans pick the ‘Bolder than Bold’ livery used at three Grands Prix in 2023 was named Brand of the Year at the Race Media awards earlier this year and was also crowned Brand Partnership of the Year at the Autosport Awards in December.

James Bower, Commercial Director, Williams Racing: "We are thrilled to see the Lap of Legends campaign receive such esteemed recognition at the Cannes Lions. This collaboration with Michelob ULTRA exemplifies our commitment to bringing innovation to our partnerships and pushing the boundaries of fan engagement in motorsport. It took a huge team effort right across the business and it is an honour to be celebrated in this way."

Ricardo Marques, Vice President of Marketing for Michelob ULTRA: "Michelob ULTRA has a history of merging sports and innovation to deliver on the brand’s point of view and offer unique experiences to fans everywhere. Winning these Cannes Lions awards is a testament to the power of collaboration and innovation. The 'Lap of Legends' campaign has set a new standard for how brands can engage with sports audiences through cutting-edge technology. We're proud to have partnered with Williams Racing to bring this vision to life."