Fidani on AWA’s consistency, Le Mans entry, and an updated look at the 2025 Bob Akin battle
- Natalie Johnston
- 16 hours ago
- 3 min read
Written by Natalie Johnston, Edited by Aaron Carroll
Canadian AWA Racing driver Orey Fidani is currently tied with Brendan Iribe for the 2025 Bob Akin award going into the final race of the IMSA calendar. Neither the No.13 AWA team nor the No.70 Inception Racing crew are battling for a championship win this year, nevertheless, their battle for the illustrious award is a heated race on its own.
The Bob Akin award is an honour won by the top finishing Bronze-rated driver in the GTD class. It is not just a trophy for a driver’s shelf, however. Winning this award automatically punches a ticket to France for the winning race team, earning them an entry in the iconic 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Bronze or ‘gentleman’ drivers are the backbone of IMSA. These competitors by definition are amateurs with no previous significant racing experience. Bronze drivers’ passion for motorsports draws them into series like IMSA, and from there they often build excellent teams around themselves. In this process, they inject the series with both financial contributions and a greater depth that is singular to sportscar racing.
Where manufacturers may come and go in IMSA, Bronze drivers have kept the series afloat, and have historically cultivated racing legacies in the meantime.
Honouring the contributions of Bronze drivers with the Bob Akin and Jim Trueman (the LMP2 class counterpart to the Akin GTD honour) awards celebrate not just the drivers, but the teams that support them.
AWA and Fidani won the Akin for the 2024 season, finishing just ahead of Brendan Iribe, who was the 2023 recipient. Iribe has competed at Le Mans three times in 2021, 2022, and 2024.
In an interview with DIVEBOMB on the team’s home soil at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (CTMP) in July, Fidani commented on how the quality and drive of the AWA team have been their greatest strength.
“The team's been amazing, no mistakes,” Fidani said.
“Everyone just tries to, from every event, how can we make it one percent better for the next event.”
The Canadian team had a great debut showing at the Le Mans 24 this year, finishing 10th in class and taking minimal penalties. This was no surprise after their victorious performance this January in the 24 hours of Daytona.
The team decided to use Le Mans as a chance to bring a piece of Canada to the international stage with a crimson, maple-leafed livery.
“We just wanted to do a little tribute for the country out there, and make all Canadians proud back home, and I think it worked out pretty well,” Fidani commented.
This nod to their roots definitely grew the AWA fanbase judging from the overwhelming outpour of support from fans on the team’s social channels.
The team’s consistency has kept them in the running for the Akin this season, while Iribe and Inception’s consistency has hindered them significantly. The Inception team’s DNFs at Daytona, Laguna Seca, and Road America would have spoiled their chances at the Akin if it wasn’t for a key P2 finish at Watkins Glen and a win at last weekend’s Battle on the Bricks. While AWA’s only podium this season was at Daytona, they have yet to DNF.
Simply finishing every race on the calendar is not the goal for AWA, as they have an intensely competitive team ethos.
Fidani further commented on this determination to improve despite their accolades this season: “everyone's positive and always trying to work to be better, even if we did a really good job.”
As we approach the final round of the 2025 IMSA season, the Bob Akin award will be looming heavily over the two Bronze drivers.
Both Inception and AWA have had success in the Michelin Endurance Cup races this season. Inception’s strength has lied notably in their ability to pick up points running at the top of GTD at the mid-race points thresholds. AWA has crucially stayed in the running of every endurance race this season, but has lacked the edge to collect maximum points through the middle stages.
There is only one way to earn a Le Mans entry in North America, and it all comes down to the MOTUL Petit Le Mans for AWA and Inception Racing.
