The 2008 MotoGP World Champion Valentino Rossi was presented with the MotoGP World Championship trophy on Sunday night in Valencia at a gala ceremony held at the city’s Oceanografic Centre. The FIM MotoGP Awards Ceremony 2008, hosted by the government of the Comunitat Valenciana in the Ciutat de les Arts i les Ciencies area of the city, was broadcast across the globe, and was presented by the BBC’s Matthew Roberts and TVE’s Ainhoa Arbizu. The FIM’s Vice-President Joan Moreta handed out many of the prizes alongside FIM Road-racing Commission President Claude Danis, including special trophies for each of the category champions. The trophies, which bore the names of the first world champions from 1949, were made especially to celebrate the 60th season of MotoGP. The crowning moment of the event was when the President of the Generalitat Valenciana, Mr. Francisco Camps and Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta handed Rossi with the 60th plaque to add to the MotoGP Champions’ Tower. A vast array of prizes were awarded over the course of the evening, marking the achievements of those riders who have excelled on-track this year. Categories included Rookie of the Year, Pole of Poles for best qualifier and Manufacturers’ World Championships.