Sebastian Vettel has been named the BBC Overseas Sports Personality of the Year during the 60th running of the SPOTY awards.
The German dominated the 2013 Formula 1 season to secure his fourth title, something only Alain Prost, Juan Manuel Fangio and Michael Schumacher have achieved.
He also took the record for the most consecutive wins in a season, nine, having won every single race after the summer break to bring his tally to 13 for the year – matching Schumacher’s record – and 39 during his career.
Addressing the audience in Leeds via a video message, he said: “Sorry I can’t be there but thank you very much for the award. It’s something very special if I look at the list of previous winners.
“As I like to collect trophies. I think I have very a special place to put this one.
“It’s been a fantastic year obviously, four titles in a row and lots of wins this year, so very special.”
It’s only the second time the award has been given to a F1 driver, with Niki Lauda receiving it in 1977.
