The money was amassed after a special helmet, which Kobayashi sported at the 2011 season finale in Brazil, was auctioned after the race. The helmet’s one-off livery had been personally designed by Joe Hahn, producer and member of group.

Newey, Red Bull’s chief technical officer, receives an OBE (Officer of Order of the British Empire) for services to motorsport, while Mansell picks up a CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) for services to children and young people in his role as president of charity UK Youth

That said, this season has not been short of drama, suspense and surprise. Challenging tyre compounds from new official suppliers Pirelli

“I am delighted to present our line-up for the 2012 season,” said Force India team principal and managing director Dr Vijay Mallya. “In Paul and Nico we have two extremely talented drivers with tremendous potential. I think Paul caught the eye of everybody in the pit lane during his rookie season.

The C31 will be raced next season by the Swiss squad’s unchanged driver line-up of Kamui Kobayashi and Sergio Perez, as they look to improve on their seventh-place finish in the 2011 constructors’ championship

F1 in Schools, the Formula One Technology Challenge, linked up with the team and Milton Keynes Council to showcase the global educational initiative and give shoppers the opportunity to learn more about this student programme, which challenges 9-19 year olds to design, build, test and race a miniature scale-model F1 car.

“This naming is an honour but also a great responsibility,” said the Spaniard. “I joined the team as an advisor to the new owners and to contribute with my experience in any possible way. We had to establish a base from which to grow slowly and we are now seeing the first rewards of that work. But we mustn’t lose our perspective and be aware that assuming responsibilities such as designing the car or moving the headquarters to Spain are huge tasks and we still have a lot of work ahead.

Both Ricciardo and Vergne have come through the Red Bull Junior Driver programme and the decision to promote them was taken by Toro Rosso in conjunction with Red Bull

Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner, meanwhile, was presented with the 2011 constructors’ trophy by Bernie Ecclestone. McLaren’s Jenson Button and Red Bull’s Mark Webber also received awards for second and third places respectively in the drivers’ championship.

“This is due to the new direction that the team has taken and the decision of the new management to move the team headquarters to Spain,” explained an official statement from HRT

“It’s great to be here in Milton Keynes which is where the cars are built and everyone from the factory works,” said Vettel. “It’s nice to say thank you and to see all the fans from the area. It was good fun; we did some donuts and enjoyed ourselves out there. Thanks to all the fans that came today, we wanted to put on a great show, so I hope they enjoyed it. It’s a great way to finish the season.”

The 2011 FIA Formula One World Champion collected the coveted trophy from FIA President, Jean Todt, while Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner was presented with the 2011 Constructors’ Trophy by Bernie Ecclestone