By SEMA News Editors
SEMA announced the winners of its coveted Person of the Year, Content Creator of the Year and Gen-III Innovator of the Year awards. Presented during the SEMA Industry Honors at the 2025 SEMA Show, these awards recognize industry members for their significant and transformative contributions to the automotive aftermarket during the past year.
"To all the SEMA Show attendees, thank you for bringing your energy to Las Vegas this week. To our SEMA members, you are the backbone of this industry," said SEMA President and CEO Mike Spagnola. "Together, we will continue to move this industry forward. That’s what defines us! Tonight, we celebrate the people making it happen: the innovators, the visionaries, the builders of the future."
Person of the Year: Dean Case (Motivo Engineering)
An unwavering advocate for SEMA and the Emerging Trends & Technology Network (ETTN), Case played an instrumental role in bridging the gap between the aftermarket industry and the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) community in 2025.
Case was pivotal to the success of the ETTN/SAE student career event at the SEMA Garage, the largest career fair the association has ever hosted. The impact of this event extended far beyond attendance numbers; it also created meaningful connections with students and educators, helping to attract fresh talent into the industry.
Thanks to Case's contributions, the event brought together a diverse range of experts, actively engaged schools and was carefully documented through professional videography, amplifying SEMA's mission to a wider audience.
Content Creator of the Year: Westen Champlin
The SEMA Content Creator of the Year Award recognizes and celebrates a content creator's exceptional dedication to enriching automotive culture. This accolade applauds Champlin's significant impact in shaping a vibrant community and fostering a positive environment among automotive enthusiasts. Garnering more than 4 million subscribers on YouTube, 3.8 million followers on TikTok, 2.5 million followers in Instagram and 3.3 million followers on Facebook, his creative efforts on social media have not only elevated the discourse around automotive passions but have also inspired a deeper appreciation for the art and innovation within the industry.
Gen-III Innovator of the Year: Andrius Liskus (LABA7, UAB)
Liskus solved a major barrier in advanced suspension testing: accessibility. High-speed, high-precision damper testing typically requires large, stationary machines with high-voltage, high-amperage power inputs, which limits their use to specialized R&D facilities. With the EMA, or Electromagnetic Damper Test System, Liskus and his team developed a solution that delivers lab-grade performance--up to 7,000 mm/s velocity, 100 G acceleration and 150 Hz frequency--while running from a standard 110V socket. The system condenses energy using supercapacitors to drive electromagnetic motors efficiently and with precision.
This means cutting-edge damper testing no longer needs to be tied to infrastructure-heavy environments. Race teams, independent developers and workshops can now run the same level of dynamic testing that was once only available inside OEM labs. The EMA is even transportable, making it viable for on-site testing and trackside diagnostics.
Robert E. Petersen Lifetime Achievement Award: Don 'Big Daddy' Garlits
The Petersen Automotive Museum honored drag racing legend Don Garlits with its Robert E. Petersen Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2025 SEMA Industry Honors event. Garlits, known as "Big Daddy," is a pioneer in drag racing, having accumulated 35 NHRA national event victories and three NHRA Top Fuel national championships across more than 50 years in motorsports. Garlits built the first rear-engine Top Fuel dragster and was known as the first builder to incorporate aerodynamics into his fuel dragster body designs. In addition, his "Swamp Rat XXX" was the industry's first fully enclosed dragster, while he was also among the first drag racers to surpass milestones including 200, 250, and 270 miles per hour marks on the 1/4-mile strip.
"Don Garlits set the standard for what a true drag racer could and should be," said Terry L. Karges, executive director of the Petersen Automotive Museum. "He is a legend both on and off the drag strip, and we look forward to presenting him with this award."
Named after the founder of the Petersen Automotive Museum, previous recipients of the award include Dan Gurney, Art Chrisman, Carroll Shelby, George Barris, Andy Granatelli, The Ford Family, Vic Edelbrock, Jack Roush, Ed Iskenderian, So-Cal Speed Shop founder Alex Xydias, Dr. Wolfgang Porsche, William Clay Ford Jr., Richard Petty, Wally Parks, Roy Brizio and Don "The Snake" Prudhomme.
"I am so honored to be recognized by the Petersen Automotive Museum and to join such a distinguished group of past recipients," said Garlits, who established the Don Garlits Museum of Drag Racing in Ocala, Fla. "There is so much racing history in Southern California, and the Petersen has done an amazing job bringing together the entire automotive world in the heart of Los Angeles."
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