Ari Vatanen
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| Ari Vatanen | |
|---|---|
 Ari Vatanen |
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| World Rally Championship record | |
| Nationality |  Finnish |
| Active years | 1974 - 1998, 2003 |
| Teams | Ford, Opel, Peugeot, Subaru, BMW, Mitsubishi |
| World rallies | 101 |
| Championships | 1 (1981) |
| Wins | 10 |
| Podium finishes | 27 |
| Stage wins | 527 |
| Points | 518 |
| First world rally | 1974 1000 Lakes Rally |
| First win | 1980 Acropolis Rally |
| Last win | 1985 Swedish Rally |
| Last world rally | 2003 Neste Oil Rally Finland |
Ari Pieti Uolevi Vatanen (pronunciation ) (born April 27, 1952 in Tuupovaara) is a Finnish rally driver turned politician and Member of the European Parliament. Vatanen won the World Rally Championship drivers' title in 1981 and the Paris Dakar Rally four times.
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[edit] Biography
Vatanen was born and grew up in rural Tuupovaara in Eastern Finland. His debut year in professional rallying was 1970, and he debuted in the World Rally Championship at the 1974 1000 Lakes Rally. He won the British Rally Championship in 1976 and 1978 with Peter Bryant and David Richards. In 1977, Vatanen became a regular privateer contestant in the WRC with a Ford Escort RS1800. For the 1979 season, he was signed by Rothmans Rally Team. Continuing with an RS1800, he took his debut win at the 1980 Acropolis Rally and became the World Rally Champion in 1981. From 1979 until the end of 1981, Vatanen was co-driven by David Richards, who went on to become chairman of Prodrive, the Banbury based motorsport team and one of the most influential figures in British (and worldwide) motorsport. In the 1982 season, Vatanen did not defend his title and competed in only three world rallies.
In 1984, Vatanen signed to drive the Peugeot 205 T16 for Peugeot's factory team. From the 1984 1000 Lakes Rally to 1985 Swedish Rally, Vatanen won five world rallies in a row. Close to death after a major accident on the 1985 Rally Argentina, Vatanen spent 18 months winning a personal health battle over serious injury and depression. He made a complete recovery and his return to motorsport in 1987 saw him go on to win the Paris-Dakar Rally four times; with Peugeot in 1987, 1989 and 1990, and with Citroën in 1991. He became the centre of controversy when his car was stolen whilst leading the same rally in 1988.
With Peugeot, Vatanen also won the Pikes Peak International Hillclimb, after Peugeot stopped participating in the World Rally Championship series in 1986, due to the demise of Group B rallying. Peugeot used the lessons learnt from its 205 T16 to create the 405 T16. With at least 600bhp, large aerofoils, four-wheel drive and four-wheel steering, Vatanen took the car up the hill in record time, his efforts being captured in the award-winning short film Climb Dance.
Vatanen's autobiography Every Second Counts, detailing his life and career up until that point, was published in 1988 (SAF Publishing, ISBN 0-946719-04-7) and instantly became a best seller.
Vatanen continued competing in the World Rally Championship more or less actively until the 1998 season. He drove for Mitsubishi Ralliart Europe in four events in 1989 and in five events in 1990. His best result with the Mitsubishi Galant VR-4 was second at the 1990 1000 Lakes Rally. From 1992 to 1993, he competed for Subaru in 11 events, finishing second three times. He later returned to the wheel of an Escort, driving now the Ford Escort WRC for Ford's factory team in a few events, most notably finishing on the podium at the 1994 Rally Argentina and at the 1998 Safari Rally.[1]
Following his years of working with a French rally team, in 1993 he settled in southern France where he bought a farm and a winery. He soon developed an interest in politics, and in 1999 he was elected to the European Parliament from the list of the conservative Finnish National Coalition party, despite continuing to live in France. The issues he has worked on include car taxation, traffic policies, development aid, and agricultural policy.
In 2004 he was re-elected, this time from the list of the conservative French Union for a Popular Movement. His hunger for motorsport had not left him completely however, and Vatanen joined Nissan in the Paris-Dakar in 2003, finishing seventh. He also made an appearance at the 2003 Rally Finland with a Bozian Racing-prepared Peugeot 206 WRC, and finished eleventh. In 2004 and 2005, Vatanen drove the Dakar for Nissan as well, and in 2007 he made another attempt with Volkswagen, but retired on the seventh stage.[2]
[edit] WRC victories
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Number Event Season Co-driver Car 1 
27th Acropolis Rally1980 David Richards Ford Escort RS1800 2 28th Acropolis Rally1981 David Richards Ford Escort RS1800 3 
3º Marlboro Rallye do Brasil1981 David Richards Ford Escort RS1800 4 31st 1000 Lakes Rally1981 David Richards Ford Escort RS1800 5 
31st Marlboro Safari Rally1983 Terry Harryman Opel Ascona 400 6 34th 1000 Lakes Rally1984 Terry Harryman Peugeot 205 T16 7 
26º Rallye Sanremo1984 Terry Harryman Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 8 
33rd Lombard RAC Rally1984 Terry Harryman Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 9 
53ème Rallye Automobile de Monte-Carlo1985 Terry Harryman Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 10 
35th International Swedish Rally1985 Terry Harryman Peugeot 205 Turbo 16
[edit] References
- ^ Ari Vatanen. RallyBase. Retrieved on 2007-01-30.
- ^ Dakar 2007 Withdrawals.
[edit] External links
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