Tommi Mäkinen

Tommi Mäkinen

A retired Mäkinen signing autographs during a visit to Rally Finland in 2004.
Personal information
Nationality Finnish
Born 26 June 1964 (1964-06-26) (age 47)
World Rally Championship record
Active years 1987 - 2003
Teams Nissan, Mitsubishi, Subaru World Rally Team
Rallies 139
Championships 4 (1996, 1997, 1998, 1999)
Rally wins 24
Podiums 45
Stage wins 362
Total points 544
First rally 1987 1000 Lakes Rally
First win 1994 1000 Lakes Rally
Last win 2002 Monte Carlo Rally
Last rally 2003 Rally Great Britain

"Turbo" Tommi Antero Mäkinen (Finnish pronunciation: [ˈtommi ˈmækinen] is a now retired Finnish rally driver, born in Puuppola, Finland near Jyväskylä on 26 June 1964. As of 1999 he lived in both Monaco and Jyväskylä, married, with two children. Mäkinen is one of the most successful WRC drivers of all time, ranking second in championships (4), tied with Juha Kankkunen and behind Sébastien Loeb (8), and fifth in wins (24).

He is a four-time World Rally Champion, a series he first won, and then successfully defended, continuously throughout 1996, 1997, 1998 and 1999, on all occasions driving the Ralliart Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution. He also aided Mitsubishi to the 1998 world constructors' title as well as winning the 2000 Race of Champions. Mäkinen's navigators include compatriots Seppo Harjanne and Risto Mannisenmäki, the former retiring from alongside Mäkinen having previously served 1985 champion, and fellow 'Flying Finn', Peugeot's Timo Salonen.

Contents

Career

Mäkinen won the Group N Finnish Rally Championship driving a Lancia Delta HF 4WD in 1988. Mäkinen's first world rally win came on the 1994 1000 Lakes Rally (now Neste Rally Finland), in a Ford Escort RS Cosworth. Mäkinen proved a late developer by the standards of some in rallying circles, only nabbing his first full-time manufacturer seat in a Group A formula Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution alongside former Group A rally champion Swede Kenneth Eriksson, in 1995 - but success was to prove spontaneous thereafter.

A cultured Safari Rally win in 1996 proved the platform on which to build a dominant championship lead, which he consolidated by taking the title in Australia, away from runner-up, Subaru's Colin McRae - a long-time rival. He proceeded to win every drivers' title for Mitsubishi from 1996 to 1999. The Mitsubishi team, with the Finn and young Briton Richard Burns among its driver personnel, also won its sole manufacturers' championship in 1998, while late that same year, the licensed Tommi Mäkinen Rally video game was also released. In 2000, despite opening his campaign with victory on the January Monte Carlo Rally, Mäkinen finally relinquished his grasp on the title, being beaten in the standings by new title holder and fellow Finn, Marcus Grönholm. That year Mitsubishi produced a 'Tommi Mäkinen edition' of the road version of the Lancer Evolution VI to commemorate his previous title successes. This car had a different front bumper than the regular Evolution VI, while some models also featured a red and white paint job to closely resemble Mäkinen's rally car.[1]

Mäkinen remained with Mitsubishi until the end of the 2001 season, having finished third in that year's standings behind Burns and McRae, by now respectively drivers for Subaru and Ford - but not before the inauspicious introduction of team's first ever World Rally Car on the San Remo Rally. Mäkinen and team-mate Freddy Loix struggled with the car before the Finn's crash on the mountainside roads of the following round in Corsica was responsible for breaking co-driver Mannisenmäki's back and in doing so, virtually end his top-line career. The Finn was forced to fare with substitute co-drivers for the remaining events in Australia and Great Britain, the latter of which he retired from, helping Burns to claim the championship.

A move to the Prodrive-run Subaru World Rally Team for 2002 as replacement for Burns (who had chosen to drive a works Peugeot 206 WRC alongside Gronholm for his title defence) yielded one more, final career victory, on the 2002 Monte Carlo Rally where a technical infringement committed by on-the-road winner, and emerging talent, Sébastien Loeb, allowed Mäkinen to upstage the Frenchman. But his form then took a dive and he was not to add again to his tally of world titles.

He retired from the sport at the end of the 2003 season with third place on that year's Rally Great Britain.

WRC victories

Number Event Season Co-driver Car
1 44th 1000 Lakes Rally 1994 Seppo Harjanne Ford Escort RS Cosworth
2 45th International Swedish Rally 1996 Seppo Harjanne Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 3
3 44th Safari Rally Kenya 1996 Seppo Harjanne Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 3
4 16º Rally Argentina 1996 Seppo Harjanne Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 3
5 46th Neste 1000 Lakes Rally 1996 Seppo Harjanne Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 3
6 9th API Rally Australia 1996 Seppo Harjanne Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 3
7 30º TAP Rallye de Portugal 1997 Seppo Harjanne Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 4
8 33º Rallye Catalunya-Costa Brava (Rallye de España) 1997 Seppo Harjanne Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 4
9 17º Rally Argentina 1997 Seppo Harjanne Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 4
10 47th Neste Rally Finland 1997 Risto Mannisenmäki Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 4
11 47th International Swedish Rally 1998 Risto Mannisenmäki Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 4
12 18º Rally Argentina 1998 Risto Mannisenmäki Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 5
13 48th Neste Rally Finland 1998 Risto Mannisenmäki Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 5
14 40º Rallye Sanremo - Rallye d'Italia 1998 Risto Mannisenmäki Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 5
15 11th API Rally Australia 1998 Risto Mannisenmäki Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 5
16 67ème Rallye Automobile de Monte-Carlo 1999 Risto Mannisenmäki Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6
17 48th International Swedish Rally 1999 Risto Mannisenmäki Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6
18 29th Rally New Zealand 1999 Risto Mannisenmäki Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6
19 41º Rallye Sanremo - Rallye d'Italia 1999 Risto Mannisenmäki Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6
20 68ème Rallye Automobile de Monte-Carlo 2000 Risto Mannisenmäki Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6
21 69ème Rallye Automobile de Monte-Carlo 2001 Risto Mannisenmäki Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6.5
22 35º TAP Rallye de Portugal 2001 Risto Mannisenmäki Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6.5
23 49th Safari Rally Kenya 2001 Risto Mannisenmäki Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6.5
24 70ème Rallye Automobile de Monte-Carlo 2002 Kaj Lindström Subaru Impreza WRC2001

WRC results

Year Entrant Car 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 WDC Points
1987 Tommi Mäkinen Lancia Delta HF 4WD MON SWE POR KEN FRA GRC USA NZL ARG FIN
Ret
CIV ITA GBR - 0
1988 Tommi Mäkkinen Lancia Delta HF 4WD MON SWE POR KEN FRA GRC USA NZL ARG FIN
Ret
CIV ITA - 0
Mu-Uutiset 4 Rombi Corse Lancia Delta Integrale GBR
Ret
1989 Tommi Mäkkinen Lancia Delta Integrale SWE
Ret
MON POR KEN FRA GRC NZL ARG FIN
Ret
AUS ITA CIV GBR - 0
1990 Pro Sport Rally Team Mitsubishi Galant VR-4 MON POR KEN FRA GRC NZL
6
ARG FIN
11
AUS
7
ITA
13
CIV GBR
Ret
24th 10
1991 Promoracing Finland Ford Sierra RS Cosworth 4x4 MON SWE
13
31st 8
Tommi Mäkinen POR
Ret
KEN FRA GRC
Promoracing Finland Mitsubishi Galant VR-4 NZL
Ret
ARG
Mazda Rally Team Europe Mazda 323 GTX FIN
5
AUS ITA CIV ESP GBR
Ret
1992 Nissan Motorsports Europe Nissan Sunny GTI-R MON
9
SWE POR
Ret
KEN FRA GRC NZL ARG FIN
Ret
AUS ITA CIV ESP GBR
8
40th 5
1993 Astra Lancia Delta HF Integrale MON SWE
4
POR KEN FRA GRE
6
ARG NZL FIN
4
AUS ITA ESP GBR 10th 26
1994 Nissan F2 Nissan Sunny GTI MON POR
Ret
KEN FRA GRE ARG NZL GBR
9
10th 22
Ford Motor Co Ford Escort RS Cosworth FIN
1
Mitsubishi Ralliart Mitsubishi Lancer Evo II ITA
Ret
1995 Mitsubishi Ralliart Mitsubishi Lancer Evo II MON
4
SWE
2
5th 38
Mitsubishi Lancer Evo III POR FRA
8
NZL
Ret
AUS
4
ESP
Ret
GBR
Ret
1996 Mitsubishi Ralliart Mitsubishi Lancer Evo III SWE
1
KEN
1
IDN
Ret
GRE
2
ARG
1
FIN
1
AUS
1
ITA
Ret
ESP
5
1st 123
1997 Mitsubishi Ralliart Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IV MON
3
SWE
3
KEN
Ret
POR
1
ESP
1
FRA
Ret
ARG
1
GRE
3
NZL
Ret
FIN
1
IDN
Ret
ITA
3
AUS
2
GBR
6
1st 63
1998 Mitsubishi Ralliart Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IV MON
Ret
SWE
1
KEN
Ret
POR
Ret
1st 58
Mitsubishi Lancer Evo V ESP
3
FRA
Ret
ARG
1
GRE
Ret
NZL
3
FIN
1
ITA
1
AUS
1
GBR
Ret
1999 Marlboro Mitsubishi Ralliart Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VI MON
1
SWE
1
KEN
DSQ
POR
5
ESP
3
FRA
6
ARG
4
GRE
3
NZL
1
FIN
Ret
CHN
Ret
ITA
1
AUS
3
GBR
Ret
1st 62
2000 Marlboro Mitsubishi Ralliart Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VI MON
1
SWE
2
KEN
Ret
POR
Ret
ESP
4
ARG
3
GRE
Ret
NZL
Ret
FIN
4
CYP
5
FRA
Ret
ITA
3
AUS
DSQ
GBR
3
5th 36
2001 Marlboro Mitsubishi Ralliart Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6.5 MON
1
SWE
Ret
POR
1
ESP
3
ARG
4
CYP
Ret
GRE
4
KEN
1
FIN
Ret
NZL
8
3rd 41
Mitsubishi Lancer Evo WRC ITA
Ret
FRA
Ret
AUS
6
GBR
Ret
2002 555 Subaru World Rally Team Subaru Impreza WRC2001 MON
1
SWE
Ret
8th 22
Subaru Impreza WRC2002 FRA
Ret
ESP
Ret
CYP
3
ARG
Ret
GRE
Ret
KEN
Ret
FIN
6
GER
7
ITA
Ret
NZL
3
AUS
DSQ
GBR
4
2003 555 Subaru World Rally Team Subaru Impreza WRC2003 MON
Ret
SWE
2
TUR
8
NZL
7
ARG
Ret
GRE
5
CYP
Ret
GER
Ret
FIN
6
AUS
6
ITA
10
FRA
7
ESP
8
GBR
3
8th 30

References

External links

Awards and achievements
Preceded by
Colin McRae
Autosport
International Rally Driver Award

1996, 1997 (shared with Colin McRae), 1998, 1999
Succeeded by
Richard Burns
Sporting positions
Preceded by
Colin McRae
World Rally Champion
1996, 1997, 1998, 1999
Succeeded by
Marcus Grönholm
Preceded by
Inaugural event
Race of Champions
Nations' Cup

1999 with:
JJ Lehto
Kari Tiainen
Succeeded by
Régis Laconi
Yvan Muller
Gilles Panizzi
Preceded by
Didier Auriol
Race of Champions
Champion of Champions

2000
Succeeded by
Harri Rovanperä
Records
Preceded by
Juha Kankkunen
23 wins

(1979, 1982-2002, 2010)
Most Rally wins
24 wins
,
24th at the 2002 Monte Carlo Rally
Succeeded by
Colin McRae
25 wins
,
25th at the 2002 Safari Rally