1985 – 1994: All About the WRC Rally by Rally

By Chad Miller

DO YOU KNOW THE BEST YEARS OF THE MOST IMPORTANT RALLY COMPETITION IN THE WORLD?

 

In the mid-1980s, the World Rally Championship was already a reality and had become a mass phenomenon. The various rounds of the championship had become an annual tradition that delighted the growing number of fans who followed these vehicles capable of racing at the limit on asphalt, dirt, gravel or snow...

In this way, Alpine-Renault had become the first champion of the competition in the hands of the incredible Jean-Luc Thérier, the Lancia Stratos had dominated thanks to drivers like Sandro Munari, and vehicles like the Fiat 131 Abarth showed their power rally after rally.

 

In 1985, where this second volume of the series begins, the Lancia Rally 037 was fighting with the all-powerful Audi Quattro, which with its revolutionary four-wheel drive had won the 1982 and 1984 constructors' and 1983 and 1984 drivers' world championships. But Peugeot was also making its appearance with a magnificent end to the 1984 season.

 

However, it would not be any of these brands that would mark an epoch between the end of the 1980s and the beginning of the 1990s. Throughout these pages, you will enjoy the rise and fall of one of the most brilliant vehicles of this competition, the Lancia Delta, and its exciting rivalry with the Toyota Celica, through legendary drivers such as Juha Kankkunen, Didier Auriol, Carlos Sainz or Miki Biasion. All this, without forgetting the omnipresence of Ford and the thrust of Mitsubishi and Subaru.

 

In this book you will be able to enjoy this part of the history of the World Rally Championship, in a race-by-race format so that you can relive the evolution of the competition through its main protagonists.

 

In this book you will find:

- Peugeot's first successes in the championship with the Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 of Timo Salonen and Juha Kankkunen.

- The fateful 1985 Corsica rally in which Attilio Bettega lost his life.

- The 1986 Portugal disaster and the massive accident of Joaquim Santos among the fans.

- The rise of one of the most dominant vehicles of the competition, the Lancia Delta

- Henri Toivonen's fatal accident in Corsica in 1986 and the debate over the safety of Group B cars that ended with the end of one of the most legendary categories

- Peugeot's controversial disqualification at the 1986 San Remo Rally and its drastic effect on the drivers' championship

- Miki Biasion's glory beyond his two world championships

- The rivalry between the Lancia Delta and the Toyota Celica, as represented through the successful Kankkunen and Carlos Sainz.

- The disaster and retirement of the Lancia Delta to mark an era in the world championship

- The attempt of the Ford Escort RS Cosworth to join the fight for the title through François Delecour and Biasion.

- The timid breakthrough and occasional successes of Kenneth Eriksson's Mitsubishi Galant VR-4 and Colin McRae's Subaru Legacy RS, giving rise to the subsequent Japanese ague in the competition.

 

All this and much more in a journey through a wonderful stage of the World Rally Championship through each of its events. Ready to relive each of its rallies again?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Chad Miller
• Release date: Mar 28, 2024
• ISBN: 9798224072675

Book preview

Introduction

In the mid-1980s, the World Rally Championship was already a reality and had become a mass phenomenon. After the difficult first years that gave rise to the competition, the first champions became legends and the different tests of the championship became an annual tradition that made the more and more fans who followed these vehicles capable of racing at limit on asphalt, dirt, gravel or snow...

In this way, Alpine-Renault became the first champion of the competition in the hands of the incredible Jean-Luc Thérier, the Lancia Stratos dominated thanks to drivers like Sandro Munari, and vehicles like the Fiat 131 Abarth showed their power rally after rally.

In 1985, where this second volume begins, the Lancia Rally 037 fought with the almighty Audi Quattro, which with its revolutionary four-wheel drive had won the constructors' world championships in 1982 and 1984, and the drivers' championships in 1983 and 1984. But In addition, Peugeot appeared on the scene with a magnificent end to the 1984 season.

However, it would not be any of these brands that would mark an era between the end of the 80s and the beginning of the 90s. Throughout these pages, you will be able to enjoy the rise and fall of one of the most brilliant vehicles in this competition. , the Lancia Delta, and its exciting rivalry with the Toyota Celica, through legendary drivers such as Juha Kankkunen, Didier Auriol, Carlos Sainz or Miki Biasion. All this, without forgetting the omnipresence of Ford.

In this book you will be able to enjoy this part of the history of the World Rally Championship, in a race-by-race format so that you can relive the evolution of the competition as it was. I hope that, through these lines, you enjoy and can relive the magical moments in the history of this competition.

1985

Monte Carlo Rally 

In 1985, the repeated fight between Audi and Lancia was expected, which had taken place in the last years of the championship, after the success of the German brand's four-wheel drive and the recent organization between Group B and Group A cars. .

However, at the end of 1984 Peugeot had appeared as a surprise, winning the last three rounds scoring for the constructors' championship and becoming a real threat. For 1985, unlike the previous season, the French manufacturer prepared itself with a full program to try to fight for the championship.

Montecarlo reopened a new season with the intention of dispelling doubts, and the Principality test served to demonstrate that the start of 1985 was a continuation of 1984.

The Finn Ari Vatanen achieved victory with the Peugeot 205 Turbo 16, which indicated that the French manufacturer continued with the level with which it had finished the previous season, ready to end the dominance of Audi and Lancia. Timo Salonen, also with Peugeot, got the third place for the best debut of the French brand.

Resultado de imagen para ari vatanen monte carlo 1985

Second was Walter Röhrl with the Audi Quattro Sport. Also in the Audi, Stig Blomqvist was fourth. Meanwhile, the first Lancia driver was Henri Toivonen, sixth, with Biasion finishing ninth and starting the Italian marathon one step behind.

Rally Sweden 

Sweden, which had gradually ceased to be Saab territory, turned into a battle between Peugeot and Audi. Lancia did not show up and began to fall behind in the fight for the title.

What did not change was the dominance of the Scandinavian drivers and Ari Vatanen achieved another victory, while Salonen was third, repeating the same positions from Monte Carlo for Peugeot.

Resultado de imagen para ari vatanen sweden 1985

Audi took second place again, this time with Swedish driver Stig Blomqvist. He also took all the places from fourth to seventh with Hannu Mikkola, Per Eklund, Gunnar Pettersson and Mikael Ericsson, with a variety of vehicles such as the Audi Sport Qattro, Audi 80 Quattro and Audi Quattro A2.

With two tests completed, Peugeot's dominance was confirmed, Audi's options were confirmed and it remained to be seen whether Lancia would be able to join the fray.

Rally of Portugal 

In Portugal, Peugeot's dominance continued. Although Ari Vatanen had to retire due to a broken engine, his compatriot Timo Salonen was in charge of getting the victory for the French constructor that converted all his participations in 1985 into victories.

Resultado de imagen para timo salonen portugal 1985

Second was Biasion with the Lancia Rally 037, thus giving the Italian manufacturer some hope to join the fight for the championship. Third and fourth were Röhrl and Blomqvist, both in the Audi Sport Quattro, which, despite Peugeot's dominance, continued to perform well.

The Ford Escort RS1800 achieved sixth and seventh place with local drivers (José Miguel and Carlos Bica), but far from the good results of previous years.

Safari Rally 

In Kenya, a change in the dynamics of the season was expected, until now dominated by Peugeot. The demanding characteristics of the African event gave rise to the hope that the victory would not be for the French manufacturer again.

The best Peugeot was that of Timo Salonen in sixth position, with Ari Vatanen retiring due to a breakdown and Bruno Saby due to an accident.

It was Toyota who claimed victory in Kenya, again a Japanese manufacturer triumphing at the African event, as Nissan had done so many times before. The historic Juha Kankkunen thus achieved his first victory, with the Swedish Björn Waldegard in second position also with the Toyota Celica TCT.

Resultado de imagen para JUHA KANKKUNEN safari 1985

Mike Kirkland completed the podium in a Nissan 240 RS while Opel put in a strong showing with Rauno Aaltonen fourth and Erwin Weber fifth.

Audi did not have a good rally, with Mikkola retiring due to engine failure and Blomqvist due to gearbox.

Corsica Rally 

The 1985 Corsica rally would unfortunately be remembered for the hard accident of the Italian driver Attilio Bettega. In the fourth special, the Lancia Rally 037 lost grip and hit a tree. Bettega was killed instantly while his co-driver, the luckier Maurizio Perissinot, emerged from the crash unharmed. This tragic accident fueled a debate that would have consequences later, the excessive power of Group B vehicles