Race of Champions dates back to 1988. It all started as a «cabal» racers. Actually the first race was dedicated to the tenth anniversary of the appearance of the World Rally Championship among the pilots.
The composition of the first race was cooler to go — on the road Montlhéry near Paris srzilis eight world rally champion, win their titles from 1979 to 1988: Bjorn Waldegard, Walter Rerl, Ari Vatanen, Hannu Mikkola, Stig Blomqvist, Timo Salonen, Juha Kankkunen and Miki Biasion.
And the cars were matched eminent racers — Peugeot 205 Turbo 16, Audi Quattro S1, Lancia Delta Integrale, BMW M3, Ford Sierra Cosworth and Opel Manta 400. Whatever the car, the Legend!
The first race of champions Juha Kankkunen won — the last world champion since the group B.
The following year, the Race of Champions hosted the legendary Nürburgring. 53 thousand spectators witness the battle, won by Stig Blomqvist — Swede in the final race ahead of local favorite Walter Rerlya.
An important innovation, introduced in 1989, was the use of parallel lines, when just two riders started at the same time were full-time struggle. This arrangement lasted until today.
1990 — a new location, but old winner. On the track at the Olympic center of Barcelona he won all the same Blomkvist. Swede second consecutive year, «offended» local favorite — this time it was the newcomer of the race, just became World Rally Champion Carlos Sainz.
In the same year, a new qualifying race called the International Rally Masters. Pilots who have not yet become world champions, had the opportunity to be among the participants of the Race of Champions, after passing through a sieve of IRM. Thanks to this, Kenneth Eriksson and Tommy Makinen appeared in major races ROC, and the Finn also reached the final.
In 1991, Sainz're not lucky — in the race held on the track Jarama in Madrid, the Spaniard did not pass beyond the semi-finals. He won the Race of Champions Juha Kankkunen.
From 1992 to 2003 — over ten years — Race of Champions was held in the Canary Islands. The track on the island of Gran Canaria gave the audience a number of interesting battles and bitter struggle.
The winners of the race in the Canary Islands became Andrea Agin, Didier Auriol (four), Francois Delekur, Carlos Sainz, Colin McRae, Tommi Makinen, Harri Rovanpera, Marcus Gronholm and Sebastien Loeb.
This Hall of Fame of the world rally. But over the Race of Champions in its original form began to thicken the clouds...
It all began in 1999, when the organizers have created a Nations Cup. This has allowed to reach the start of the race the riders of the other car and Motor Racing series. Koltseviki first looked at the gravel road Race of Champions at least funny. But everything changed in 2004 when the race moved to Paris on the asphalt track, laid on the Stade de France.
In the final, meet world champion Sebastien Loeb Rally and World Champion, the pilot of «Formula 1» Heikki Kovalainen. I won the Finn. A pair of finalists in the semi-finals to cut themselves with Michael Schumacher and Marcus Gronholm.
Race of Champions in Paris was delayed for another two years — the winner is the rally driver Loeb and koltsevik Mattias Ekström. This was followed by a two-year tour in the UK, and at Wembley Stadium was won all the same Ekstrom and Loeb. Race of Champions 2009, China again won extra — this is the beginning to bother!
The winner of the race in 2010 — it was held in Germany — the surprise of absolutely all. Ahead of the final race of Michael Schumacher, won the Philip Albuquerque.
In 2011, the Race of Champions took place again in Düsseldorf and this time she had a winner-rally driver — ROC debutant Sebastien Ogier. Then came the trip to Asia — the race in 2012 in Thailand won Romain Grosjean. In 2013 the race was not carried out, and in 2014 it won by David Coulthard — races were held in Barbados.
This year's Race of Champions was held in Great Britain, the track was laid at the Olympic Stadium in London. The composition of the very finest, but there was not a single acting rally driver! The fundamental basis of the race completely forgotten...
A significant part of the list of participants were current and former racer «Formula 1», as well as test pilots, they had accumulated as many as ten, that is exactly half of Sebastian Vettel, Nico, Daniel Ricardo, Felipe Massa, Nelson Piquet Jr., David Coulthard Susie Wolff, Romain Grosjean, Jolyon Palmer and Jenson Button.
And it was in 2015 terrible happened — at the start of the race, starts its journey as a competition of rally champions, there was no place... racers! Yes, the race took part ex-World Rally Champion Petter Solberg, but now it is a rally-cross. Acting as rallisty go overboard.
The winner of the Race of Champions 2015, held in London, has become Sebastian Vettel. In the final he beat Tom Kristensen. Nations Cup — to the delight of the local fans — was for the British team as part of Andy Priaulx and Jason Plato.
And, after all, it used to be better...
