Richard Burns
Encyclopedia
Richard Alexander Burns (17 January 1971 – 25 November 2005) was an English rally
driver. He was born in Reading, Berkshire
. He was the 2001 World Rally
Champion, having previously finished runner-up in the series in 1999 and 2000. He also helped Mitsubishi
to the world manufacturers' title in 1998, and Peugeot
in 2002. His co-driver from the 1991
to 2003 seasons was Robert Reid.
. At eleven Burns joined the Under 17 Car Club, where he became driver of the year in 1984. Just two years later his father arranged a trip to Jan Churchill's Welsh
Forest Rally School near Newtown, Powys where Burns drove a Ford Escort
for the day, and from that moment on he knew what he wanted to do. He badgered his father into letting him join the Craven Motor Club in his home town Reading where his talent was spotted by rally enthusiast David Williams. In 1988 he entered his first rallies in his own Talbot Sunbeam. The car was too basic to make much impression and in 1989 he had to borrow other competitors cars in order to progress. To this end he rallied the stages of Panaround, Bagshot, Mid-Wales, Millbrook, Severn Valley, Kayel Graphics and the Cambrian Rally as these were all rallies which included stages used on more prestigious events.
In 1990 he joined the Peugeot
Challenge after David Williams bought Burns a Peugeot 205 GTI. He got his first taste of a World Rally Championship event in Great Britain as a prize for winning the Peugeot
Challenge that year. In 1991 Burns met Robert Reid, the man who was to become his co-driver for the next 12 years. For 1992 Williams bought Burns a Group N Subaru Legacy
and with the support of Prodrive won the National Championship. This year also saw Burns help out Colin McRae
with his gravel notes as Prodrive saw him as a promising driver for the future.
In 1993 he joined the Subaru
Rally Team for the British Rally Championship
alongside Alister McRae
where he won four rallies on the Vauxhall Sport, Pirelli
, Scottish, and Manx International stages delivering Burns the title of the series' youngest ever champion that year.
Ralliart
at international level, seized upon with sufficient vigour to guide Burns to victory on that year's Rally New Zealand
- albeit then, only a fixture within the Asia-Pacific Rally Championship
. Even so, the fending off of such calibre competition as works-backed Subaru
heavyweights Kenneth Eriksson
and Piero Liatti
only added gloss to an increasingly fervoured reputation. Come 1998, he had won his maiden World Rally Championship event on the treacherous stages of the Safari Rally
, piloting a Mitsubishi Lancer
Evo. He added a second career victory on his swansong outing for Mitsubishi on that year's Rally Great Britain, the event where the dramatic late retirement from fourth of Toyota's Carlos Sainz
secured the drivers' title for his team-mate and first leg
super special stage retiree on a patch of oil
, Tommi Makinen
, as well as confirming the constructors' accolade for Mitsubishi.
Burns moved to the Prodrive
-run Subaru World Rally Team
under David Richards
for the 1999 season, joining Juha Kankkunen
and Bruno Thiry
as part of the factory team driving Subaru Impreza WRCs, replacing Ford
-bound fellow Briton, Colin McRae
. Burns worked his way to a career high of second place in the drivers' standings, adding to his win tally. He also led Subaru to second in the constructors' series behind the Formula One
departing Toyota team. On that year's Rally Argentina
, he was upstaged for victory by virtue of a team order mix-up by veteran team-mate Kankkunen. He was a long-time contender for the title in 2000, but crashed out on the Rally Finland
in mid-season handing the momentum to eventual champion, and future team-mate, the Peugeot driver Marcus Grönholm
who had been competing in his first year as a full-time factory driver. Even so, a stirling comeback from the lower reaches of the top thirty to win on the season-ending Rally of Great Britain kept the Burns name well entrenched within public consciousness.
The 2001 rally season began inauspiciously for Burns - neither of the season curtain raisers, the Monte Carlo Rally
or the Swedish Rally
, yielded points scores, placing in peril before it had begun, the Englishman's title bid. Fourth place in a rain-drenched Portugal kicked his campaign into action prior to second place finishes on the gravel rallies of Argentina
and Cyprus
, on both occasions to Ford's Colin McRae. Nonetheless, both the Scotsman and Monte Carlo victor Tommi Makinen were later to hit upon snags of their own, while Burns' own consistent points scoring culminated in a first and only individual rally victory of the season in New Zealand, with McRae beaten into second. Burns then finished second on the Rally Australia
to close within two points of new standalone series leader McRae, although the Scotsman and Makinen were to struggle to fifth and sixth respectively on this event (and the last of the drivers' points-scoring positions) amid controversy over McRae arriving to time control too late at the end of the first leg of the event to be able to choose a favourable running order on the ball-bearing gravel
for day two. Meanwhile the Finn, for his part, continued to struggle with a newly homologated version of the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution
World Rally Car
he had been entrusted with, which had only been introduced by his team a few rounds earlier in San Remo
. A four-way title decider, also including nine-point adrift outsider, Ford driver Carlos Sainz, thus beckoned on the final round of the series in Great Britain.
There, all three of Burns' rivals were to have suffered retirement from the event by the end of the second leg proceedings on Saturday. On Sunday, November 25, 2001, therefore, Burns' third place finish behind Peugeot duo Gronholm and Harri Rovanpera
enabled him to become the first Englishman to win the World Rally Championship. When Richard passed the finishing line at the final stage of the final rally in 2001, Burns uttered words thought to be paying tribute to his codriver Robert Reid: "You're the best in the world". To commemorate the title success, Subaru produced a special edition of the Subaru Impreza in the UK called the RB5http://www.rb5oc.co.ukhttp://stefanostadal.homedns.org/car_impreza.htm. A messy legal battle ensued for the Englishman's services for the following 2002 season, from which fresh suitors, 2000 and 2001 manufacturers' champions Peugeot emerged victorious.
for the 2002 season. Although Peugeot
were the pacesetting team of the period, Burns had difficulty matching the pace of team-mates Marcus Grönholm
(on gravel) and Gilles Panizzi
(on tarmac). Therefore the existing tally of ten WRC triumphs were not to be added to, with the quest for a second world title proving equally fruitless for Burns. He cobbled together a title challenge, albeit founded more on regular podium finishes than on victories, for much of the 2003 season - a feat which did not convince him to remain at the wheel of the 206 WRC
. The gloomy prospect of a continued winning drought with the French team left Burns poised to rejoin Subaru, having signed for them for the second time beginning with the 2004 season, the ploy being to couple him with the eventual 2003 title winner, Norway's Petter Solberg
. In November 2003, however, with the Englishman heading to the season-ending Wales Rally GB still with a chance of winning the title, Burns suffered a blackout while driving with Ford driver Markko Märtin
to the rally. He was withdrawn from the event, and thus the title fight, and was later diagnosed with an astrocytoma
, a type of malignant brain tumour. Treatment during 2004 was followed by surgery in April 2005 that was described as "very successful".
, London, aged 34, after having been in a coma for some days as a result of a brain tumour.
The British television show Top Gear
, well known for its irreverent attitude toward most celebrities, aired a tribute to Burns during the December 4, 2005 show. The host, Jeremy Clarkson
, said that "the news has been completely dominated, as far as we're concerned, by the sad death of Richard Burns." After playing a montage of Richard Burns footage, Clarkson, who lived near Burns, shared an anecdote about Burns playing video games with Clarkson's 7-year-old son and commented, "He was just such a nice guy. I'm going to miss him...badly." No other motoring news was announced in that episode. Burns had previously appeared on Top Gear twice, once touting rallying as more interesting and influential than Formula One
, and then test-driving the Peugeot RC
. Apart from the Top Gear Tribute and others from the motorsport media, media coverage and public attention to his death was overshadowed by that of football legend George Best
, who died on the same day.
A memorial service for Burns was held at St Luke's Church in Chelsea on Thursday 22 December 2005, with readings from BBC TV's Jeremy Clarkson
and Steve Rider
, and a tribute paid by one of Burns' closest friends, photographer Colin McMaster. Subaru
also paid tribute to Burns at Castle Combe
in 2006, when over 50 Subaru Impreza RB5s took to the track, including the RB5 number #001 driven by Alex Burns, Richard's father.
During the 2006 Goodwood Festival of Speed
, a charity was founded in his name with a purpose to "inspire and support people with serious injury and illness", named RB Foundation. The foundation also raises money for the Michael Park Fund, which deals with improving safety in motorsport events.
Subaru released a special edition Impreza WRX STI in 2007 - the RB320 - in memory of Burns. It features a 320 bhp (240 kW) Prodrive Performance Pack, Prodrive
developed suspension, sports spring kit and is available only in obsidian black colour. Proceeds went to the RB Foundation.
The Scottish band Travis
dedicated their album The Boy With No Name
to Burns' memory.
He is survived by his girlfriend Zoe Keen.
Rallying
Rallying, also known as rally racing, is a form of auto racing that takes place on public or private roads with modified production or specially built road-legal cars...
driver. He was born in Reading, Berkshire
Reading, Berkshire
Reading is a large town and unitary authority area in England. It is located in the Thames Valley at the confluence of the River Thames and River Kennet, and on both the Great Western Main Line railway and the M4 motorway, some west of London....
. He was the 2001 World Rally
World Rally Championship
The World Rally Championship is a rallying series organised by the FIA, culminating with a champion driver and manufacturer. The driver's world championship and manufacturer's world championship are separate championships, but based on the same point system. The series currently consists of 13...
Champion, having previously finished runner-up in the series in 1999 and 2000. He also helped Mitsubishi
Mitsubishi
The Mitsubishi Group , Mitsubishi Group of Companies, or Mitsubishi Companies is a Japanese multinational conglomerate company that consists of a range of autonomous businesses which share the Mitsubishi brand, trademark and legacy...
to the world manufacturers' title in 1998, and Peugeot
Peugeot
Peugeot is a major French car brand, part of PSA Peugeot Citroën, the second largest carmaker based in Europe.The family business that precedes the current Peugeot company was founded in 1810, and manufactured coffee mills and bicycles. On 20 November 1858, Emile Peugeot applied for the lion...
in 2002. His co-driver from the 1991
1991 World Rally Championship season
The 1991 World Rally Championship season was the 19th season of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile World Rally Championship . The season consisted of 14 rallies. The drivers' world championship was won by Juha Kankkunen in a Lancia Delta Integrale 16V, ahead of Carlos Sainz and Didier...
to 2003 seasons was Robert Reid.
Pre-WRC
He started driving in a field near his house at the age of eight, in his father's old Triumph 2000Triumph 2000
The Triumph 2000 is a mid-sized, rear wheel drive automobile which was produced in Coventry by the Triumph Motor Company between 1963 and 1977. Larger-engined models, known as the Triumph 2.5 PI and Triumph 2500 were also produced.-Engine:...
. At eleven Burns joined the Under 17 Car Club, where he became driver of the year in 1984. Just two years later his father arranged a trip to Jan Churchill's Welsh
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
Forest Rally School near Newtown, Powys where Burns drove a Ford Escort
Ford Escort (European)
The Mark I Ford Escort was introduced in the United Kingdom at the end of 1967, making its show debut at Brussels Motor Show in January 1968. It replaced the successful long running Anglia. The car was presented in continental Europe as a product of Ford's European operation...
for the day, and from that moment on he knew what he wanted to do. He badgered his father into letting him join the Craven Motor Club in his home town Reading where his talent was spotted by rally enthusiast David Williams. In 1988 he entered his first rallies in his own Talbot Sunbeam. The car was too basic to make much impression and in 1989 he had to borrow other competitors cars in order to progress. To this end he rallied the stages of Panaround, Bagshot, Mid-Wales, Millbrook, Severn Valley, Kayel Graphics and the Cambrian Rally as these were all rallies which included stages used on more prestigious events.
In 1990 he joined the Peugeot
Peugeot
Peugeot is a major French car brand, part of PSA Peugeot Citroën, the second largest carmaker based in Europe.The family business that precedes the current Peugeot company was founded in 1810, and manufactured coffee mills and bicycles. On 20 November 1858, Emile Peugeot applied for the lion...
Challenge after David Williams bought Burns a Peugeot 205 GTI. He got his first taste of a World Rally Championship event in Great Britain as a prize for winning the Peugeot
Peugeot
Peugeot is a major French car brand, part of PSA Peugeot Citroën, the second largest carmaker based in Europe.The family business that precedes the current Peugeot company was founded in 1810, and manufactured coffee mills and bicycles. On 20 November 1858, Emile Peugeot applied for the lion...
Challenge that year. In 1991 Burns met Robert Reid, the man who was to become his co-driver for the next 12 years. For 1992 Williams bought Burns a Group N Subaru Legacy
Subaru Legacy
The Subaru Legacy is a mid-size car built by the Japanese company Fuji Heavy Industries, and manufactured by its division Subaru since 1989, and is available as a sedan or wagon. Part of the original design goals for the Legacy model was to provide Subaru a vehicle in which they could compete in...
and with the support of Prodrive won the National Championship. This year also saw Burns help out Colin McRae
Colin McRae
Colin Steele McRae, MBE was a Scottish rally driver born in Lanark.The son of five-time British Rally Champion Jimmy McRae and brother of rally driver Alister McRae, Colin McRae was the 1991 and 1992 British Rally Champion and, in 1995, became the first British person and the youngest to win the...
with his gravel notes as Prodrive saw him as a promising driver for the future.
In 1993 he joined the Subaru
Subaru
; is the automobile manufacturing division of Japanese transportation conglomerate Fuji Heavy Industries .Subaru is internationally known for their use of the boxer engine layout popularized in cars by the Volkswagen Beetle and Porsche 911, in most of their vehicles above 1500 cc as well as...
Rally Team for the British Rally Championship
British Rally Championship
The Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship is a yearly rallying series based in the United Kingdom. It comprises seven events with eight scoring opportunities throughout the British Isles. The first championship was run in 1958 and it has been licensed by the MSA Motor Sports Association since...
alongside Alister McRae
Alister McRae
Alister McRae is a Scottish rally driver, who competed in the World Rally Championship. He is the son of the five-time British Rally Champion Jimmy McRae and the younger brother of the late 1995 World Rally Champion, Colin McRae...
where he won four rallies on the Vauxhall Sport, Pirelli
Pirelli
Pirelli & C. SpA is a diverse multinational company based in Milan, Italy. The company, the world’s fifth largest tyre manufacturer, is present in over 160 countries, has 20 manufacturing sites around the world and a network of around 10,000 distributors and retailers.Founded in Milan in 1872,...
, Scottish, and Manx International stages delivering Burns the title of the series' youngest ever champion that year.
1996-1998: Mitsubishi
1996 saw an opening with MitsubishiMitsubishi Motors
is a multinational automaker headquartered in Minato, Tokyo. In 2009 it was the fifth-largest Japan-based automaker and the 17th-largest in the world measured by production...
Ralliart
Ralliart
Ralliart was the high-performance and motorsports division of Mitsubishi Motors. It was responsible for development and preparation of the company's rally racing and off-road racing vehicles, as well as the development of high-performance models and parts available to the public...
at international level, seized upon with sufficient vigour to guide Burns to victory on that year's Rally New Zealand
Rally New Zealand
The Rally New Zealand was first held in Taupo in 1969, and was subsequently staged in Canterbury, before moving back to the North Island in 1971.The rally was included as a round of the World Championship in 1977...
- albeit then, only a fixture within the Asia-Pacific Rally Championship
Asia-Pacific Rally Championship
The Asia-Pacific Rally Championship is an international rally championship organized by the FIA. The championship was first held in 1988 and won by Japan's Kenjiro Shinozuka in a Mitsubishi Galant VR-4. Other winners include the two-time World Rally Champion Carlos Sainz of Spain and the 1986...
. Even so, the fending off of such calibre competition as works-backed Subaru
Subaru
; is the automobile manufacturing division of Japanese transportation conglomerate Fuji Heavy Industries .Subaru is internationally known for their use of the boxer engine layout popularized in cars by the Volkswagen Beetle and Porsche 911, in most of their vehicles above 1500 cc as well as...
heavyweights Kenneth Eriksson
Kenneth Eriksson
Kenneth Eriksson is a now retired World Rally Championship rally driver. He drove for several manufacturer teams, including the Subaru World Rally Team, Mitsubishi, Hyundai and Škoda...
and Piero Liatti
Piero Liatti
Piero Liatti is an Italian rally driver. His speciality was driving on Tarmac rallies like Monte Carlo, Catalunya, Corsica and the San Remo Rally.-Biography:...
only added gloss to an increasingly fervoured reputation. Come 1998, he had won his maiden World Rally Championship event on the treacherous stages of the Safari Rally
Safari Rally
The Safari Rally is considered by many to be the world's toughest rally. It was first held from 27 May to 1 June 1953 as the East African Coronation Safari in Kenya, Uganda and Tanganyika, as a celebration of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II...
, piloting a Mitsubishi Lancer
Mitsubishi Lancer
The Mitsubishi Lancer is a family car built by Mitsubishi Motors. It has been known as the Colt Lancer, Dodge/Plymouth Colt, Chrysler Valiant Lancer, Chrysler Lancer, Eagle Summit, Hindustan Lancer, Soueast Lioncel, Mitsubishi Carisma, and Mitsubishi Mirage in various countries at different times,...
Evo. He added a second career victory on his swansong outing for Mitsubishi on that year's Rally Great Britain, the event where the dramatic late retirement from fourth of Toyota's Carlos Sainz
Carlos Sainz
Carlos Sainz Cenamor is a Spanish rally driver. He won the World Rally Championship drivers' title with Toyota in 1990 and 1992, and finished runner-up four times...
secured the drivers' title for his team-mate and first leg
Leg (rallying)
In rallying, a leg is each day of the whole event. For example, as of 2005 each WRC event lasts over 3 legs - from Friday over Saturday to Sunday ....
super special stage retiree on a patch of oil
Oil
An oil is any substance that is liquid at ambient temperatures and does not mix with water but may mix with other oils and organic solvents. This general definition includes vegetable oils, volatile essential oils, petrochemical oils, and synthetic oils....
, Tommi Makinen
Tommi Mäkinen
"Turbo" Tommi Antero Mäkinen , tied with Juha Kankkunen and behind Sébastien Loeb , and fifth in wins .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...
, as well as confirming the constructors' accolade for Mitsubishi.
1999-2001: Subaru
Prodrive
Prodrive is a British motorsport and automotive engineering group based in Banbury, Oxfordshire, England. It designs, constructs and races cars for companies and teams such as Subaru, Aston Martin and Ford...
-run Subaru World Rally Team
Subaru World Rally Team
The Subaru World Rally Team was Subaru's World Rally Championship team. It used a distinctive blue with yellow color scheme that is a throwback to the sponsorship deal with State Express 555, a BAT cigarette brand popular in Asia. 555 logos were found on Subaru cars from 1993 to 2003...
under David Richards
David Richards (racing)
David Pender Richards CBE is the chairman of Prodrive and Aston Martin, and a former team principal of the BAR and Benetton Formula One motor racing teams. He lives with his wife, Karen, in Warwickshire and has three children....
for the 1999 season, joining Juha Kankkunen
Juha Kankkunen
Juha Matti Pellervo Kankkunen is a Finnish former rally driver. His factory team career in the World Rally Championship lasted from 1983 to 2002. He won 23 world rallies and four drivers' world championship titles, which were both once records in the series...
and Bruno Thiry
Bruno Thiry
Bruno Thiry is a Belgian rally driver. He was born in St. Vith, Province of Liège.He began his career as an amateur in 1981, driving a Simca, and quickly became very successful in the Belgian Rally Championship. In 1994, he joined the Ford team to contest the World Rally Championship, driving a...
as part of the factory team driving Subaru Impreza WRCs, replacing Ford
BP Ford World Rally Team
The Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team, also known as the Ford Motor Co. Team prior to 2005, is Ford Motor Company's full factory World Rally Championship team. In its current form, it has been a competitor since the 1997 season, when Ford Motor Company's motorsport arm selected the Malcolm Wilson...
-bound fellow Briton, Colin McRae
Colin McRae
Colin Steele McRae, MBE was a Scottish rally driver born in Lanark.The son of five-time British Rally Champion Jimmy McRae and brother of rally driver Alister McRae, Colin McRae was the 1991 and 1992 British Rally Champion and, in 1995, became the first British person and the youngest to win the...
. Burns worked his way to a career high of second place in the drivers' standings, adding to his win tally. He also led Subaru to second in the constructors' series behind the Formula One
Formula One
Formula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...
departing Toyota team. On that year's Rally Argentina
Rally Argentina
The Rally Argentina is an Argentine rally competition that has been both a round of the World Rally Championship and also the Intercontinental Rally Challenge. The rally is also a round of the South American Rally Championship and the Argentine Rally Championship...
, he was upstaged for victory by virtue of a team order mix-up by veteran team-mate Kankkunen. He was a long-time contender for the title in 2000, but crashed out on the Rally Finland
Rally Finland
The Neste Oil Rally Finland is a rally event driven in the Jyväskylä area in Central Finland. It is the biggest annually organised public event in the Nordic countries, gathering over 500,000 spectators every year....
in mid-season handing the momentum to eventual champion, and future team-mate, the Peugeot driver Marcus Grönholm
Marcus Grönholm
Marcus "Bosse" Grönholm is a Finnish former rally driver. Driving for Peugeot, he won the World Rally Championship in 2000 and 2002. After Peugeot withdrew from the World Rally Championship, Grönholm moved to Ford for the 2006 season and placed second in the drivers' world championship, losing the...
who had been competing in his first year as a full-time factory driver. Even so, a stirling comeback from the lower reaches of the top thirty to win on the season-ending Rally of Great Britain kept the Burns name well entrenched within public consciousness.
Monte Carlo Rally
The Monte Carlo Rally or Rally Monte Carlo is a rallying event organised each year by the Automobile Club de Monaco which also organises the Formula One Monaco Grand Prix and the Rallye Monte-Carlo Historique. The rally takes place along the French Riviera in the Principality of Monaco and...
or the Swedish Rally
Swedish Rally
The Uddeholm Swedish Rally , formerly the Swedish Rally, is an automobile rally competition held in Värmland, Sweden in early February. First held in 1950, when it was called the Rally to the Midnight Sun with start and finish at separate locations, seventeen years later both start and finish...
, yielded points scores, placing in peril before it had begun, the Englishman's title bid. Fourth place in a rain-drenched Portugal kicked his campaign into action prior to second place finishes on the gravel rallies of Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
and Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
, on both occasions to Ford's Colin McRae. Nonetheless, both the Scotsman and Monte Carlo victor Tommi Makinen were later to hit upon snags of their own, while Burns' own consistent points scoring culminated in a first and only individual rally victory of the season in New Zealand, with McRae beaten into second. Burns then finished second on the Rally Australia
Rally Australia
Rally Australia is an automobile rally event which was held in and around Perth, Western Australia from 1988 until 2006, when that state's tourism commission severed its collaboration with the event. The rally was part of the Asia-Pacific Rally Championship in 1988 and the World Rally Championship...
to close within two points of new standalone series leader McRae, although the Scotsman and Makinen were to struggle to fifth and sixth respectively on this event (and the last of the drivers' points-scoring positions) amid controversy over McRae arriving to time control too late at the end of the first leg of the event to be able to choose a favourable running order on the ball-bearing gravel
Gravel
Gravel is composed of unconsolidated rock fragments that have a general particle size range and include size classes from granule- to boulder-sized fragments. Gravel can be sub-categorized into granule and cobble...
for day two. Meanwhile the Finn, for his part, continued to struggle with a newly homologated version of the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution
The Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution, colloquially known as the Lancer Evo or Evo, is a high-performance sedan manufactured by Mitsubishi Motors. There have been ten official versions to date, and the designation of each model is most commonly a roman numeral...
World Rally Car
World Rally Car
World Rally Car is a term used to describe racing automobiles built to the specification set by the FIA, the international motorsports governing body, and used to compete in the outright class of the World Rally Championship...
he had been entrusted with, which had only been introduced by his team a few rounds earlier in San Remo
Rallye Sanremo
Rallye Sanremo is a rally competition held in Sanremo, Italy. Except for the 1995 event, the event was part of the FIA World Rally Championship schedule from the 1973 season to the 2003 season. Currently, it is a round of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge and the Italian national rally...
. A four-way title decider, also including nine-point adrift outsider, Ford driver Carlos Sainz, thus beckoned on the final round of the series in Great Britain.
There, all three of Burns' rivals were to have suffered retirement from the event by the end of the second leg proceedings on Saturday. On Sunday, November 25, 2001, therefore, Burns' third place finish behind Peugeot duo Gronholm and Harri Rovanpera
Harri Rovanperä
Harri "Rovis" Rovanperä is a Finnish rally driver who competed in the World Rally Championship from 1993 to 2006. He drove for SEAT , Peugeot , Mitsubishi and Red Bull Škoda Team...
enabled him to become the first Englishman to win the World Rally Championship. When Richard passed the finishing line at the final stage of the final rally in 2001, Burns uttered words thought to be paying tribute to his codriver Robert Reid: "You're the best in the world". To commemorate the title success, Subaru produced a special edition of the Subaru Impreza in the UK called the RB5http://www.rb5oc.co.ukhttp://stefanostadal.homedns.org/car_impreza.htm. A messy legal battle ensued for the Englishman's services for the following 2002 season, from which fresh suitors, 2000 and 2001 manufacturers' champions Peugeot emerged victorious.
2002-2003: Peugeot
Burns joined PeugeotPeugeot
Peugeot is a major French car brand, part of PSA Peugeot Citroën, the second largest carmaker based in Europe.The family business that precedes the current Peugeot company was founded in 1810, and manufactured coffee mills and bicycles. On 20 November 1858, Emile Peugeot applied for the lion...
for the 2002 season. Although Peugeot
Peugeot
Peugeot is a major French car brand, part of PSA Peugeot Citroën, the second largest carmaker based in Europe.The family business that precedes the current Peugeot company was founded in 1810, and manufactured coffee mills and bicycles. On 20 November 1858, Emile Peugeot applied for the lion...
were the pacesetting team of the period, Burns had difficulty matching the pace of team-mates Marcus Grönholm
Marcus Grönholm
Marcus "Bosse" Grönholm is a Finnish former rally driver. Driving for Peugeot, he won the World Rally Championship in 2000 and 2002. After Peugeot withdrew from the World Rally Championship, Grönholm moved to Ford for the 2006 season and placed second in the drivers' world championship, losing the...
(on gravel) and Gilles Panizzi
Gilles Panizzi
Gilles Panizzi is a French rally driver on the World Rally Championship circuit.Gilles was born in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, Alpes-Maritimes...
(on tarmac). Therefore the existing tally of ten WRC triumphs were not to be added to, with the quest for a second world title proving equally fruitless for Burns. He cobbled together a title challenge, albeit founded more on regular podium finishes than on victories, for much of the 2003 season - a feat which did not convince him to remain at the wheel of the 206 WRC
Peugeot 206
The Peugeot 206 is a supermini car, manufactured by the French automaker Peugeot from 1998 to 2010.Even though the 206 has finished production in most markets as of 2010, in Europe since 2009, it is available the 206+, with a back and especially a front design that resembles the Peugeot 207.-The...
. The gloomy prospect of a continued winning drought with the French team left Burns poised to rejoin Subaru, having signed for them for the second time beginning with the 2004 season, the ploy being to couple him with the eventual 2003 title winner, Norway's Petter Solberg
Petter Solberg
Petter "Hollywood" Solberg , from Spydeberg in Østfold, Norway, is a professional rally driver. He debuted in the World Rally Championship in 1998 and was signed by the Ford factory team in 1999...
. In November 2003, however, with the Englishman heading to the season-ending Wales Rally GB still with a chance of winning the title, Burns suffered a blackout while driving with Ford driver Markko Märtin
Markko Märtin
Markko Märtin is a rally driver from Estonia, who competed in the World Rally Championship from 2000 until 2005.-Career:...
to the rally. He was withdrawn from the event, and thus the title fight, and was later diagnosed with an astrocytoma
Astrocytoma
Astrocytomas are a type of neoplasm of the brain. They originate in a particular kind of glial-cells, star-shaped brain cells in the cerebrum called astrocytes. This type of tumor does not usually spread outside the brain and spinal cord and it does not usually affect other organs...
, a type of malignant brain tumour. Treatment during 2004 was followed by surgery in April 2005 that was described as "very successful".
WRC Victories
| # | Event | Season | Co-driver | Car |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Kenya 46th Safari Rally KenyaSafari Rally The Safari Rally is considered by many to be the world's toughest rally. It was first held from 27 May to 1 June 1953 as the East African Coronation Safari in Kenya, Uganda and Tanganyika, as a celebration of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II... |
1998 | Robert Reid | Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 4 |
| 2 |  United Kingdom 54th Network Q Rally of Great Britain |
1998 | Robert Reid | Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 5 |
| 3 |  Greece 46th Acropolis Rally of GreeceAcropolis Rally Greece The Acropolis Rally of Greece |Rally]] of Greece) is a rally competition, part of the World Rally Championship schedule. The rally is held on very dusty, rough and rocky mountain roads around Athens during the Greek hot summer period. The rally is known for being extremely tough on the competing... |
1999 | Robert Reid | Subaru Impreza WRC Subaru Impreza WRX STI The Subaru Impreza WRX STI, has the highest trim in the Subaru Impreza compact car line, produced by Japanese automaker Subaru.In the late 1980s, Subaru created the Subaru Tecnica International division to coordinate development for the FIA World Rally Championship and other motorsports activities... |
| 4 |  Australia 12th Telstra Rally AustraliaRally Australia Rally Australia is an automobile rally event which was held in and around Perth, Western Australia from 1988 until 2006, when that state's tourism commission severed its collaboration with the event. The rally was part of the Asia-Pacific Rally Championship in 1988 and the World Rally Championship... |
1999 | Robert Reid | Subaru Impreza WRC |
| 5 | United Kingdom 55th Network Q Rally of Great Britain |
1999 | Robert Reid | Subaru Impreza WRC |
| 6 | Kenya 48th Sameer Safari Rally Kenya Safari Rally The Safari Rally is considered by many to be the world's toughest rally. It was first held from 27 May to 1 June 1953 as the East African Coronation Safari in Kenya, Uganda and Tanganyika, as a celebration of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II... |
2000 | Robert Reid | Subaru Impreza WRC |
| 7 |  Portugal 33° TAP Rallye de Portugal |
2000 | Robert Reid | Subaru Impreza WRC |
| 8 |  Argentina 20° Rally ArgentinaRally Argentina The Rally Argentina is an Argentine rally competition that has been both a round of the World Rally Championship and also the Intercontinental Rally Challenge. The rally is also a round of the South American Rally Championship and the Argentine Rally Championship... |
2000 | Robert Reid | Subaru Impreza WRC |
| 9 | United Kingdom 56th Network Q Rally of Great Britain |
2000 | Robert Reid | Subaru Impreza WRC |
| 10 |  New Zealand 31st Propecia Rally New ZealandRally New Zealand The Rally New Zealand was first held in Taupo in 1969, and was subsequently staged in Canterbury, before moving back to the North Island in 1971.The rally was included as a round of the World Championship in 1977... |
2001 | Robert Reid | Subaru Impreza WRC |
Complete WRC results
| Year | Entrant | Car | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | WDC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 1990 World Rally Championship season The 1990 World Rally Championship season was the 18th season of the FIA World Rally Championship. The season consisted of 12 rallies. The drivers' world championship was won by Carlos Sainz in a Toyota Celica GT-Four, ahead of Didier Auriol and Juha Kankkunen... |
Peugeot Talbot Sport | Peugeot 309 GTI Peugeot 309 The Peugeot 309 was a small family car manufactured between 1985 and 1993 in England and France.The 309 was originally intended to be badged as a Talbot and, as development progressed, to be called the Talbot Arizona... |
MON | POR | KEN | FRA | GRE | NZL | ARG | FIN | AUS | ITA | IVO | GBR 28 |
- | 0 | ||
| 1991 1991 World Rally Championship season The 1991 World Rally Championship season was the 19th season of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile World Rally Championship . The season consisted of 14 rallies. The drivers' world championship was won by Juha Kankkunen in a Lancia Delta Integrale 16V, ahead of Carlos Sainz and Didier... |
Peugeot Talbot Sport | Peugeot 309 GTI Peugeot 309 The Peugeot 309 was a small family car manufactured between 1985 and 1993 in England and France.The 309 was originally intended to be badged as a Talbot and, as development progressed, to be called the Talbot Arizona... |
MON | SWE | POR | KEN | FRA | GRE | NZL | ARG | FIN | AUS | ITA | IVO | ESP | GBR 16 |
- | 0 |
| 1992 | Richard Burns | Peugeot 309 GTI Peugeot 309 The Peugeot 309 was a small family car manufactured between 1985 and 1993 in England and France.The 309 was originally intended to be badged as a Talbot and, as development progressed, to be called the Talbot Arizona... |
MON | SWE | POR | KEN | FRA | GRE | NZL | ARG | FIN | AUS | ITA | IVO | ESP | GBR Ret |
- | 0 |
| 1993 | 555 Subaru World Rally Team Subaru World Rally Team The Subaru World Rally Team was Subaru's World Rally Championship team. It used a distinctive blue with yellow color scheme that is a throwback to the sponsorship deal with State Express 555, a BAT cigarette brand popular in Asia. 555 logos were found on Subaru cars from 1993 to 2003... |
Subaru Legacy RS | MON | SWE | POR | KEN | FRA | GRE | ARG | NZL | FIN | AUS | ITA | ESP | GBR 7 |
43rd | 4 | |
| 1994 | SMSG / N. Koseki | Subaru Impreza WRX Subaru Impreza WRX The Subaru Impreza WRX is a turbocharged version of the Subaru Impreza, an all-wheel drive, four-door passenger vehicle. It is available as a sedan or wagon.... |
MON | POR | KEN 5 |
FRA | GRE | ARG | 20th | 8 | ||||||||
| 555 Subaru World Rally Team Subaru World Rally Team The Subaru World Rally Team was Subaru's World Rally Championship team. It used a distinctive blue with yellow color scheme that is a throwback to the sponsorship deal with State Express 555, a BAT cigarette brand popular in Asia. 555 logos were found on Subaru cars from 1993 to 2003... |
Subaru Impreza 555 | NZL Ret |
FIN | ITA | GBR Ret |
|||||||||||||
| 1995 | 555 Subaru World Rally Team Subaru World Rally Team The Subaru World Rally Team was Subaru's World Rally Championship team. It used a distinctive blue with yellow color scheme that is a throwback to the sponsorship deal with State Express 555, a BAT cigarette brand popular in Asia. 555 logos were found on Subaru cars from 1993 to 2003... |
Subaru Impreza 555 | MON | SWE | POR 7 |
FRA | NZL Ret |
AUS | ESP | GBR 3 |
9th | 16 | ||||||
| 1996 | Mitsubishi Ralliart Ralliart Ralliart was the high-performance and motorsports division of Mitsubishi Motors. It was responsible for development and preparation of the company's rally racing and off-road racing vehicles, as well as the development of high-performance models and parts available to the public... |
Mitsubishi Lancer Evo III Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution The Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution, colloquially known as the Lancer Evo or Evo, is a high-performance sedan manufactured by Mitsubishi Motors. There have been ten official versions to date, and the designation of each model is most commonly a roman numeral... |
SWE | KEN | INA Ret |
GRE | ARG 4 |
FIN | AUS 5 |
ITA | ESP Ret |
9th | 18 | |||||
| 1997 | Mitsubishi Ralliart Ralliart Ralliart was the high-performance and motorsports division of Mitsubishi Motors. It was responsible for development and preparation of the company's rally racing and off-road racing vehicles, as well as the development of high-performance models and parts available to the public... |
Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IV | MON | SWE | KEN 2 |
POR Ret |
ESP | FRA | ARG Ret |
GRE 4 |
NZL 4 |
FIN | INA 4 |
ITA | AUS 4 |
GBR 4 |
7th | 21 |
| 1998 | Mitsubishi Ralliart Ralliart Ralliart was the high-performance and motorsports division of Mitsubishi Motors. It was responsible for development and preparation of the company's rally racing and off-road racing vehicles, as well as the development of high-performance models and parts available to the public... |
Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IV | MON 5 |
SWE 15 |
KEN 1 |
POR 4 |
6th | 33 | ||||||||||
| Mitsubishi Lancer Evo V | ESP 4 |
FRA Ret |
ARG 4 |
GRE Ret |
NZL 9 |
FIN 5 |
ITA 7 |
AUS Ret |
GBR 1 |
|||||||||
| 1999 | Subaru World Rally Team Subaru World Rally Team The Subaru World Rally Team was Subaru's World Rally Championship team. It used a distinctive blue with yellow color scheme that is a throwback to the sponsorship deal with State Express 555, a BAT cigarette brand popular in Asia. 555 logos were found on Subaru cars from 1993 to 2003... |
Subaru Impreza WRC99 | MON 8 |
SWE 5 |
KEN Ret |
POR 4 |
ESP 5 |
FRA 7 |
ARG 2 |
GRE 1 |
NZL Ret |
FIN 2 |
CHN 2 |
ITA Ret |
AUS 1 |
GBR 1 |
2nd | 55 |
| 2000 | Subaru World Rally Team Subaru World Rally Team The Subaru World Rally Team was Subaru's World Rally Championship team. It used a distinctive blue with yellow color scheme that is a throwback to the sponsorship deal with State Express 555, a BAT cigarette brand popular in Asia. 555 logos were found on Subaru cars from 1993 to 2003... |
Subaru Impreza WRC99 | MON Ret |
SWE 5 |
KEN 1 |
2nd | 60 | |||||||||||
| Subaru Impreza WRC2000 | POR 1 |
ESP 2 |
ARG 1 |
GRE Ret |
NZL Ret |
FIN Ret |
CYP 4 |
FRA 4 |
ITA Ret |
AUS 2 |
GBR 1 |
|||||||
| 2001 | Subaru World Rally Team Subaru World Rally Team The Subaru World Rally Team was Subaru's World Rally Championship team. It used a distinctive blue with yellow color scheme that is a throwback to the sponsorship deal with State Express 555, a BAT cigarette brand popular in Asia. 555 logos were found on Subaru cars from 1993 to 2003... |
Subaru Impreza WRC2001 | MON Ret |
SWE 16 |
POR 4 |
ESP 7 |
ARG 2 |
CYP 2 |
GRE Ret |
KEN Ret |
FIN 2 |
NZL 1 |
ITA Ret |
FRA 4 |
AUS 2 |
GBR 3 |
1st | 44 |
| 2002 | Peugeot Total Peugeot Sport Peugeot Sport is the department of French carmaker Peugeot responsible for motorsport activities.-Beginnings in rallying:Peugeot Sport was formed in 1981 under the name of Peugeot Talbot Sport, after Jean Todt, a World Rally Championship co-driver for Talbot driver Guy Fréquelin, was asked by... |
Peugeot 206 WRC Peugeot 206 WRC Peugeot 206 WRC is a World Rally Car based on the Peugeot 206. It was used by Peugeot Sport, Peugeot's factory team, in the World Rally Championship from 1999 to 2003. The car brought Peugeot the manufacturers' world title three years in a row from 2000 to 2002... |
MON 8 |
SWE 4 |
FRA 3 |
ESP 2 |
CYP 2 |
ARG DSQ |
GRE Ret |
KEN Ret |
FIN 2 |
GER 2 |
ITA 4 |
NZL Ret |
AUS Ret |
GBR Ret |
5th | 34 |
| 2003 | Marlboro Peugeot Total Peugeot Sport Peugeot Sport is the department of French carmaker Peugeot responsible for motorsport activities.-Beginnings in rallying:Peugeot Sport was formed in 1981 under the name of Peugeot Talbot Sport, after Jean Todt, a World Rally Championship co-driver for Talbot driver Guy Fréquelin, was asked by... |
Peugeot 206 WRC Peugeot 206 WRC Peugeot 206 WRC is a World Rally Car based on the Peugeot 206. It was used by Peugeot Sport, Peugeot's factory team, in the World Rally Championship from 1999 to 2003. The car brought Peugeot the manufacturers' world title three years in a row from 2000 to 2002... |
MON 5 |
SWE 3 |
TUR 2 |
NZL 2 |
ARG 3 |
GRE 4 |
CYP Ret |
GER 3 |
FIN 3 |
AUS 3 |
ITA 7 |
FRA 8 |
ESP Ret |
GBR | 4th | 58 |
Death
Late on Friday, November 25, 2005, four years to the day after winning the World Rally Championship, Burns died in WestminsterCity of Westminster
The City of Westminster is a London borough occupying much of the central area of London, England, including most of the West End. It is located to the west of and adjoining the ancient City of London, directly to the east of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, and its southern boundary...
, London, aged 34, after having been in a coma for some days as a result of a brain tumour.
The British television show Top Gear
Top Gear (current format)
Top Gear is a British television series about motor vehicles, primarily cars. It began in 1977 as a conventional motoring magazine show. Over time, and especially since a relaunch in 2002, it has developed a quirky, humorous style...
, well known for its irreverent attitude toward most celebrities, aired a tribute to Burns during the December 4, 2005 show. The host, Jeremy Clarkson
Jeremy Clarkson
Jeremy Charles Robert Clarkson is an English broadcaster, journalist and writer who specialises in motoring. He is best known for his role on the BBC TV show Top Gear along with co-presenters Richard Hammond and James May...
, said that "the news has been completely dominated, as far as we're concerned, by the sad death of Richard Burns." After playing a montage of Richard Burns footage, Clarkson, who lived near Burns, shared an anecdote about Burns playing video games with Clarkson's 7-year-old son and commented, "He was just such a nice guy. I'm going to miss him...badly." No other motoring news was announced in that episode. Burns had previously appeared on Top Gear twice, once touting rallying as more interesting and influential than Formula One
Formula One
Formula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...
, and then test-driving the Peugeot RC
Peugeot RC
The Peugeot RC is a concept car built by French automaker Peugeot and introduced at the 2002 Geneva Motor Show.-Design:The RC was a mid-engined, rear-wheel drive sports car with the same essential design, but came in two versions. The Spade was painted black and featured a 2.0L naturally...
. Apart from the Top Gear Tribute and others from the motorsport media, media coverage and public attention to his death was overshadowed by that of football legend George Best
George Best
George Best was a professional footballer from Northern Ireland, who played for Manchester United and the Northern Ireland national team. He was a winger whose game combined pace, acceleration, balance, two-footedness, goalscoring and the ability to beat defenders...
, who died on the same day.
A memorial service for Burns was held at St Luke's Church in Chelsea on Thursday 22 December 2005, with readings from BBC TV's Jeremy Clarkson
Jeremy Clarkson
Jeremy Charles Robert Clarkson is an English broadcaster, journalist and writer who specialises in motoring. He is best known for his role on the BBC TV show Top Gear along with co-presenters Richard Hammond and James May...
and Steve Rider
Steve Rider
Stephen Rider is an English sports presenter, and was the anchorman of ITV's football coverage, which included the Champions League, England Internationals, the FA Cup and the 2006 World Cup. He anchored ITV's Formula One coverage from 2006 to 2008, and football coverage from 2006 to April 2010...
, and a tribute paid by one of Burns' closest friends, photographer Colin McMaster. Subaru
Subaru
; is the automobile manufacturing division of Japanese transportation conglomerate Fuji Heavy Industries .Subaru is internationally known for their use of the boxer engine layout popularized in cars by the Volkswagen Beetle and Porsche 911, in most of their vehicles above 1500 cc as well as...
also paid tribute to Burns at Castle Combe
Castle Combe
Castle Combe is a small village in Wiltshire, England, with a population of about 350. It is renowned for its attractiveness and tranquillity, and for fine buildings including the medieval church. The 14th century market cross, erected when the privilege to hold a weekly market in Castle Combe was...
in 2006, when over 50 Subaru Impreza RB5s took to the track, including the RB5 number #001 driven by Alex Burns, Richard's father.
During the 2006 Goodwood Festival of Speed
Goodwood Festival of Speed
The Goodwood Festival of Speed, commonly abbreviated as FoS and referred within the United Kingdom as simply the Festival of Speed, is an annual hill climb featuring historic motor racing vehicles that is held in the grounds of Goodwood House, West Sussex, England.Typically held in late June or...
, a charity was founded in his name with a purpose to "inspire and support people with serious injury and illness", named RB Foundation. The foundation also raises money for the Michael Park Fund, which deals with improving safety in motorsport events.
Subaru released a special edition Impreza WRX STI in 2007 - the RB320 - in memory of Burns. It features a 320 bhp (240 kW) Prodrive Performance Pack, Prodrive
Prodrive
Prodrive is a British motorsport and automotive engineering group based in Banbury, Oxfordshire, England. It designs, constructs and races cars for companies and teams such as Subaru, Aston Martin and Ford...
developed suspension, sports spring kit and is available only in obsidian black colour. Proceeds went to the RB Foundation.
The Scottish band Travis
Travis (band)
Travis are a post-Britpop band from Glasgow, Scotland, comprising Fran Healy , Dougie Payne , Andy Dunlop and Neil Primrose...
dedicated their album The Boy With No Name
The Boy with No Name
The Boy with No Name is the fifth studio album from Scottish Indie pop band Travis. The album was released on May 7, 2007. The album sold over 442,900 copies worldwide.-Background:...
to Burns' memory.
He is survived by his girlfriend Zoe Keen.
See also
- Richard Burns RallyRichard Burns RallyRichard Burns Rally is a sim racing game, published by SCi and developed by Warthog with advice of WRC driver Richard Burns.-Summary:It simulates both classic and modern rallying, and is best known for its realistic physics engine....
, the video game starring Richard Burns. - List of notable brain tumor patients
- The Under 17 Car ClubThe Under 17 Car ClubThe Under 17 Car Club is a club where people under the age of 17 can drive motor vehicles. It was started in 1976 by author Sandy Barrie who realised there was no opportunity for youngsters under seventeen to drive cars...
External links
- Richard Burns Foundation official website.