Famous 20th Century Rally Drivers

Colin McRae was a British rally driver who won the British Rally Championship title in 1991 and 1992. In 1995, he became the youngest person and the first British driver to win the World Rally Championship Drivers' title. Colin McRae's career was cut short by his sudden demise in 2007 when he was killed in a helicopter crash. 

With 21 Grands Prix wins Kimi-Matias Räikkönen, nicknamed ‘The Iceman’, thrived as the most successful Finnish racing driver with regard to Formula One race wins. He was the winner of the 2007 Formula One World Championship competing for Scuderia Ferrari. He took 103 podium finishes and with this became one of the five drivers who have taken more-than 100 podiums.

Jenson Button is a British racing driver best known for winning the Formula One World Championship title in 2009. A popular driver, Button is the recipient of several prestigious awards such as the Lorenzo Bandini Trophy and the Hawthorn Memorial Trophy. In 2017, Jenson Button was made an inductee of the FIA Hall of Fame.

Bruce McLaren was a New Zealand engineer, inventor, racing car designer, and driver. He is credited with founding McLaren Automotive in 1963. Formula One's successful team, McLaren, is named after him. McLaren has been inducted into various halls of fame, including the New Zealand Sports Hall of Fame, Motorsports Hall of Fame of America, and International Motorsports Hall of Fame.

Juan Pablo Montoya is a Colombian racing driver who currently competes for DragonSpeed Racing in the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. In 1998, Montoya won the Formula 3000 International Championship title. The following year, he went on to win the CART FedEx Championship Series. In October 2009, Juan Pablo Montoya was named in Times Online's Top 50 Formula One Drivers list.

Mika Häkkinen was 5 when his parents got him a go-kart for racing near their home. He later grew up to be one of the 3 Finnish F-1 drivers to earn a World Championship. Noted for his speed, he earned the nickname The Flying Finn.

Damon Hill is a British retired racing driver best known for winning the Formula One World Championship title in 1996. He is currently a part of the broadcasting team of Sky Sports F1, providing expert analysis. Damon Hill is also known as the son of former Formula One World Champion, Graham Hill.

Juan Manuel Fangio was an Argentine race car driver who dominated the first 10 years of Formula One racing. He won the World Drivers' Championship on five occasions, a record which was broken by Michael Schumacher after 46 years. Juan Manuel Fangio is also the only Argentine racer to have won the prestigious Argentine Grand Prix.

While he initially excelled in tennis, Nelson Piquet later made a name for himself as one of Brazil’s top racers. A 3-time world champion, the Formula One star later also ventured into business. He owned a GPS-tracking company and also launched the racing team Piquet Sports.

Keke Rosberg is a Finnish retired racing driver best known for winning the Formula One World Championship in 1982. Rosberg was the first Finnish champion in the history of the Formula One World Championship. Keke Rosberg has also achieved popularity as the father of the 2016 F1 World Champion Nico Rosberg.

French former rally driver Jean Todt has been the director of Peugeot Talbot Sport and the principal of the Scuderia Ferrari Formula 1 team. He was also the CEO of Ferrari and the president of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile, and was named the UN’s Special Envoy for Road Safety.

Graham Hill was a British racing driver remembered for winning the Formula One World Championship title in 1962 and 1968. Counted among the greatest drivers of his era, Hill is the only driver to win the prestigious Triple Crown of Motorsport. Hill is also credited with inspiring his son Damon, who won the Formula One World Championship title in 1996. 

Hoonigan Racing driver Ken Block has had many accomplishments throughout his career, including 16 Rally American wins. He also has 5 X Games medals in his kitty. His globally hit YouTube videos of the Gymkhana series drew over 500 million views. His interests also include sports such as skateboarding and snowboarding.

Norwegian rally and rallycross driver Petter Solberg was a teenager when he won the Norwegian Tamiya Cup and later won 10 FIA World Rallycross Championships and 13 World Rally Championships. He is married to Pernilla Walfridsson, who is herself a leading former rally driver and the daughter of rally driver Per-Inge "Pi" Walfridsson.

Though born in Germany, racer Jochen Rindt competed for Austria throughout his illustrious career, which saw him score 6 Grand Prix wins. At 28, he was killed in a practice race for the Italian Grand Prix. He later became the only racer to be posthumously named the F-1 World Champion.

Marco Simoncelli was an Italian motorcycle racer. From 2002 to 2011, Simoncelli competed in the Grand Prix motorcycle racing and won the 2008 Grand Prix Championship. While competing in the 2011 Malaysian Grand Prix on 23 October, Simoncelli lost control over his motorcycle and was run over by other vehicles on the track. He died of wounds at age 24.

Paul di Resta is a British racing driver who competed for Force India in Formula One from 2011 to 2013. Currently, he is one of the reserve F1 drivers for McLaren. Paul di Resta also works as a commentator for Sky Sports.

Eddie Irvine is a retired racing driver who participated in F1 races between 1993 and 2002, finishing second in the World Drivers' Championship in 1999. Apart from F1, Eddie Irvine has also competed in Jaguar Racing, Formula 3000 Championships, and Formula Three. Since his retirement, Irvine has established himself as a media personality.

Giancarlo Fisichella, also known as Giano, has three Formula One World Championship wins in his kitty. The popular racing driver also captains the Nazionale Piloti football team. Throughout his career, he has raced for teams such as Renault, Force India, and Ferrari. He is related to a Sicilian noble family.

John Surtees was a British motorcycle road racer and racecar driver. He won the Grand Prix motorcycle World Championship title on seven occasions and the 1964 F1 World Championship title, becoming the first person to win World Championships on both four and two wheels.

Jack Brabham was an Australian professional racing driver best remembered for winning the Formula One World Championship thrice during his illustrious career that lasted 15 years. He is credited with founding the eponymous Formula One racing team and racing car manufacturer. Early in his career, Brabham contributed immensely to the design of racing cars introduced by the Cooper Car Company.

Jacky Ickx is a Belgian retired racing driver best known for winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans on six occasions. He also achieved 25 podium finishes and eight wins in F1. Jacky Ickx is also known for his association with Scuderia Ferrari as he was the leading driver for the team for several seasons in the 1960s and 1970s.

Ari Vatanen is a rally driver-turned-politician who won the drivers' title at the 1981 World Rally Championship as well as the prestigious Paris Dakar Rally on four occasions. He also won the World Cup for Cross-Country Rallies in 1997. Since 2013, Ari Vatanen has been serving as the president of the Autosport Union in Estonia.

Iconic Swiss Ferrari F-1 racing driver Clay Regazzoni first gained prominence with his Italian Grand Prix in 1970. In spite of being partially paralyzed after an accident in 1980, he continued to compete in races. In late 2006, his car hit a lorry on an Italian highway, causing his death.

Gerhard Berger is an Austrian retired Formula One racing driver who competed in 14 Formula One seasons, finishing twice as the third overall in the championship. Berger won ten Grands Prix during his illustrious career that spanned more than a decade. With 210 starts under his belt, Gerhard Berger is counted among the most experienced F1 drivers of all time.

Finnish F-1 racing driver, who has driven for teams such as Caterham-Renault, Lotus F1, and McLaren. He was the 100th driver to win a F-1 Grand Prix. Though he has competed in the Australian and Brazilian Grand Prix, he scored his only win at the Hungarian Grand Prix in 2008.

Juha Kankkunen is a Finnish retired rally driver. He is best known for winning four drivers' world championship titles and 23 world rallies during his illustrious career. A successful driver, Juha Kankkunen competed for popular teams like Toyota, Peugeot, Ford, Subaru, and Hyundai.  

Marcus Grönholm is a Finnish retired rally and rallycross driver. With 34 rally wins and two championships under his belt, Marcus Grönholm is considered one of the most successful World Rallycross Championship (WRC) drivers of all time.

A multitalented racing driver and twice Formula One World Champion, Alberto Ascari began his racing career with motorcycles, eventually shifting to automobiles, making his debut at Mille Miglia. Later, he started participating in other events, winning a total of thirteen races, including 1951 German Grand Prix and 1953 Swiss Grand Prix before passing away at the age of 36 while testing a car.  

Robby Gordon is an auto racing driver who has raced in NASCAR, CART, Trans-Am, IndyCar, IMSA, and Dakar Rally. He began his career in off-road racing and also participated in selected Traxxas TORC Series events. He owns the Stadium Super Trucks, a short course off-road racing series he launched in 2013. He also operates the Speed family of brands. 

Born into a reputed family of racers, Al Unser later became a four-time Indianapolis 500 winner. At 48, he also became the oldest racer to emerge victorious at the Indianapolis 500. The International Motorsports Hall of Fame inductee is also known as Big Al and Al Unser Sr.

Scott Speed is a race car driver who made his debut at the 2006 Bahrain Grand Prix for Scuderia Toro Rosso. He has competed in open-wheel, stock car, and rallycross racing. He has driven for Team Red Bull, Whitney Motorsports, and Leavine Family Racing in the Sprint Cup Series. He is currently associated with the Subaru Rally Team USA. 

Henri Toivonen was a Finnish rally driver who became the youngest driver ever to become the World Rally Champion in 1980. The record was later broken by his countryman Jari-Matti Latvala in 2008. Henri Toivonen is also known as the son of Pauli Toivonen, who won the 1968 European Rally Championship title.

Giuseppe Farina, or Nino Farina, was not just a Formula One racer but also boasted of a doctorate degree in engineering. He became the first winner of the world driving championship as per the modern point system. He died in a car accident while on his way to watch a race.

Anthony Davidson is a British retired racing driver best known for competing in Formula One for Super Aguri and Minardi. Since his retirement as a racer, Anthony Davidson has established himself as a TV personality. He currently works for Sky Sports F1 as an analyst.