Typically, all the drivers entered in The Race of Champions are champions in their respective motorsport disciplines. Initially, it was a competition between rally drivers, and it started back in 1988. The organizer was none other than Michele Mouton, who collaborated with Fredrik Johnsson of International Media Productions to make things happen. The first to win the first-ever edition of the Race of Champions was Juha Kankkunen, followed by Stig Blomqvist, Andrea Aghini, Didier Auriol, Francois Delecour, and Carlos Sainz.
The racer that will be first after all the
challenges gets the title "Champion of Champions," and the reining
champ is Sebastien Loeb, who remains the most successful rally driver in the
world. Ever since 1999, the Race of Champions also has a Nations Cup, which
allows drivers to compete in pairs against other pairs of drivers representing
a different country. The 2022 teams champion is Norway. The nation with the most
wins is Germany, with eight, followed by Finland, France, and the Nordic
countries each with two wins. Didier Auriol and Sebastien Loeb are tied with
four victories each, while Mattias Ekstrom has three.
The 2022 edition of the Race of Champions
was the first one held on snow and ice, and it took place in Pite Havsbad,
which is in Sweden. Norway was represented by Petter Solberg and Oliver
Solberg. Sebastian Vettel was runner-up, while Sebastien Loeb won the event. Previous
winners include David Coulthard, Juan Pablo Montoya, Sebastian Vettel, Romain
Grosjean, Sebastien Ogier, Mattias Ekstrom, Colin McRae, Tommi Makinen, Marcus
Gronholm, and a few more.
The 2023 edition of the Race of Champions
will be held in the same city as last time, and the competitors will go
head-to-head in identical cars that deliver a continuous 335 hp, with a peak of 429 hp. One of these Cupra UrbanRebel Concept race cars can
sprint from 0 to 100 kph in just 3.2 seconds. The organizers have
prepared a track on the frozen Baltic Sea that includes a cross-over bridge in
the parallel track to ensure maximum excitement. It all takes place just 97 km away from the Arctic Circle, so nobody should fear falling under
the ice.