WHAT THE DRIVERS SAID

Stig Blomqvist (1984, drove Audi quattro E2)

“It’s always good when you come to drive the quattro again. The power is still a little bit crazy. I like this and I like the time to remember Colin with so many drivers and friends.”

Juha Kankkunen (1986, ’87, ’91, ’93, drove Toyota Celica Turbo 4WD)

“It’s incredible to see Colin’s family here and so many people coming to remember him. I think he would have enjoyed this weekend and the cars. Like Timo [Salonen] said, we’ve been lucky because we had the best car at the time when we were fighting in the sport. One thing I am very happy for is taking the title during the Group B years – these cars were really special.”

Luis Moya (1990, ’92)

“Colin was special. When the organisers [of Rallylegend] ask me to help I said to them: ‘OK, I will make some calls.’ I did that and everybody came for Colin. It’s fantastic to see so many of these drivers here. Unbelievable. But that was Colin. I was team-mate to this guy and I love him, he is an amazing guy and one we will never forget.”

Nicky Grist (Mcrae’s co-driver)

“One memory? Seriously? I can’t do that, but I can tell you one thing: Colin Mcrae was one of the most naturally gifted drivers ever. And, like everybody like that, he made what he did look very easy. But he was so spectacular and so committed, and it made him unbelievably popular.”

Derek Ringer (Mcrae’s co-driver)

“People would say to me: ‘It must be crazy inside the car.’ It wasn’t. I would have trusted my kids’ lives with Colin. He was the most fantastic driver. We had a lot of victories together, but they weren’t always the rallies with the best stories – they were usually the ones where we had the biggest accidents and we would get ourselves to the end of the stage and then Colin would inspire this spirit into the mechanics and they would just keep pushing; rallies like the 1,000 Lakes in 1992, when we rolled about 13 times, these events will live longest in my memory.”

Petter Solberg (2003, drove Subaru Imprezawrc)

“I was team-mate to Colin [in 1999] and I was always asking questions. When we were at the Monte Carlo test that year, I was asking all the time and I was desperate – always trying to get in the car to go for a ride with Colin. In the end, he said to me: ‘Alright Petter, enough questions now please! Shut. Up.’ I was quiet for maybe 10 minutes, but then I couldn’t help it and I was asking again. In the end he put me in the car and drove. Flat. Out. Honestly, I almost sh*t myself. And then sometimes I was not so popular with Malcolm [Wilson] when I had some crashes. Colin helped me through those times, he made things better for me with Malcolm. I miss him.”

Sebastien Ogier (2013, ’14, ’15, ’16 drovevolkswagen Polo RWRC)

“Unfortunately, I was the generation a little bit after Colin Mcrae, so I never got the chance to meet him. But for me, he was an icon. Like so many, I grew up playing his computer game, but you know for this guy to have a computer game named after him was something really incredible. I definitely got some inspiration from this and from him.”

Sebastien Loeb (2004-2012, drove Citroen C4WRC)

“I was the generation between, so I grew up with Colin’s game, but then I also got to know him. I will never forget when I was talking to [then Citroen team principal] Guy Frequelin about who was coming to the team in 2003. He said to me: ‘It’s Colin, he will be your teammate.” Immediately, I thought to myself: “OK, now we’re really going to see where I am…’ This brought a lot of pressure early in my career, could I prove myself or not? In the end it turned out not so bad. To have Colin with us in the team was such a good time, he was a nice and really funny guy – I have a lot of happy memories for Colin.”

Marcus Gronholm (2000, ’02)

“When I was coming to the sport, Colin was always the driver who was a little bit better. You look at the times and think: ‘Oh, sh*t…’. I always looked up to Colin in the sport, he was one of the biggest names in the sport. And when I came to fight against Colin, it was incredible – he was a really tough competitor.”

Didier Auriol (1993, drove Toyota Celica Turbo 4WD)

“He was so special driver. Some times in some places you would look to the time and just ask yourself: ‘How did he do that?’”

Miki Biasion (1988, ’89 drove Lancia Delta Integrale)

“We all remember Colin and we all remember his family – it’s nice, so nice, to see them all coming in San Marino. This Rallylegend is great for the memory for all of us.”

Timo Salonen (1985)

“This is a special weekend and we remember good times for Colin and as well for the cars and the sport in those days. I was lucky for my time, I had the best car for the championship [in 1985] and I was able to make good success in that year. .”

Arivatanen (1981 drove Ford Escort RS1800)

“I think Colin and I found, in each other, a mate. To have a Vatanen and a Mcrae in the same team was very special – and sometimes busy for the bodyshop! One of the things we have to remember in this life is that people are not perfect; people make mistakes and this can happen. Colin, like me, made some mistakes and people could understand that.”

Kris Meeke (drove Colin Mcrae’s 2003 Citroen Xsarawrc)

“I was working at M-sport as an engineer and I got talking to Colin and telling him about what I was doing. Not long after that, he offered me this chance to work with him. He allowed me to give up my day job and focus on the rallying. It was at this time that I went to live with Colin and Alison. This was when I got the know Hollie and Johnny – I would babysit them. These were special times and a special moment. I wouldn’t be where I am now without Colin.”