François Delecour

François Delecour
François Delecour
Born	August 30, 1962 (age 64); Hazebrouck, France
Occupation	Rally driver
Years active	1981–present
Known for	World Rally Championship competitor

Adapted from the English Wikipedia article François Delecour, available under CC BY-SA 4.0Updated 10 August 2025

François Delecour (born 30 August 1962) is a French rally competitor recognized for his extensive involvement in the World Rally Championship (WRC).

World Rally Championship Career

Delecour initiated his rallying journey in 1981, competing within the French national championship. His debut at a prominent event occurred in 1984 at the Monte Carlo Rally, where he piloted a Talbot Samba. Strong showings in the Peugeot 205 Cup during 1985 and 1986 attracted early backing from Peugeot, which led to a factory drive in a Peugeot 309 between 1989 and 1990. Notably, he secured ninth place overall and topped the two-wheel-drive category at Monte Carlo. Additionally, he took part in the 1990 Paris-Tripoli-Dakar rally raid as part of a support crew.

In 1991, Delecour signed with Ford to compete in the WRC, driving the four-wheel-drive Ford Sierra Cosworth. Despite encountering mechanical difficulties early on, he concluded the season seventh in the drivers' standings. The subsequent year, alongside teammate Massimo Biasion, he achieved improved outcomes including runner-up finishes in Portugal and Tour de Corse, ultimately placing sixth overall.

The debut of the compact Ford Escort RS Cosworth in 1993 marked a significant advancement. Delecour led at Monte Carlo and captured victories in Portugal, Corsica, and Catalunya, concluding the year as runner-up in the World Championship behind Juha Kankkunen. His co-driver Daniel Grataloup earned the co-driver's championship title that season. In 1994, although Delecour won Monte Carlo, a severe leg injury from a road accident sidelined him for multiple events. At year's end, Ford's official team disbanded; however, Delecour continued as lead driver for Belgian outfit RAS Sport without recording further wins.

Following his tenure with Ford, Delecour spearheaded Peugeot’s campaign in the French Rally Championship driving the Peugeot 306 kit-car. He finished third overall in both 1996 and 1997 while selectively participating in WRC tarmac rallies. He also played a role in developing the Peugeot 206 WRC before returning full-time to WRC competition in 1999. Although achieving podium finishes that year, victories eluded him amid internal team challenges.

In 2001, Delecour rejoined Ford’s M-Sport operation behind the wheel of a Ford Focus RS WRC. A serious accident during the Australian round endangered his co-driver’s safety but did not diminish his competitive edge. The following year he transitioned to Mitsubishi; however, diminishing team performance and another significant crash curtailed his success. With Mitsubishi announcing a break from competition in 2003, Delecour’s career at top-level WRC effectively concluded.

Over more than one hundred WRC starts, Delecour amassed four wins and nineteen podium placements. He earned recognition for his rapid pace on asphalt stages and versatility across diverse rally surfaces.

Later career and comeback in Monte Carlo

Post-WRC, Delecour engaged in rally-raid events piloting an SMG V8 buggy and also raced a Porsche 996 GT3 RS. In celebration of the Monte Carlo Rally’s centenary in 2011, he returned behind the wheel of a Peugeot 207 Super 2000 and secured fifth place in this IRC Championship round.

In December of that year, he declared a return to WRC competition by driving a current-spec Ford Fiesta WRC at the 2012 Monte Carlo Rally. He finished sixth overall while recording multiple top-three stage times.

During 2012, Delecour reentered the IRC Championship at Rally Corsica with a Renault Mégane RS supported by Visit Romania, competing within IRC Production and two-wheel-drive categories and achieving third place in class. He expressed intentions to pursue additional IRC events. That same year he claimed five victories en route to winning the Romanian Rally Championship and placed third among IRC contenders at the Sibiu Rally driving a Peugeot 207 S2000. Toward year-end, he announced plans to participate in the European Rally Championship for 2013 with a Peugeot 207 S2000 alongside co-driver Dominique Savignoni, while defending his Romanian title.

After securing his second Romanian championship title by December 2013, Delecour confirmed his participation at the 2014 Monte Carlo Rally with an M-Sport Ford Fiesta RS WRC; however, mechanical issues forced an early retirement.

Continuing his involvement in the Romanian Rally Championship during 2014, he captured his third national title. Additionally, he returned to WRC competition at Rallye de France Alsace driving a Tuthill Porsche 911 RGT but finished 37th following radiator damage. Subsequently, Delecour announced intentions to compete in the FIA R-GT Cup starting from 2015.

Early in 2015, Delecour committed to contesting FIA’s inaugural R-GT Cup season using a Porsche 911 prepared by Tuthill Motorsport. His campaign spanned both World and European Rally Championships including events such as Monte Carlo, Ypres, Germany, Valais, and Corsica. He won his class and placed twenty-third overall at Monte Carlo. Despite setbacks including off-road excursions at Ypres and Rallye Deutschland, he finished second within the RGT category on both occasions. Delecour triumphed at Tour de Corse and ultimately secured the FIA R-GT championship title that year.

In 2023, François Delecour entered the Monte Carlo WRC round driving a privately entered Rally2-spec Skoda and achieved tenth place within his category.

European Rally Championship 2013

During the 2013 ERC season, Delecour encountered setbacks at the Jänner Rallye, where a timing mistake, a spin, and a tire puncture limited his performance, resulting in a seventh-place finish. He later achieved a podium position by finishing third in Latvia. Focused on Eastern European competitions due to sponsorship from Visit Romania, Delecour opted out of the ERC Rally Islas Canarias El Corte Inglés to participate in the Romanian Rally Championship's Tess Rally Braşov, which he won. At the Rally of Corsica, he secured fifth place and subsequently claimed second at the Sibiu Rally Romania, collecting important points for both the ERC and Romanian championship standings. Although he did not compete in other ERC rounds that year, Delecour ended the season ranked fourth overall.

WRC victories

#	Event	Season	Co-driver	Vehicle
1	27° Rallye de Portugal	1993	Daniel Grataloup	Ford Escort RS Cosworth
2	37ème Tour de Corse – Rallye de France
3	29° Rallye Catalunya-Costa Brava (Rallye de España)
4	62ème Rallye Automobile de Monte-Carlo	1994

Complete WRC results

Year	Entrant	Car	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	Pos.
1984	François Delecour	Talbot Samba	MON 67	SWE	POR	KEN	FRA	GRE	NZL	ARG	FIN	ITA	CIV	GBR		NC
1985	François Delecour	Peugeot 205 GTi	MON Ret	SWE	POR	KEN	FRA	GRE	NZL	ARG	FIN	ITA	CIV	GBR		NC
1986	François Delecour	Peugeot 205 GTi	MON Ret	SWE	POR	KEN	FRA	GRE	NZL	ARG	FIN	CIV	ITA	GBR	USA	NC

Season ongoing.

IRC outcomes

Year	Team	Vehicle	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	Pos.	Points
2011	Enjolras Sport	Peugeot 207 S2000	MON 5	CAN	COR	UKR	YPR	AZO	ZLI	MEC	SAN	SCO	CYP			19th place	10
2012	Renault Sport Technologies	Renault Mégane RS	AZO	CAN	IRL	COR 15	ITA	YPR	SMR							25th position	15
2012	Munaretto Sport	Peugeot 207 S2000								ROM 3	ZLI	YAL	SLI	SAN	CYP	25th position	15

European Rally Championship outcomes

Year	Team	Vehicle	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	Pos.	Points
2013	Kronos Racing	Peugeot 207 S2000	JÄN 7³	LIE 3⁸	CAN	AZO	COR 5⁶	2013 Ypres Rally DNS	2013 Rally Romania 2⁹	"2013 Czech Rally"	"2013 Rally Poland"	"2013 Croatia Rally"	"Rallye Sanremo"	"Rallye International du Valais"	"4th position"	"75"

FIA R-GT Cup outcomes

Year	Team	Vehicle	Event 1	Event 2	Event 3	Event 4	Event 5	Pos.	Points

|- |2015 FIA R-GT Cup season |nowrap | François Delecour |nowrap |Porsche 997 GT3 |style="background:#FFFFBF;" |2015 Monte Carlo Rally
1st |style="background:#DFDFDF;" |2015 Ypres Rally
2nd |style="background:#DFDFDF;" |2015 Rallye Deutschland
2nd |style="background:#FFFFBF;" |2015 Tour de Corse
1st |style="background:#EFCFFF;" |2015 Rallye International du Valais
Retired !style="background:#FFFFBF;" |Champion !style="background:#FFFFBF;" |86 |- |2017 FIA R-GT Cup |nowrap | François Delecour |nowrap |Fiat 124 R-GT |style="background:#EFCFFF;" |2017 Monte Carlo Rally
Retired |style="background:#DFDFDF;" |2017 Tour de Corse
2nd place |2017 Barum Czech Rally Zlín |2017 Rally di Roma Capitale |2017 Rallye International du Valais !4th place !18 |}

Division 2

Year	Competitor	Vehicle	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	ERX Position	Total Points
1992	François Delecour	Ford RS200 E2	GBR	AUT	POR	FIN	SWE	FRA 3	IRE	BEL	NED	NOR	GER	23rd	15

External links