Stig Blomqvist
Stig Blomqvist | |
|---|---|
| Born | Stig Lennart Blomqvist July 29, 1946 Örebro, Sweden |
| Occupation | Rally driver |
| Years active | 1971–2006 |
| Known for | 1984 World Rally Championship drivers' champion |
Stig Lennart Blomqvist (born 29 July 1946) is a former Swedish rally competitor who gained international recognition starting in 1971. Competing for the Audi factory team behind the wheel of an Audi Quattro, he secured the World Rally Championship drivers' crown in 1984 and finished second in 1985. He achieved seven wins at his native Swedish Rally.
Outside the WRC circuit, Blomqvist earned the British Rally Championship title in 1983 and multiple championships within Sweden. Additionally, he was honored as "Champion of Champions" at the Race of Champions in both 1989 and 1990.
Career
Starting rallying at age 18, Blomqvist quickly made a mark by finishing second in a local competition driving a Saab 96. After completing training as a driving instructor alongside teammate Per Eklund, he joined Saab’s official squad. In 1971, he triumphed at the Swedish Rally, 1000 Lakes Rally, and RAC Rally, contributing to Saab’s second-place finish in the International Championship for Manufacturers, which preceded the WRC.
He maintained his dominance at the Swedish Rally with victories in 1972, 1973 (his first WRC triumph), 1977, and 1979, piloting various Saab models. Beyond WRC events, he also won rallies such as the 1973 Cyprus Rally and the 1976 Boucles de Spa. When Saab ceased rally participation in 1981, their collaboration ended. That year, Blomqvist competed in a Talbot Sunbeam Lotus, placing eighth at the 1000 Lakes and third at the RAC Rally.
In 1982, Audi recruited him to drive the Audi Quattro alongside Hannu Mikkola and Michèle Mouton. He took victory at the Swedish Rally and earned his first WRC win outside Sweden at Sanremo. As a full-time Audi driver in 1983, he secured seven podium finishes including a victory at the RAC Rally, concluding the season fourth in the drivers’ standings. Furthermore, he dominated four out of six rounds to clinch the British Rally Championship that year.
During 1984, Blomqvist campaigned Audi’s Quattro A2 and Sport Quattro evolutions, capturing five wins and finishing second at Monte Carlo. These results propelled him to secure the world championship ahead of teammate Mikkola. His last WRC victory came at the 1984 Rallye Côte d'Ivoire. The following season saw him finish as runner-up to Timo Salonen of Peugeot Talbot Sport, with three second-place finishes.
In Group B’s concluding season of 1986, Blomqvist drove for Ford (RS200) and Peugeot (205 Turbo 16 E2), achieving a podium finish at Rally Argentina. Transitioning into early Group A years, he continued with Ford’s Sierra RS Cosworth, earning three podium placements. He also represented Volkswagen Motorsport, attaining third place at the 1989 Safari Rally.
After sitting out the 1990 season, he joined Nissan Motorsports Europe for 1991–1992 behind the wheel of the Sunny GTI-R, securing his final WRC podium by finishing third at the 1992 Swedish Rally. Later in that decade, he assisted Škoda Motorsport with developing the Felicia Kit Car and placed third overall at the non-WRC 1996 RAC Rally. That same year he finished seventh at Safari Rally driving a Ford Escort RS Cosworth—his last points-scoring event.
Blomqvist returned as a regular competitor in 2001 partnered with co-driver Ana Goñi, competing in twelve events with a Group N David Sutton Cars Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6 and finishing fifth in the Production World Rally Championship (PWRC). In 2003, he claimed third place in PWRC piloting a Subaru Impreza WRX STI. His final WRC appearance was at the 2006 Swedish Rally where he ended up twenty-fourth overall.
Residing for many years in the United Kingdom, Blomqvist is based in Saffron Walden, Essex. His son, Tom Blomqvist, followed his footsteps into motorsport by becoming the youngest ever Formula Renault UK champion in 2010 at age sixteen.
WRC triumphs
No. Rally Year Navigator Vehicle 1 Swedish Rally 1973 Arne Hertz Saab 96 V4 2 Swedish Rally 1977 Hans Sylvan Saab 99 EMS 3 Swedish Rally 1979 Björn Cederberg Saab 99 Turbo 4 Swedish Rally 1982 Björn Cederberg Audi Quattro 5 Rallye Sanremo 1982 Björn Cederberg Audi Quattro 6 RAC Rally 1983 Björn Cederberg Audi Quattro A2 7 Swedish Rally 1984 Björn Cederberg Audi Quattro A2 8 Acropolis Rally 1984 Björn Cederberg Audi Quattro A2 9 Rally of New Zealand 1984 Björn Cederberg Audi Quattro A2 10 Rally Argentina 1984 Björn Cederberg Audi Quattro A2 11 Rallye Côte d'Ivoire 1984 Björn Cederberg Audi Sport Quattro
Full IMC outcomes
Complete WRC outcomes
| Year | Team | Vehicle model | Round 1 | Round 2 | Round 3 | Round 4 | Round 5 | Round 6 | Round 7 | Round 8 | Round 9 | Round 10 | Round 11 | Round 12 | Round 13 | Round 14 | Round 15 | Round 16 | WDC | Points scored |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1973 | Saab Automobile | Saab 96 V4 | 1973 Monte Carlo Rally | 1973 Swedish Rally Victory |
1973 Rallye de Portugal | 1973 Safari Rally | 1973 Rally of Morocco | 1973 Acropolis Rally | 1973 Polish Rally | 1973 1000 Lakes Rally Retired |
1973 Austrian Alpine Rally Retired |
1973 Rallye Sanremo | 1973 Press-on-Regardless Rally | 1973 RAC Rally Retired |
1973 Tour de Corse | N/A | N/A | |||
| 1974 | Saab Scania | Saab 96 V4 | (Monte Carlo) Canceled |
(Swedish) Canceled |
(Portugal) | (Safari) | (Acropolis) Canceled <style="background:#DFFFDF;">(1000 Lakes) |
(Sanremo) | (Rideau Lakes) | (Press-on-Regardless) | (Wales GB) Second place |
(Tour de Corse) | N/A | N/A | ||||||
| 1975 | Saab Scania | Saab 96 V4 | 1975 Monte Carlo Rally | style="background:#DFDFDF;">1975 Swedish Rally Runner-up |
1975 Safari Rally | 1975 Acropolis Rally | 1975 Rallye du Maroc | 1975 Rally de Portugal | 1975 1000 Lakes Rally Excluded |
1975 Rallye Sanremo | 1975 Tour de Corse | style="background:#EFCFFF;">1975 Wales Rally GB Retired |
N/A | N/A |
Overall Standings
| Year | Team | Vehicle | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | Final Position | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | Saab | Saab 96 V4 Turbo | AUT1 |
GER1 |
FIN |
SWE 10 |
BEL |
AUT2 |
NED |
GBR1 |
GER2 |
GBR2 |
37th | 1 |
| 1978 | Saab | Saab 99 Turbo | AUT |
ITA |
SWE 4 |
FIN |
BEL |
NED |
FRA |
GBR |
GER |
36th | 10 |
Touringcar Category
| Year | Team | Vehicle | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | Final Rank | Points Earned |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | Saab | Saab 99 Turbo | AUT |
ITA |
FIN |
SWE |
FRA |
BEL |
NED 6 |
GBR |
GER |
18th | 6 | |
| 1981 | Saab | Saab 99 Turbo | AUT |
SWE 9 |
FIN |
DEN |
BEL |
NED |
FRA |
NOR |
GBR |
GER |
32nd | 2 |
Division 2 Category
| Year | Driver/Team | Vehicle Model | Event 1 | Event 2 | Event 3 | Event 4 | Event 5 | Event 6 | Event 7 | Event 8 | Event 9 | Event 10 | Event 11 | Championship Position | Score Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | Stig Blomqvist | Ford RS200 E2 | SPA |
AUT |
SWE 7 |
FIN 3 |
IRE |
FRA |
BEL 3 |
NED 3 |
NOR |
GBR |
GER |
11th | 55 |
| 1994 | Stig Blomqvist | Ford Escort RS Cosworth | AUT |
POR |
FRA |
IRE |
GBR |
SWE |
FIN |
BEL |
NED |
NOR 5 |
GER |
21st | 12 |
Complete World Touring Car Championship Results
(Template:Motorsport driver results legend#key) (Entries in bold denote pole position) (Entries in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team Name | Vehicle Model | Round 1 | Round 2 | Round 3 | Round 4 | Round 5 | Round 6 | Round 7 | Round 8 | Round 9 | Round 10 | Round 11 | Championship Standing | Points Accumulated |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | Template:Country data SWETemplate:Namespace detect showall Söderqvist Racing Sport | Volvo 240T | MNZ | JAR | DIJ | NÜR | SPA | BNO | SIL | BAT | CLD | WEL overall:13 class:8† |
FJI | NC | 0 |
† Ineligible for championship points.
Full British Touring Car Championship Results
(Legend) (Races highlighted in bold denote pole position within class) (Races shown in italics represent fastest lap in class)
| Season | Team | Vehicle | Category | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | Overall Standing |
Points | Class Standing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | Trakstar Motorsport | Ford Sierra RS500 | A | OUL | DON overall:2‡ class:2‡ |
THR | SIL | OUL | SIL | BRH | SNE | BRH | BIR | DON | THR | SIL | NC‡ | 0 | NC‡ |
‡ Participated as endurance driver – not eligible to score points
External links
- Pages with script errors
- Articles with short description
- Articles with hCards
- No local image but image on Wikidata
- 1946 births
- Living people
- Sportspeople from Örebro
- Swedish rally drivers
- British Touring Car Championship drivers
- Swedish Touring Car Championship drivers
- World Rally Champions
- World Rally Championship drivers
- FIA European Rallycross Championship drivers
- European Rally Championship drivers
- Swedish expatriates in New Zealand
- Swedish expatriate sportspeople in the United Kingdom
- Carrera Panamericana drivers
- Peugeot Sport drivers
- Audi Sport drivers
- Nismo drivers
- Volkswagen Motorsport drivers
- Škoda Motorsport drivers
- Porsche Carrera Cup Scandinavia drivers