1997 World Rally Championship

The 1997 World Rally Championship was the 25th season of the FIA World Rally Championship. The season saw many changes in the championship. Most notably, Group A was partially replaced by the World Rally Car with manufacturers given the option which regulations to construct to. One inherent benefit to manufacturers by adopting WRC regulations was removing the need to mass-produce road-going versions of the cars that they competed with, under the previous rules for homologation. This meant that vehicles such as the Escort RS Cosworth and Subaru Impreza Turbo no longer had to be mass-produced for general sale in order to compete at World Championship level, and thus acting as a means of attracting increased competition and involvement by manufacturers. In the few years that follow, the Championship saw the added presence of WRC cars from companies such as Toyota, Hyundai, Seat, Citroën, and Peugeot, who would all compete under WRC regulations without having to manufacture equivalent specialised road cars for public sale. Both Ford and Subaru switched to WRC in 1997, except Mitsubishi who stayed with Group A to maintain the links to their Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution road cars. Subaru's transition was much more gradual for similar reasons with the early Subaru Impreza WRCs still largely Group A in nature.

1997 World Rally Championship

World Drivers' Champion:
Tommi Mäkinen
World Manufacturers' Champion:
Subaru

Previous

1996

Next

1998

Events also became shorter and more compact, event rotation system used in previous three seasons was dropped and registered manufacturers were required to contest the expanded 14 event calendar for the first time. In due course the World Rally Car rules would bring new manufactures into the sport, but at the start of 1997 it was still Subaru versus Mitsubishi versus Ford as before, although, by mid season Toyota Team Europe were back with a Corolla World Rally Car. The Drivers' championship was very tightly contested and in the end Tommi Mäkinen won his second drivers' world championship in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IV by a single point ahead of Subaru Impreza WRC driver Colin McRae after the final round in Great Britain. Carlos Sainz was third in the leading Ford Escort WRC. The Manufacturers' title was won by Subaru with Ford second and Mitsubishi third.

One major flaw in the new class system was exposed by the increasing speed of the naturally aspirated front-wheel-drive FIA 2-Litre World Rally Cup cars. The tarmac specification cars built by Peugeot and Renault that competed in the all-tarmac French and Spanish championships became major threats on WRC tarmac events Rallye Catalunya and the Tour de Corse with Gilles Panizzi defeating all but two of the WRC four-wheel-drive turbos in his Peugeot 306 Maxi, taking third place in both events.

Calendar

The 1997 championship was contested over fourteen rounds in Europe, Africa, Asia, South America and Oceania.

Rd.	Start date	Finish date	Rally	Rally headquarters	Surface	Stages	Distance
1	18 January	22 January	65th Rallye Automobile Monte Carlo	Monte Carlo	Mixed	18	398.30 km
2	7 February	10 February	46th International Swedish Rally	Karlstad, Värmland County	Snow	24	411.17 km
3	1 March	3 March	45th Safari Rally Kenya	Nairobi	Gravel	13	1318.0 km
4	23 March	26 March	31st TAP Rallye de Portugal	Figueira da Foz, Coimbra	Gravel	31	419.78 km
5	14 April	16 April	33rd Rallye Catalunya - Costa Brava - Rallye de España	Lloret de Mar, Catalonia	Tarmac	18	387.70 km
6	5 May	7 May	41st Tour de Corse - Rallye de France	Ajaccio, Corsica	Tarmac	18	408.0 km
7	22 May	25 May	17th Rally Argentina	Carlos Paz, Córdoba	Gravel	23	413.4 km
8	8 June	10 June	44th Acropolis Rally	Athens	Gravel	20	402.86 km
9	2 August	5 August	28th Smokefree Rally New Zealand	Manukau, Auckland	Gravel	24	395.99 km
10	29 August	31 August	47th Neste Rally Finland	Jyväskylä, Central Finland	Gravel	22	381.55 km
11	19 September	21 September	22nd Rally of Indonesia	Medan, North Sumatra	Gravel	22	402.17 km
12	12 October	15 October	39th Rallye Sanremo - Rallye d'Italia	Sanremo, Liguria	Tarmac	25	396.21 km
13	30 October	2 November	10th API Rally Australia	Perth, Western Australia	Gravel	24	421.42 km
14	23 November	25 November	54th Network Q RAC Rally	Cheltenham, Gloucestershire	Gravel	26	381.11 km
Sources:[1][2]

Teams and drivers

Team	Manufacturer	Car	Tyre	No.	Driver	Co-Driver	Rounds
Mitsubishi Ralliart	Mitsubishi	Lancer Evo IV	M	1	Tommi Mäkinen	Seppo Harjanne	All
		Lancer Evo III		2	Uwe Nittel	Tina Thörner	1–2, 5–6, 10, 12
		Carisma GT Evo IV			Richard Burns	Robert Reid	3–4, 7–9, 11, 13–14
		Lancer Evo III	Y	11	Ed Ordynski	Mark Stacey	13
				13	Kenjiro Shinozuka	Fred Gocentas	13
555 Subaru WRT	Subaru	Impreza S5 WRC '97	P	3	Colin McRae	Nicky Grist	All
				4	Piero Liatti	Fabrizia Pons	1, 5–6, 12
					Kenneth Eriksson	Staffan Parmander	2–4, 7–11, 13–14
				8	Piero Liatti	Fabrizia Pons	14
		Impreza 555		10	Peter 'Possum' Bourne	Craig Vincent	9
Ford Motor Co. Ltd.	Ford	Ford Escort WRC	M	5	Carlos Sainz	Luis Moya	All
				6	Armin Schwarz	Denis Giraudet	1–5
						Phil Mills	6
					Juha Kankkunen	Juha Repo	7–14
				16	Angelo Medeghini	Barbara Medeghini	14
Toyota Castrol Team	Toyota	Corolla WRC	M	7	Didier Auriol	Denis Giraudet	10–14
				8	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen	10
				9			14
				9	Neal Bates	Coral Taylor	11
				8			13
				10	Freddy Loix	Sven Smeets	12

Non Manufacturer Entries

Major entries not registered as manufacturers
Team	Manufacturer	Car	Tyre	Drivers	Co-drivers	Rounds
R.A.S. Sport	Ford	Ford Escort RS Cosworth	M	Didier Auriol	Jean-Marc Andrié	1
				Jean-Pierre Richelmi	Thierry Barjou	4, 8
Dieter Depping			M	Dieter Depping	Dieter Hawranke	1
Bo-Be Plastindustri AB			P	Mats Jonsson	Johnny Johansson	2
Mobil Ford Motorsport			M	Stig Blomqvist	Benny Melander	2
Blue Rose Team			M	Jarmo Kytölehto	Arto Kapanen	2
		Escort WRC				10
Totta Peres Competição			M	Fernando Peres	Ricardo Caldeira	4
Belgacom Turbo Team			M	Grégoire de Mevius	Jean-Marc Fortin	4, 8, 12, 14
Leonídas Kirkos			M	Leonídas Kirkos	Nikos Panou	8
Ford Team Finland			M	Sebastian Lindholm	Timo Hantunen	10
Jolly Club			P	Gianfranco Cunico	Pierangelo Scalvini	12
Motorsport Consultancy			P	Ari Vatanen	Roger Freeman	14
Gazprom Rally Team			M	Bruno Thiry	Stéphane Prévot	14
		Ford Escort RS Cosworth	M	Alexander Zheludov	Viktor Timkovskiy	14
Marlboro Toyota Castrol Belgium	Toyota	Celica GT-Four (ST205)	M	Freddy Loix	Sven Smeets	1, 4, 8, 10, 13
Toyota Castrol Deutschland			P	Isolde Holderied	Catherine François	1
Toyota Denmark Rally Team			M	Henrik Lundgaard	Freddy Pedersen	1
Toyota Castrol Team Sweden			M	Thomas Rådström	Lars Bäckman	2
					Denis Giraudet	8
				'Gullabo'	Pecka Svensson	2
				Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen	2
Toyota Kenya			M	Ian Duncan	David Williamson	3
Toyota Castrol Finland			M	Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen	4
H.F. Grifone SRL				Raúl Sufan	Martin Christie	4–5, 7–13
				Marcus Grönholm	Timo Rautiainen	7
				Didier Auriol	Denis Giraudet	7
				Andrea Aghini	Loris Roggia	12
				Pier Lorenzo Zanchi	Dario D'Esposito	12
Toyota Team Australia			D	Neal Bates	Coral Taylor	9
Shell Helix Motor Oils			M	Pasi Hagström	Tero Gardemeister	10
Tein Sport			M	Yoshio Fujimoto	Arne Hertz	11, 13
Jonathan Toroitich		Celica Turbo 4WD (ST185)	F	Jonathan Toroitich	Ibrahim Choge	3
Olivier Burri	Subaru	Impreza 555	P	Olivier Burri	Christophe Hofmann	1
F.Dor Rally Team			P	Frédéric Dor	Kevin Gormley	3, 9
					Didier Breton	4, 8, 10
		Impreza S5 WRC '97				12
Subaru Allstars		Impreza 555	P	Rui Madeira	Nuno Rodrigues da Silva	4–5
				Yukihiko Sakurai	Ronan Morgan	4, 8, 14
Impreza Recaro Fujitsubo			D	Masao Kamioka	Kevin Gormley	4, 8, 14
A.R.T Engineering			P	Angelo Medeghini	Barbara Medeghini	5, 10
				Andrea Navarra	Renzo Casazza	8
					Alessandro Alessandrini	12, 14
				Massimo Ercolani	Antonio Borri	12
Armodios Vovos			P	Armodios Vovos	Ioánnis Alvanos	8
Joe McAndrew			P	Joe McAndrew	Bob Haldane	9
Procar Rally Team			P	Andrea Dallavilla	Danilo Fappani	12
				Diego Oldrati	Paolo Lizzi	12
Renato Travaglia			?	Renato Travaglia	Flavio Zanella	12
Mobil 1 Stomil Olsztyn			M	Krzysztof Hołowczyc	Maciej Wisławski	14
Subaru Rally Team Australia		Impreza WRX STi RA	P	Greg Graham	Glenn Macneall	9
		Impreza 555	P	Peter 'Possum' Bourne	Craig Vincent	13
Mitsubishi Ralliart Germany	Mitsubishi	Lancer Evo III	P	Uwe Nittel	Christina Thörner	8
Ralliart New Zealand		Lancer Evo IV	F	Geoff Argyle	Raymond Bennett	9

FIA 2-Litre World Rally Cup Major Entries

Team	Manufacturer	Car	Tyre	Drivers	Co-drivers	Rounds
Škoda Motorsport	Škoda	Felicia Kit Car	M	Emil Triner	Julius Gál	1
					Karel Jirátko	2, 4–5, 7–8
					Miloš Hůlka	10
		Octavia Kit Car				12–13
		Felicia Kit Car		Pavel Sibera	Petr Gross	1–2, 4–5, 7–8, 13
		Octavia Kit Car				10, 12
		Felicia Kit Car		Jindřich Štolfa	Miroslav Fanta	10, 12
				Fabio Danti	Marcello Olivari	12
East Belgian Racing Team				Bernard Munster	Jean-François Elst	14
SEAT Sport	SEAT	Ibiza Kit Car	M	Harri Rovanperä	Voitto Silander	1, 4–5, 7
		Ibiza Kit Car Evo2				9–14
		Ibiza Kit Car		Oriol Gómez	Marc Martí	1, 5, 7, 14
		Ibiza Kit Car Evo2				8–13
		Ibiza Kit Car		Erwin Weber	Manfred Hiemer	4
		Ibiza Kit Car Evo2				8, 11
		Ibiza Kit Car		Bruno Thiry	Stéphane Prévot	5
				Renaud Verreydt	Dominique Dricot	12
		Ibiza Kit Car Evo2		Gwyndaf Evans	Howard Davies	14
David Higgins		Ibiza Kit Car		David Higgins	Rory Kennedy	14
Technocar		Ibiza GTi 16V	?	"Stratissino"	Giorgos Petropoulos	8
Andorra Auto Club			M	Ferran Font	Eduard Andueza	4, 8
					Joan Sureda	11
Vítor Pascoal		Ibiza GTi 16V	?	Vítor Pascoal	Duarte Costa	4
Volkswagen Motorsport Sweden	Volkswagen	Golf III GTi 16V	?	Jörgen Jonasson	Nicklas Jonasson	2
				Harry Joki	Ingemar Karlsson	2
Blue Rose Team		Golf III Kit Car	?	Tapio Laukkanen	Risto Mannisenmäki	2, 10
S.B.G. Sport			P	Alister McRae	David Senior	2, 4, 13–14
Opel Team Sweden	Opel	Astra GSi 16V	M	Per Svan	Johan Olsson	2, 10, 14
Hawk Racing Club Srl			?	Sandro Sottile	Piero Barbieri	12
Scuderia Dei Fiori		Corsa B GSi	?	Andrea Maselli	Nicola Arena	12
Renault Team Sweden	Renault	Mégane Maxi	P	Jonas Kruse	Anders Olsson	2
					Håkan Ekholm	10
Renault Gest Galp			M	José Carlos Macedo	Miguel Borges	4
				Pedro Azeredo	Fernando Prata	4
Remus Racing			P	Raphael Sperrer	Per Carlsson	4–5, 10, 12
Renault Sport España			M	Miguel Martínez-Conde	Felipe Alonso Fernández	5
Société Diac			M	Philippe Bugalski	Jean-Paul Chiaroni	6
				Serge Jordan	Jack Boyère	6
"Leonidas"			M	"Leonidas"	Maria Pavli-Korre	8
Italian Promotor Sport			M	Corrado Fontana	Daniele Pelliccioni	12
				Paolo Andreucci	Simona Fedeli	12
Renault Dealer Rallying UK			M	Robbie Head	Bryan Thomas	14
				Martin Rowe	Nicky Beech	14
Mikael Bonnevier		Clio Williams	?	Mikael Bonnevier	Peter Johansson	2
"Dim"			?	"Dim"	Konstantinos Stefanis	8
Oscar Chiaramello		18 GTX	?	Oscar Chiaramello	Fernando Chiaramello	7
Ricardo Costanzo				Ricardo Costanzo	Jose Claudio Ocampo	7
Promoracing Finland	Nissan	Sunny GTi	?	Toni Gardemeister	Paavo Lukander	2, 10
Nissan Motorsports Europe		Micra Kit Car	Y	Mark Higgins	Phil Mills	10
				Masahiro Takasaki	Hiroaki Hamada	9–13
				Geoff Jones	Rhydian Welson	5–6
		Almera Kit Car		Mark Higgins	Phil Mills	14
Silverstone Rally Tyre Team	Proton	Satria Kit Car	S	Russell Palmer	Brian Harwood	3
Azar Anwar	Daewoo	Cielo	?	Azar Anwar	Arshad Khan	3
Rory Green	Hyundai	Elantra	?	Rory Green	Orson Taylor	3
Jimmy Wahome			?	Jimmy Wahome	Tom Muriuki	3
Hyundai Rally Sport		Coupé	?	Robert Nicoli	Jim Carlton	9, 13
				Wayne Bell	Iain Stewart	9, 11, 13
Dean Herridge			M	Dean Herridge	Lyndall Drake	13
Jimmy McRae		Accent X3	M	Jimmy McRae	Rob Arthur	14
Peugeot Esso Competição	Peugeot	306 Maxi	M	Adruzilo Lopes	Luís Lisboa	4
Peugeot Sport			M	Gilles Panizzi	Herve Panizzi	5–6
				François Delecour	Daniel Grataloup	5–6
Peugeot Sport España			M	Jaime Azcona	Julius Billmaier	5
"Fabrou"		106 XSi	?	"Fabrou"	Marc Boyer	4
Ford España	Ford	Escort Maxi Kit Car	M	Daniel Alonso Villarón	Salvador Belzunces	5
Citroën Hispania	Citroën	ZX Kit Car	M	Jesús Puras	Marc Martí	5
Citroën Sport		Saxo Kit Car		Patrick Magaud	Michel Périn	6
Kostas Argiriou	Toyota	Starlet EP91	?	Kostas Argiriou	Tzannis Vlahos	8
Silverstone Suzuki Sport	Suzuki	Baleno Wagon Kit Car	S	Nobuhiro Tajima	Ross Runnalls	9
					Glenn Macneall	11
					Claire Parker	13
Timor Motorsport	Timor	S 515i	?	Andy Yachmoon	Ichwan Habib Nasution	11
				Faried Thalib	Bambang Gunawan	11
Honda UK Rally Team	Honda	Civic	D	Neil Wearden	Trevor Agnew	12, 14
Daihatsu Australia	Daihatsu	Charade GTi	?	Ross Mackenzie	Tony Brandon	13
				Rick Bates	Jenny Brittan	13
Kia Motorsport Korea	Kia	Sephia	?	Park Jeong-Ryong	Damien Long	13

Group N Cup major entries

Team	Manufacturer	Car	Tyre	Drivers	Co-drivers	Rounds
Mitsubishi Ralliart Germany	Mitsubishi	Lancer Evo III	P	Gustavo Trelles	Jorge Del Buono	1–2, 4–5, 7–10, 12
				Manfred Stohl	Dieter Schneppenheim	1
					Peter Müller	2, 4–5, 7
		Lancer Evo IV				10, 12
		Lancer Evo III		Luis Climent	Álex Romaní	4–6, 8, 13–14
		Lancer Evo IV				10
Paulaner Team		Lancer Evo III	P	Armin Kremer	Sven Behling	1
Mitsubishi Ralliart Sweden			M	Kenneth Bäcklund	Tord Andersson	2
				Stig-Olov Walfridsson	Gunnar Barth	2
Mitsubishi Ralliart Finland			M	Juha Kangas	Jani Laaksonen	2, 10
		Lancer Carisma GT Evo IV		Jouko Puhakka	Keijo Eerola	10
Bilsport Magazine		Lancer Evo II	?	Gert Blomqvist	Lena Lindberg	2
Helmia Motorsport		Lancer Evo III	?	Pernilla Solberg	Sven-Olov Kvarnlöv	2
					Linda Walfridsson	14
Sobiesław Zasada			?	Sobiesław Zasada	Ewa Zasada	3
Kurt Göttlicher			?	Kurt Göttlicher	Petra Heider	3–4, 7–10
Antonello Fidanza			?	Antonello Fidanza	Raffaele Farina	5, 12
Jacques Andreani			M	Jacques Andreani	Claude Blanc-Raffini	6
Jorge Recalde			?	Jorge Recalde	José Garcia	7
Ralliart New Zealand		Lancer Evo IV	?	Reece Jones	Leo Bult	9
		Lancer Evo III			Eurig Evans	13–14
Todd Bawden		Lancer Evo IV	?	Todd Bawden	Jeff Grove	9
Hikaru Teshigawara			?	Hikaru Teshigawara	Tadayoshi Sato	9
Vatosua			?	Olli Harkki	Kari Mustalahti	10, 14
Team Pomi Finland			?	Marko Ipatti	Kari Kajula	10
Advan-Piaa Rally Team		Lancer Evo III	Y	Yoshihiro Kataoka	Satoshi Hayashi	11, 13
Mitsubishi Ralliart Indonesia		Lancer Evo IV	?	Arief Indiarto	Firman Barototomo	11
				Bambang Hartono	Agung Baskoro	11
Masayuki Akaba		Lancer Evo III	?	Masayuki Akaba	Takako Akaba	11, 13
Goro Rally Team		Lancer Evo IV	?	Tommy Suharto	Jeffrey Jarang Pulang	11
				Ricardo Gelael	Hervian Soejono	11
Ralliart Italia		Lancer Evo V	?	Mario Stagni	Enrico Brazzoli	12
Luca Baldini		Lancer Evo III	?	Luca Baldini	Massimo Agostinelli	12
Boris Popovič			?	Boris Popovič	Roman Leljak	12
Fabrizio Gallio		Lancer Evo IV	?	Fabrizio Gallio	Daniele De Luis	12
Jeremy Easson		Lancer Evo III	D	Jeremy Easson	Alun Cook	14
Julian Porter			?	Julian Porter	Claire Mole	14
Proton Kathrein Rallye Team	Proton	Wira Evo III	P	Hermann Gaßner sen.	Siegfried Schrankl	1, 12
Petronas EON Racing Team		Wira 4WD	Y	Karamjit Singh	Allen Oh	9, 11, 13
				Katsuhiko Taguchi	Fred Gocentas	9
					Roland Pickering	13
				Saladin Mazlan	Jagdev Singh	11
Johnny Hellier	Subaru	Impreza WRX	?	Johnny Hellier	Stefano Rocca	3
Escudería Sur			?	Carlos Marques	Álvaro Ferreira	4
Remus Racing			?	Achim Mörtl	Ilka Minor	6
Roberto Sanchez			?	Roberto Sanchez	Edgardo Galindo	7
Aurelino González			?	Aurelino González	Carlos Zarza	7
Hiroshi Nishiyama			B	Hiroshi Nishiyama	Hisashi Yamaguchi	8, 14
'Stumpy'			?	'Stumpy'	Daryll Judd	9
Subaru Rally Team Japan			?	Hideaki Miyoshi	Yoshimasa Nakahara	9, 11, 13
				Yoshihiro Kataoka	Satoshi Hayashi	9
				Toshihiro Arai	Toshio Omizo	13
Tein Sport Junior Team			M	Shigeyuki Konishi	Tony Sircombe	9, 11, 13
Team 555 China			?	Yong Zhou	Xue Zhong Chen	11
			?	Tong Chun Xian	Jia Li	11
Les Walkden Racing			?	Michael Guest	David Green	13
Rob Herridge			?	Rob Herridge	Chris Randell	13
Vassilis Apostolou		Legacy RS	?	Vassilis Apostolou	Emmanouel Kalogeropoulos	8
Azar Anwar	Daewoo	Cielo	?	Azar Anwar	Arshad Khan	3
Mark Tilbury	Nissan	Pulsar GTi-R	?	Mark Tilbury	Bill Kirk	3
Vassilis Halkias		Sunny GTI-R	?	Vassilis Halkias	Mihalis Patrikoussis	8
Jim Kahumbura	Toyota	Celica GT-Four (ST205)	?	Jim Kahumbura	Dave Macharia	3
Chitranjan Patel	Ford	Escort RS Cosworth	?	Chitranjan Patel	Shailen Shah	3
Horácio Franco			?	Horácio Franco	Tiago Mourão	4
Jean-Marie Santoni			?	Jean-Marie Santoni	Jean-Marc Casamatta	6
JLM Team	Peugeot	106 Rallye	M	David Nafría	F. Gallego	5
Gamace MC Competición			M	Jordi Grinyó	Samira Lanaya	5
Escudería La Coruña			M	Amador Vidal Cernadas	Roberto Mosquera López	5
Philippe Fons	Renault	Clio Williams	?	Philippe Fons	Olivier Pieri	6
Jean-Michel Pietri			?	Jean-Michel Pietri	Jean-Charles Mondoloni	6
Erick Antona			?	Erick Antona	Jean-Charles Pianelli	6
Pavlos Moschoutis	Mazda	323 GT-R	M	Pavlos Moschoutis	Giórgos Kouris	8

Results and standings

Rally results

Rd.	Rally	Overall Winners	Group N Cup Winners	2.0 L WC winners	Report
1	Monte Carlo	No. 4 555 Subaru WRT	No. 23 Mitsubishi Ralliart Germany	No. 20 Škoda Motorsport	Report
		Subaru Impreza S5 WRC '97	Mitsubishi Lancer Evo III	Škoda Felicia Kit Car
		Piero Liatti Fabrizia Pons	Gustavo Trelles Jorge Del Buono	Emil Triner Julius Gál
2	Sweden	No. 4 555 Subaru WRT	No. 16 Mitsubishi Ralliart Sweden	No. 28 Volkswagen Motorsport Sweden	Report
		Subaru Impreza S5 WRC '97	Mitsubishi Lancer Evo III	Volkswagen Golf III GTi 16V
		Kenneth Eriksson Staffan Parmander	Kenneth Bäcklund Tord Andersson	Jörgen Jonasson Nicklas Jonasson
3	Kenya	No. 3 555 Subaru WRT	No. 26 Johnny Hellier	No. 41 Silverstone Rally Tyre Team	Report
		Subaru Impreza S5 WRC '97	Subaru Impreza WRX	Proton Satria
		Colin McRae Nicky Grist	Johnny Hellier Stefano Rocca	Michael Guest David Green
4	Portugal	No. 1 Mitsubishi Ralliart	No. 24 Mitsubishi Ralliart Germany	No. 12 S.B.G. Sport	Report
		Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IV	Mitsubishi Lancer Evo III	Volkswagen Golf III Kit Car
		Tommi Mäkinen Seppo Harjanne	Gustavo Trelles Jorge Del Buono	Alister McRae David Senior
5	Spain	No. 1 Mitsubishi Ralliart	No. 24 Mitsubishi Ralliart Germany	No. 11 Peugeot Sport	Report
		Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IV	Mitsubishi Lancer Evo III	Peugeot 306 Maxi
		Tommi Mäkinen Seppo Harjanne	Gustavo Trelles Jorge Del Buono	Gilles Panizzi Hervé Panizzi
6	France	No. 3 555 Subaru WRT	No. 17 Jean-Marie Santoni	No. 7 Peugeot Sport	Report
		Subaru Impreza S5 WRC '97	Ford Escort RS Cosworth	Peugeot 306 Maxi
		Colin McRae Nicky Grist	Jean-Marie Santoni Jean-Marc Casamatta	Gilles Panizzi Hervé Panizzi
7	Argentina	No. 1 Mitsubishi Ralliart	No. 24 Mitsubishi Ralliart Germany	No. 11 Seat Sport	Report
		Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IV	Mitsubishi Lancer Evo III	Seat Ibiza Kit Car
		Tommi Mäkinen Seppo Harjanne	Gustavo Trelles Jorge Del Buono	Harri Rovanperä Voitto Silander
8	Greece	No. 5 Ford Motor Co. Ltd.	No. 15 Mitsubishi Ralliart Germany	No. 22 Seat Sport	Report
		Ford Escort WRC	Mitsubishi Lancer Evo III	Seat Ibiza Kit Car Evo2
		Carlos Sainz Luis Moya	Gustavo Trelles Jorge Del Buono	Oriol Gómez Marc Martí
9	New Zealand	No. 4 555 Subaru WRT	No. 7 Mitsubishi Ralliart Germany	No. 11 Seat Sport	Report
		Subaru Impreza S5 WRC '97	Mitsubishi Lancer Evo III	Seat Ibiza Kit Car Evo2
		Kenneth Eriksson Staffan Parmander	Gustavo Trelles Jorge Del Buono	Oriol Gómez Marc Martí
10	Finland	No. 1 Mitsubishi Ralliart	No. 17 Mitsubishi Ralliart Finland	No. 21 Seat Sport	Report
		Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IV	Mitsubishi Carisma GT Evo IV	Seat Ibiza Kit Car Evo2
		Tommi Mäkinen Seppo Harjanne	Jouko Puhakka Keijo Eerola	Harri Rovanperä Voitto Silander
11	Indonesia	No. 5 Ford Motor Co. Ltd.	No. 19 Petronas EON Racing Team	No. 11 Seat Sport	Report
		Ford Escort WRC	Proton Wira 4WD	Seat Ibiza Kit Car Evo2
		Carlos Sainz Luis Moya	Karamjit Singh Allen Oh	Harri Rovanperä Voitto Silander
12	Italy	No. 3 555 Subaru WRT	No. 47 Ralliart Italia	No. 25 Seat Sport	Report
		Subaru Impreza S5 WRC '97	Mitsubishi Lancer Evo V	Seat Ibiza Kit Car Evo2
		Colin McRae Nicky Grist	Mario Stagni Enrico Brazzoli	Harri Rovanperä Voitto Silander
13	Australia	No. 3 555 Subaru WRT	No. 25 Tein Sport Junior Team	No. 16 Seat Sport	Report
		Subaru Impreza S5 WRC '97	Subaru Impreza WRX	Seat Ibiza Kit Car Evo2
		Colin McRae Nicky Grist	Shigeyuki Konishi Tony Sircombe	Harri Rovanperä Voitto Silander
14	Britain	No. 3 555 Subaru WRT	No. 29 Mitsubishi Ralliart Germany	No. 27 Seat Sport	Report
		Subaru Impreza S5 WRC '97	Mitsubishi Lancer Evo III	Seat Ibiza Kit Car Evo2
		Colin McRae Nicky Grist	Luis Climent Álex Romaní	Harri Rovanperä Voitto Silander
Source:[3]

Drivers' championship

Pos. Driver MON SWE KEN POR ESP FRA ARG GRE NZL FIN INA ITA AUS GBR  Pts  1 Tommi Mäkinen 3 3 Ret 1 1 Ret 1 3 Ret 1 Ret 3 2 6 63 2 Colin McRae Ret 4 1 Ret 4 1 2 Ret Ret Ret Ret 1 1 1 62 3 Carlos Sainz 2 2 Ret Ret 10 2 Ret 1 2 Ret 1 4 Ret 3 51 4 Juha Kankkunen Ret 2 3 2 2 6 Ret 2 29 5 Kenneth Eriksson 1 Ret Ret 3 Ret 1 Ret 3 Ret Ret 28 6 Piero Liatti 1 2 5 2 7 24 7 Richard Burns 2 Ret Ret 4 4 4 4 4 21 8 Armin Schwarz 4 6 4 3 Ret 9 11 9 Freddy Loix 16 2 Ret 37 5 7 8 10 Gilles Panizzi 3 3 8 11 Didier Auriol Ret 5 8 Ret 8 3 Ret 6 12 Marcus Grönholm 8 Ret 4 Ret 5 5 13 Ian Duncan 3 4 14 Jarmo Kytölehto Ret 3 4 15 Thomas Rådström 5 5 4 16 Possum Bourne 5 5 4 17 Grégoire De Mévius 4 7 Ret Ret 3 18 François Delecour DSQ 4 3 19 Sebastian Lindholm 4 3 20 Uwe Nittel 5 Ret 8 8 6 7 Ret 3 21 Jonathan Toroitich 5 2 22 Jean-Pierre Richelmi 5 Ret 2 23 Angelo Medeghini 5 Ret 10 2 24 Tomas Jansson 7 5 2 25 Yoshio Fujimoto 5 Ret 2 26 Henrik Lundgaard 6 1 27 Frédéric Dor 6 17 11 23 29 15 1 28 Masao Kamioka 6 Ret 14 1 29 Rui Madeira 15 6 1 30 Philippe Bugalski 6 1 31 Gustavo Trelles 9 16 7 13 6 13 7 17 Ret 1 32 Neal Bates 6 Ret 8 1 33 Pasi Hagström 6 1 34 Karamjit Singh 11 6 Ret 17 1 35 Ed Ordynski 6 1 Pos. Driver MON SWE KEN POR ESP FRA ARG GRE NZL FIN INA ITA AUS GBR  Pts  Sources:[4][5]

Key Colour Result Gold Winner Silver 2nd place Bronze 3rd place Green Points finish Blue Non-points finish Non-classified finish (NC) Purple Did not finish (Ret) Black Excluded (EX) Disqualified (DSQ) White Did not start (DNS) Cancelled (C) Blank Withdrew entry from the event (WD)

Manufacturers' championship

Pos. Manufacturer No. MON SWE KEN POR ESP FRA ARG GRE NZL FIN INA ITA AUS GBR Points 1 555 Subaru World Rally Team 3 Ret 4 1 Ret 4 1 2 Ret Ret Ret Ret 1 1 1 114 4 1 1 Ret Ret 2 5 3 Ret 1 Ret 3 2 Ret Ret 2 Ford Motor Co 5 2 2 Ret Ret 10 2 Ret 1 2 Ret 1 4 Ret 3 91 6 4 6 4 3 Ret 9 Ret 2 3 2 2 6 Ret 2 3 Team Mitsubishi Ralliart 1 3 3 Ret 1 1 Ret 1 3 Ret 1 Ret 3 2 6 86 2 5 Ret 2 Ret 8 8 Ret 4 4 7 4 Ret 4 4 Pos. Manufacturer No. MON SWE KEN POR ESP FRA ARG GRE NZL FIN INA ITA AUS GBR Points Sources:[5][4]

Key Colour Result Gold Winner Silver 2nd place Bronze 3rd place Green Points finish Blue Non-points finish Non-classified finish (NC) Purple Did not finish (Ret) Black Excluded (EX) Disqualified (DSQ) White Did not start (DNS) Cancelled (C) Blank Withdrew entry from the event (WD)

Group N Cup

Pos. Driver MON SWE KEN POR ESP FRA ARG GRE NZL FIN INA ITA AUS GBR  Pts  1 Gustavo Trelles 1 4 1 1 1 1 1 4 Ret 84 2 Luís Climent 3 Ret Ret 2 7 Ret 1 26 Manfred Stohl 3 6 2 5 3 6 4 26 4 Shigeyuki Konishi Ret 2 1 21 Karamjit Singh 3 1 Ret 4 21 6 Kenneth Bäcklund 1 13 Johnny Hellier 1 13 Jean-Marie Santoni 1 13 Jouko Puhakka 1 13 Mario Stagni 1 13 Reece Jones 2 Ret 3 13 12 Hideaki Miyoshi Ret 3 3 10 13 Armin Kremer 2 8 Stig-Olov Walfridsson 2 8 Sobiesław Zasada 2 8 Antonello Fidanza 2 8 Jacques Andreani 2 8 Roberto Sanchez 2 8 Olli Harkki 2 Ret 8 Luca Baldini 2 8 Yoshihiro Kataoka Ret Ret 2 8 Jeremy Easson 2 8 14 Juha Kangas 3 5 7 23 Anwar Azar 3 5 David Nafría 3 5 Achim Mörtl 3 5 Pavlos Moschoutis 3 5 Marko Ipatti 3 5 Boris Popovič 3 5 Pos. Driver MON SWE KEN POR ESP FRA ARG GRE NZL FIN INA ITA AUS GBR  Pts

Key Colour Result Gold Winner Silver 2nd place Bronze 3rd place Green Points finish Blue Non-points finish Non-classified finish (NC) Purple Did not finish (Ret) Black Excluded (EX) Disqualified (DSQ) White Did not start (DNS) Cancelled (C) Blank Withdrew entry from the event (WD)

Events

1997 World Rally Championship event map

Black = Tarmac	Brown = Gravel	Blue = Ice/Snow	Red = Mixed Surface

1997 World Rally Championship schedule and results

Rally Name	Dates Run	Podium Drivers (Finishing Time)	Podium Cars
Monte Carlo Rally	19 January–22 January	Piero Liatti (4h:26m:58s) Carlos Sainz (4h:27m:53s) Tommi Mäkinen (4h:29m:29s)	Subaru Impreza WRC 97 Ford Escort WRC Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IV
Swedish Rally	7 February–10 February	Kenneth Eriksson (3h:51m:49s) Carlos Sainz (3h:52m:05s) Tommi Mäkinen (3h:52m:15s)	Subaru Impreza WRC 97 Ford Escort WRC Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IV
Safari Rally	1 March–3 March	Colin McRae (11h:29m:00s) Richard Burns (11h:36m:04s) Ian Duncan (11h:40m:18s)	Subaru Impreza WRC 97 Mitsubishi Carisma GT Evolution IV Toyota Celica GT-Four ST205
Rally Portugal	23 March–26 March	Tommi Mäkinen (4h:53m:01s) Freddy Loix (4h:57m:06s) Armin Schwarz (4h:59m:34s)	Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IV Toyota Celica GT-Four ST205 Ford Escort WRC
Rally Catalunya	14 April–16 April	Tommi Mäkinen (4h:08m:46s) Piero Liatti (4h:08m:53s) Gilles Panizzi (4h:11m:55s)	Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IV Subaru Impreza WRC 97 Peugeot 306 Maxi
Tour de Corse	5 May–7 May	Colin McRae (4h:31m:08s) Carlos Sainz (4h:31m:16s) Gilles Panizzi (4h:31m:46s)	Subaru Impreza WRC 97 Ford Escort WRC Peugeot 306 Maxi
Rally Argentina	22 May–24 May	Tommi Mäkinen (4h:25m:38s) Colin McRae (4h:26m:39s) Kenneth Eriksson (4h:30m:06s)	Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IV Subaru Impreza WRC 97 Subaru Impreza WRC 97
Acropolis Rally	8 June–10 June	Carlos Sainz (4h:56m:24s) Juha Kankkunen (4h:56m:41s) Tommi Mäkinen (5h:01m:27s)	Ford Escort WRC Ford Escort WRC Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IV
Rally New Zealand	2 August–5 August	Kenneth Eriksson (4h:14m:11s) Carlos Sainz (4h:14m:24s) Juha Kankkunen (4h:14m:30s)	Subaru Impreza WRC 97 Ford Escort WRC Ford Escort WRC
Rally Finland	29 August–31 August	Tommi Mäkinen (3h:16m:18s) Juha Kankkunen (3h:16m:25s) Jarmo Kytölehto (3h:18m:18s)	Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IV Ford Escort WRC Ford Escort WRC
Rally Indonesia	19 September–21 September	Carlos Sainz (4h:37m:30s) Juha Kankkunen (4h:37m:46s) Kenneth Eriksson (4h:38m:49s)	Ford Escort WRC Ford Escort WRC Subaru Impreza WRC 97
Rally Sanremo	13 October–15 October	Colin McRae (4h:08m:25s) Piero Liatti (4h:08m:31s) Tommi Mäkinen (4h:08m:37s)	Subaru Impreza WRC 97 Subaru Impreza WRC 97 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IV
Rally Australia	30 October–2 November	Colin McRae (4h:05m:31s) Tommi Mäkinen (4h:05m:37s) Didier Auriol (4h:05m:52s)	Subaru Impreza WRC 97 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IV Toyota Corolla WRC
RAC Rally	23 November–25 November	Colin McRae (3h:54m:31s) Juha Kankkunen (3h:57m:18s) Carlos Sainz (3h:58m:24s)	Subaru Impreza WRC 97 Ford Escort WRC Ford Escort WRC
Source:[1]