– The World Rally Championship (WRC) is teamwork: No driver can master the long special stages on gravel, asphalt or ice alone. That’s why, in the WRC, a co-driver world champion is always crowned alongside the driver’s title.
Read more Eight-time WRC champion makes comeback in World Rally Championship
Curiosity: The Driver and Co-driver World Championships are the younger titles in the history of the WRC. While the first Manufacturer World Championship title was awarded as early as 1973, the Driver and Co-driver World Championships have only existed since the 1979 season.
In this article, we show the complete list of all Driver and Co-driver World Champions of the WRC since 1979 and state which car they drove. The list of Manufacturer World Champions can be found in this article.
1979: Björn Waldegard / Hans Thorszelius (Ford Escort RS1800)
1980: Walter Röhrl / Christian Geistdörfer (Fiat 131 Abarth)
1981: Ari Vatanen / David Richards (Ford Escort RS1800)
1982: Walter Röhrl / Christian Geistdörfer (Opel Ascona 400)
1983: Hannu Mikkola / Arne Hertz (Audi Quattro)
1984: Stig Blomqvist / Björn Cederberg (Audi Quattro)
1985: Timo Salonen / Seppo Harjanne (Peugeot 205 Turbo 16)
1986: Juha Kankkunen / Juha Piironen (Peugeot 205 Turbo 16)
1987: Juha Kankkunen / Juha Piironen (Lancia Delta HF 4WD)
1988: Miki Biasion / Tiziano Siviero (Lancia Delta HF Integrale)
1989: Miki Biasion / Tiziano Siviero (Lancia Delta HF Integrale)
1990: Carlos Sainz / Luis Moya (Toyota Celica GT-Four ST165)
1991: Juha Kankkunen / Juha Piironen (Lancia Delta Integrale 16V)
1992: Carlos Sainz / Luis Moya (Toyota Celica Turbo 4WD ST185)
1993: Juha Kankkunen / Nicky Grist (Toyota Celica Turbo 4WD ST185)
1994: Didier Auriol / Bernard Occelli (Toyota Celica Turbo 4WD ST185)
1995: Colin McRae / Derek Ringer (Subaru Impreza 555)
1996: Tommi Mäkinen / Seppo Harjanne (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo III)
1997: Tommi Mäkinen / Seppo Harjanne (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IV)
1998: Tommi Mäkinen / Risto Mannisenmäki (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo V)
Read more “Aerodynamics inconsistent”: Pierre Gasly reveals Alpine weakness
Photo gallery: All Rally World Champions since 1979
1999: Tommi Mäkinen / Risto Mannisenmäki (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VI)
2000: Marcus Grönholm / Timo Rautiainen (Peugeot 206 WRC)
2001: Richard Burns / Robert Reid (Subaru Impreza WRC)
2002: Marcus Grönholm / Timo Rautiainen (Peugeot 206 WRC)
2003: Petter Solberg / Phil Mills (Subaru Impreza WRC)
2004: Sebastien Loeb / Daniel Elena (Citroën Xsara WRC)
2005: Sebastien Loeb / Daniel Elena (Citroën Xsara WRC)
2006: Sebastien Loeb / Daniel Elena (Citroën Xsara WRC)
2007: Sebastien Loeb / Daniel Elena (Citroën C4 WRC)
2008: Sebastien Loeb / Daniel Elena (Citroën C4 WRC)
2009: Sebastien Loeb / Daniel Elena (Citroën C4 WRC)
2010: Sebastien Loeb / Daniel Elena (Citroën C4 WRC)
2011: Sebastien Loeb / Daniel Elena (Citroën DS3 WRC)
2012: Sebastien Loeb / Daniel Elena (Citroën DS3 WRC)
2013: Sebastien Ogier / Julien Ingrassia (Volkswagen Polo R WRC)
2014: Sebastien Ogier / Julien Ingrassia (Volkswagen Polo R WRC)
2015: Sebastien Ogier / Julien Ingrassia (Volkswagen Polo R WRC)
2016: Sebastien Ogier / Julien Ingrassia (Volkswagen Polo R WRC)
2017: Sebastien Ogier / Julien Ingrassia (Ford Fiesta WRC)
2018: Sebastien Ogier / Julien Ingrassia (Ford Fiesta WRC)
2019: Ott Tänak / Martin Järveoja (Toyota Yaris WRC)
2020: Sebastien Ogier / Julien Ingrassia (Toyota Yaris WRC)
2021: Sebastien Ogier / Julien Ingrassia (Toyota Yaris WRC)
2022: Kalle Rovanperä / Jonne Halttunen (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1)
2023: Kalle Rovanperä / Jonne Halttunen (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1)
2024: Thierry Neuville / Martijn Wydeaghe (Hyundai i20 N Rally1)
2025: Sebastien Ogier / Vincent Landais (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1)
Read more Nico Hülkenberg with first Audi points: «Feels great»
