Andreas Mikkelsen Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids
Andreas Mikkelsen
Personal information
Mikkelsen at the 2015 Rallye Automobile Monte Carlo
Nationality	Norwegian
Born	(1989-06-22) 22 June 1989 (age 35) Oslo, Norway
World Rally Championship record
Active years	2006–present
Co-driver	Current Torstein Eriksen Former Phil Hall Elliott Edmondson Ola Fløene Anders Jæger Mikko Markkula Paul Nagle Jonas Andersson
Teams	Stobart Ford, Volkswagen, Škoda, Citroën, Hyundai, Toksport WRT
Rallies	125
Championships	0
Rally wins	3
Podiums	25
Stage wins	114
Total points	827
First rally	2006 Wales Rally GB
First win	2015 Rally Catalunya
Last win	2016 Rally Australia

Andreas Mikkelsen (born 22 June 1989) is a Norwegian rally driver. He competes in the World Rally Championship for Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT. He used to drive for big teams like Volkswagen and Citroën. He finished third in the drivers' standings three times in a row, from 2014 to 2016. His current co-driver is Torstein Eriksen.

Andreas is a two-time champion of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge. He won this championship in 2011 and 2012. In 2021, Andreas became a champion in two different rally series. He won both the WRC-2 and the European Rally Championship. He won the WRC-2 championship again in 2023.

Andreas Mikkelsen's Rally Career
His Big Wins in WRC
Skiing Career
Images for kids
See Also

Andreas Mikkelsen's Rally Career

Andreas Mikkelsen has always been good at sports. Before he started rallying, he was a talented skier. He competed in slalom and giant slalom and was even part of Norway's junior national alpine skiing team. In 2003 and 2004, he also raced motocross bikes for the national junior team.

Early Days with Ford (2006-2010)

When Andreas turned 17, he got his British driver's license. This allowed him to start competing in rallies in the United Kingdom and Ireland. He drove a Ford Focus RS WRC car. He won several rallies, including the Quinton Stages and the Saaremaa Rally in Estonia.

Andreas first raced in the World Rally Championship at the 2006 Rally GB. In the 2007 season, he raced in eight WRC events. He also took part in the Irish Tarmac Championship and the Norwegian Rally Championship. His best WRC results were ninth place in 2007 Rally Ireland and tenth in Norway and Portugal.

For the 2008 season, Andreas got special training from Marcus Grönholm. Grönholm was a two-time world champion for Ford. Andreas achieved his best WRC result yet at the 2008 Swedish Rally, finishing fifth. This made him the youngest driver ever to score points in a WRC event at that time. He planned to race in all European championship rounds while finishing school.

Mikkelsen, in the Ford Fiesta S2000, on his way to second place on the 2010 Rally Scotland.

In 2010, Andreas competed in the Intercontinental Rally Challenge (IRC). He drove a Ford Fiesta S2000 and finished second at the 2010 Rally Scotland. He ended up seventh in the overall IRC standings that year. Andreas also drove a Super 2000 car in three WRC events. He won the SWRC class at the last race of the season, the 2010 Wales Rally GB.

Winning with Škoda (2011-2012)

After a strong 2010 season, Andreas joined the Skoda UK Motorsport team for the 2011 IRC season. His 2011 season started a bit rough at Rally Monte-Carlo. But things changed at Sata Rallye Açores, where he finished second. This was his first podium finish in the IRC. Before the final rally of the season, Rally Cyprus, five drivers were still in the running for the championship. Andreas won Rally Cyprus and took home the title. He became the youngest person ever to win the IRC.

Andreas continued to do very well in the IRC in 2012. He won the drivers' championship again. He achieved wins in Azores and Romania, plus five second-place finishes. Andreas was the first driver ever to win the IRC (now called ERC) two times in a row.

Volkswagen Years (2013-2016)

Mikkelsen driving a Volkswagen Polo R WRC at the 2013 Rally de Portugal.

From 2013 to 2016, Andreas raced for Volkswagen Motorsport II. He drove their factory Volkswagen Polo R WRC car. In 2013, he didn't reach the podium but won several special stages. He finished 10th in the overall standings.

The 2014 season was much better. He finished second three times and third twice. This helped him finish an impressive third place in the championship standings. In 2015, he got his first rally victory in Spain. He also had seven third-place finishes, which put him in third place in the world championship again.

Andreas continued his success in 2016. He won two more rallies in Poland and Australia. He also had two second-place finishes. This resulted in him finishing third in the championship overall for the third time in a row. Volkswagen stopped competing in WRC at the end of 2016. This meant Andreas needed a new team for 2017.

Switching Teams (2017)

Citroën C3 WRC of Andreas Mikkelsen at 2017 Rallye Deutschland

At the start of 2017, Andreas entered three rounds of the WRC-2 series. He drove a factory Škoda Fabia R5. He won the Monte Carlo Rally and Tour de Corse in this car. Later in 2017, he joined the Citroën World Rally Team. His first race with them was in Italy, driving a Citroën C3 WRC. After finishing second in Germany, Andreas signed a deal for 2018 with Hyundai Motorsport. He joined his friend Thierry Neuville, Dani Sordo, and Hayden Paddon. He finished fourth in the Welsh Rally GB before the end of that year.

Time with Hyundai (2018-2019)

The 2018 season started well for Andreas. He finished third in Sweden. However, he faced some challenges later in the year and finished 6th overall. The 2019 season was much better. Even though he missed or retired from six of the fourteen WRC events, Andreas still managed to get one second place and two third places. He finished the season in 4th place overall. His contract with Hyundai was not renewed at the end of 2019.

New Challenges (2020)

Andreas did not have a full-time drive for the 2020 season. At Rally Sardegna, he was the co-driver for 2003 World Drivers' Champion Petter Solberg. They tested Pirelli tires for the 2021 season. At Rally Monza, Andreas finished 6th in WRC-2 and won the WRC-3 category with the Eurosol Racing Team.

Double Champion (2021-2022)

Mikkelsen driving a Škoda Fabia Rally2 evo at the 2021 Barum Czech Rally Zlín.

For 2021, Andreas joined Toksport to compete in both the WRC-2 and ERC. He drove a Škoda Fabia R5/Rally2 evo. He made history by becoming the first driver to win both the WRC-2 and ERC titles in the same year! He continued with the team in 2022. During this time, he also helped Škoda Motorsport develop their new Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 car. He even drove it as a course car at the 2022 Bohemia Rally Mladá Boleslav.

Mikkelsen at the 2022 Bohemia Rally Mladá Boleslav, driving the new Škoda Fabia RS Rally2

His Big Wins in WRC

Andreas Mikkelsen has won three rallies in the World Rally Championship:

#	Event	Season	Co-driver	Car
1	51º Rally RACC Catalunya – Costa Daurada	2015	Ola Fløene	Volkswagen Polo R WRC
2	73rd Rally Poland	2016	Anders Jæger	Volkswagen Polo R WRC
3	25th Rally Australia	2016	Anders Jæger	Volkswagen Polo R WRC