Richard Burns facts for kids
Richard Burns in 2003, with Peugeot Sport
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| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality |  British |
| Born | 17 January 1971 Reading, Berkshire, England |
| Died | 25 November 2005 (aged 34) St John's Wood, London, England |
| World Rally Championship record | |
| Active years | 1990–2003 |
| Co-driver | Wayne Goble Robert Reid |
| Teams | Subaru, Mitsubishi, Peugeot |
| Rallies | 104 |
| Championships | 1 (2001) |
| Rally wins | 10 |
| Podiums | 34 |
| Stage wins | 277 |
| Total points | 351 |
| First rally | 1990 RAC Rally |
| First win | 1998 Safari Rally |
| Last win | 2001 Rally New Zealand |
| Last rally | 2003 Rally Catalunya |
Richard Alexander Burns (born January 17, 1971 – died November 25, 2005) was a famous English rally driver. He achieved his biggest dream by winning the World Rally Championship in 2001. He also came in second place in 1999 and 2000.
Richard helped his teams win titles too. He helped Mitsubishi win the world manufacturers' title in 1998. Later, he helped Peugeot win in 2002. His trusted co-driver for his entire career was Robert Reid. Richard Burns is the only English driver to have ever won the World Rally Championship.
Richard Burns' Rally Career
Early Driving Days
Richard Burns was born in Reading, Berkshire, and grew up in Checkendon, Oxfordshire. He started driving very young! At just eight years old, he drove his father's old car in a field.
When he was eleven, Richard joined the Under 17 Car Club. He was even named driver of the year in 1984. Two years later, his father took him to a rally school in Wales. Richard drove a Ford Escort there. From that day on, he knew he wanted to be a rally driver.
Richard convinced his father to let him join the Craven Motor Club. There, a rally fan named David Williams noticed his talent. David helped Richard a lot in his early career. In 1988, Richard entered his first rallies in his own Talbot Sunbeam. The car was too slow, so in 1989, he borrowed cars from other drivers to keep improving. He raced on many different rally stages to gain experience.
Starting in Professional Rallying
In 1990, Richard joined the Peugeot Challenge. David Williams bought him a Peugeot 205 GTI. Richard won that series! His prize was a chance to drive in a World Rally Championship event in Great Britain that same year.
In 1991, Richard met Robert Reid. Robert became his co-driver for the rest of his career. They finished 16th in their first WRC rally together. For 1992, Williams bought Richard a Subaru Legacy. With help from Prodrive, they won the National Championship. Richard also helped famous driver Colin McRae with his notes that year. Richard even won the Severn Valley Rally, even though his car was slower than others.
In 1993, Richard joined the Subaru Rally Team for the British Rally Championship. He drove a Subaru Legacy alongside Alister McRae. Richard won four rounds that year. These wins made him the youngest British Rally Champion ever! Because of his success, Richard stayed with Subaru for 1994 and 1995. He also competed in the Asia Pacific Rally Championship. This included races in New Zealand and Australia. At the end of 1995, Richard finished an impressive third in the RAC Rally. He was behind his Subaru teammates, Carlos Sainz and Colin McRae.
Joining the World Rally Championship (WRC)
1996–1998: Driving for Mitsubishi
In 1996, Richard got a chance to race with Mitsubishi Ralliart on the international stage. He quickly won the Rally New Zealand that year. This race was part of the Asia-Pacific Rally Championship. He beat strong drivers like Kenneth Eriksson and Piero Liatti. This made his reputation grow even more.
In 1997, Richard drove the same car as his teammate Tommi Makinen, a Group A Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution. His results got better in 1997. He finished in 4th place five times and was 2nd at the Safari Rally. This placed him seventh overall in the championship.
By 1998, Richard had won his first World Rally Championship event at the Safari Rally. This rally was known as the toughest and most challenging race. He then won a second time at the Rally GB. This was his last race for Mitsubishi. In that race, Toyota's Carlos Sainz had to stop late in the race. This helped his teammate, Tommi Makinen, win the drivers' title. It also confirmed the constructors' title for Mitsubishi.
1999–2001: Back with Subaru
Richard Burns returned to the Prodrive-run Subaru World Rally Team in 1999. He joined Juha Kankkunen and Bruno Thiry. Richard drove Subaru Impreza WRC cars. He reached a career-high second place in the drivers' standings and added more wins. He also helped Subaru finish second in the constructors' series.
At the Rally Argentina that year, he almost won. But a team order mix-up meant his teammate Kankkunen took the victory. Richard also finished second behind Kankkunen at the 1000 Lakes Rally. This was impressive because it was only his second time racing there. In 2000, he was a strong contender for the title. But he crashed out at the Rally Finland, which gave the lead to Marcus Grönholm. Still, Richard made an amazing comeback from near last place to win the final race of the season, the Rally of Great Britain. This kept his name well-known.
The 2001 rally season started slowly for Richard. He didn't score points in the first two races. But a fourth place in Portugal got his campaign going. He then finished second in Argentina and Cyprus. Both times, he was beaten by Colin McRae. However, both McRae and Tommi Mäkinen later had their own problems. Richard kept scoring points consistently. This led to his only individual win of the season in New Zealand, where he beat McRae.
Richard then finished second at the Rally Australia. This put him just two points behind the leader, McRae. The final race of the series was in Great Britain. It was a four-way fight for the title, including Richard, McRae, Mäkinen, and Carlos Sainz.
On Sunday, November 25, 2001, Richard's rivals had all retired from the event. Richard finished third in the race. This made him the first Englishman to win the World Rally Championship! He won with 44 points. To celebrate his title, Subaru made a special edition of the Subaru Impreza called the RB5. Richard then moved to Peugeot for the 2002 season.
2002–2003: Back with Peugeot
Richard Burns returned to Peugeot for the 2002 season. Peugeot was a top team, but Richard found it hard to match his teammates. He didn't add any more WRC wins to his record. He won the Rally Argentina, but was later disqualified because his car was too light. This gave the win to Sainz. In Rally New Zealand, he was leading but rolled his car and had to stop.
He still managed to challenge for the title in 2003. He often finished on the podium, but he didn't win any races. This made him decide to leave Peugeot. He signed to rejoin Subaru for the 2004 season. He was going to team up with the 2003 champion, Petter Solberg.
In November 2003, Richard was heading to the final race, the Wales Rally GB. He still had a chance to win the title. But he had a blackout while driving with Ford driver Markko Märtin. He had to pull out of the event and the title race. Later, he was diagnosed with a brain tumor. He had treatment in 2004 and surgery in April 2005. The surgery was called "very successful." But it was soon realized that this type of brain tumor was serious. In August 2005, a fan day was held for Richard. His supporters were invited to see his car collection. But Richard was too unwell to drive. His co-driver, Robert Reid, drove his private cars instead.
Richard Burns' WRC Victories
Richard Burns won 10 World Rally Championship events during his career. Here are his wins:
| # | Event | Season | Co-driver | Car |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Safari Rally |
1998 | Robert Reid | Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IV |
| 2 | Rally of Great Britain |
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution V | ||
| 3 |  Acropolis Rally |
1999 | Subaru Impreza WRC 99 | |
| 4 |  Rally Australia |
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| 5 | Rally of Great Britain |
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| 6 | Safari Rally |
2000 | ||
| 7 |  Rallye de Portugal |
Subaru Impreza WRC 00 | ||
| 8 |  Rally Argentina |
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| 9 | Rally of Great Britain |
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| 10 |  Rally New Zealand |
2001 | Subaru Impreza WRC 2001 |
Richard Burns' Passing and Legacy
On November 25, 2005, exactly four years after winning the World Rally Championship, Richard Burns passed away. He was 34 years old. He had been in a coma for several days due to his brain tumour. A memorial service was held for him in London. Many people, including TV presenters Jeremy Clarkson and Steve Rider, paid tribute to him. He was buried in Checkendon.
The British TV show Top Gear aired a special tribute to Richard. The host, Jeremy Clarkson, said that the news of Richard's death was very important to them. Richard had appeared on Top Gear twice before.
Subaru honored Richard at Castle Combe in 2006. More than fifty Subaru Impreza RB5s drove on the track. One of them, RB5 No. 001, was driven by Richard's father, Alex Burns. Subaru also released a special edition Impreza WRX STI in 2007, called the RB320, in his memory. It had a powerful engine and special suspension. Part of the money from selling these cars went to the RB Foundation.
The RB Foundation was started in 2006 at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. The foundation's goal is to "inspire and support people with serious injury and illness." It also raises money for the Michael Park Fund, which works to make motorsport events safer. The British band Travis dedicated their album The Boy with No Name (2007) to Richard's memory.
Richard Burns Trophy
In 2006, an award for young drivers in the Wales Rally GB was renamed the Richard Burns Trophy. It is given to the best non-priority driver who is 25 years old or younger.
See also
In Spanish: Richard Burns para niños
- Richard Burns Rally, a video game featuring Richard Burns.
- List of notable brain tumor patients
- The Under 17 Car Club
