1989 Race of Champions
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The 1989 Race of Champions was the second event and was held at the Nürburgring in memory of Henri Toivonen, who died while leading the 1986 Tour de Corse.[1] This event featured the world’s first ever parallel rally track with drivers competing head-to-head in identical cars.
Before start of the main event Spanish Rally Champion of 1987 and 1988 Carlos Sainz crashed on practice in Toyota Celica GT-4 (ST165) (number plate K-AM 6320). Sepp Haider replased Spaniard. All participants are below.[2][3]
| Driver | Titles |
|---|---|
 Juha Kankkunen |
World Rally champion in 1986, 1987 |
| Timo Salonen |
World Rally champion in 1985 |
 Stig Blomqvist |
World Rally champion in 1984 |
| Kenneth Eriksson |
Group A Rally champion in 1986, 2WD Rally champion in 1987 |
 Sepp Haider |
German Rally champion in 1989 |
| Björn Waldegård |
World Rally champion in 1979 |
| Hannu Mikkola |
World Rally champion in 1983 |
 Marc Duez |
Belgian Rally champion in 1982 and 1989 |
| Ari Vatanen |
World Rally champion in 1981 |
 Walter Röhrl |
World Rally champion in 1980, 1982 |
Race of Champions
Qualification round
- Cars
Opel Kadett E 2.0 GSi Group A with number plates Opel GSI 16V.
Race 1
| Driver A | Time A | Driver B | Time B | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Juha Kankkunen |
+0:01.479 | Walter Röhrl |
1:30.177 |
Race 2
| Driver A | Time A | Driver B | Time B | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ari Vatanen |
+0:00.469 | Timo Salonen |
1:31.180 |
Race 3
| Driver A | Time A | Driver B | Time B | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marc Duez |
1:30.156 | Stig Blomqvist |
+0:01.270 |
Race 4
| Driver A | Time A | Driver B | Time B | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hannu Mikkola |
+0:00.610 | Kenneth Eriksson |
1:30.586 |
Race 5
| Driver A | Time A | Driver B | Time B | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Björn Waldegård |
+0:00.736 | Sepp Haider |
1:29.938 |
Race 6
| Driver A | Time A | Driver B | Time B | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stig Blomqvist |
1:29.863 | Björn Waldegård |
+0:00.638 |
Quarterfinals
- Cars
Toyota Celica GT-4 (ST165) with number plates K-AM 4135, K-AM 5265, K-AM 8582.
Quarterfinal 1
Race 1
| Driver A | Time A | Driver B | Time B | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sepp Haider (K-AM 4135) |
1:26.344 | Kenneth Eriksson (K-AM 8582) |
+0:00.441 |
Race 2
| Driver A | Time A | Driver B | Time B | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kenneth Eriksson (K-AM 8582) |
1:26.762 | Sepp Haider (K-AM 4135) |
+0:00.054 |
Race 3
| Driver A | Time A | Driver B | Time B | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sepp Haider (K-AM 4135) |
1:25.919 | Kenneth Eriksson (K-AM 8582) |
+0:00.086 |
Winner: Sepp Haider.
Quarterfinal 2
Race 1
| Driver A | Time A | Driver B | Time B | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Walter Röhrl (K-AM 4135) |
+0:00.246 | Stig Blomqvist (K-AM 5265) |
1:26.558 |
Race 2
| Driver A | Time A | Driver B | Time B | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stig Blomqvist (K-AM 5265) |
1:25.565 | Walter Röhrl (K-AM 4135) |
+0:00.084 |
Winner: Stig Blomqvist.
Quarterfinal 3
Race 1
| Driver A | Time A | Driver B | Time B | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marc Duez |
? | Timo Salonen |
? |
Race 2
| Driver A | Time A | Driver B | Time B | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Timo Salonen |
? | Marc Duez |
? |
Winner: Marc Duez.
The last semi-finalist is Walter Röhrl.
Semi-finals
- Cars
Audi Sport Quattro S1 E2 without number plates.
Semi-final 1
Race 1
First attempt was cancelled due to technical issues with the starting procedure of Marc Duez.
| Driver A | Time A | Driver B | Time B | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marc Duez |
+0:03.959 | Stig Blomqvist |
1:23.592 |
Race 2
| Driver A | Time A | Driver B | Time B | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marc Duez |
+0:01.346 | Stig Blomqvist |
1:22.601 |
Winner: Stig Blomqvist.
Semi-final 2
One of couple races ended with the next result:
| Driver A | Time A | Driver B | Time B | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sepp Haider |
+0:00.169 | Walter Röhrl |
1:23.054 |
Winner: Walter Röhrl.
Finals
- Cars
2 Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 E2: plate 287 FPF 75 (FRA) for Walter Röhrl and plate 311 FPF 75 (FRA) for Stig Blomqvist in the first run. Then drivers switched cars for 2nd run.
Race 1
| Driver A | Time A | Driver B | Time B | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stig Blomqvist |
1:22.218 | Walter Röhrl |
+0:01.630 |
Race 2
| Driver A | Time A | Driver B | Time B | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stig Blomqvist |
1:21.929 | Walter Röhrl |
+0:02.893 |
Winner: Stig Blomqvist.
References
- ↑ "The concept". Race of Champions. Retrieved 29 December 2025.
- ↑ "Action from the Race of Champions 1989". Retrieved 29 December 2025.
- ↑ "Action from the Race of Champions Rally Masters 1989 - Nürburgring". Retrieved 29 December 2025.
| Early events | |
|---|---|
| Gran Canaria | |
| Stadium events | |
| Outdoor events | |