Makinen Claims Third Straight World Title as Sainz Breaks Down
November 26, 1998 - 0:0
CHELTENHAM, England Tommi Makinen claimed a record third straight world rally title when rival Carlos Sainz's Toyota engine catch fire just 300 meters from the finish Tuesday of the Network Q Rally, depriving the Spaniard of the world title. Sainz, in fourth place at the time, needed only to cross the line at the end of the final stage to claim the overall season title, which would have been his third.
Sainz's fourth place would have given him three points, one more in the final season standings than Makinen. Briton Richard burns in a Mitsubishi won the rally with a 3 minute 46 second advantage over second-place Juha Kankkunen's Ford with Bruno Thiry's Ford in third. Makinen, who entered the rally with a two-point lead on Sainz, slid out of the race on Sunday's first day when he skidded on a patch of oil and hit a concrete pillar.
Sainz, one of the most popular drivers on the circuit, was left in tears on the cold, wet roadside in southern Wales as co-driver Luis Moya smashed his crash helmet to the ground in frustration. It was a cruel finish. ``The engine blew, it couldn't have been worse,'' Sainz said. ``It seems incredible that something like this happened,'' he added. ``We only needed a few hundred meters.
You can't have worse luck than that.'' ``It's impossible to put into words how I feel,'' he went on. ``We had backed off earlier in the day because of the damp and foggy conditions and were doing all we needed for the championship. It's so difficult to comprehend what has happened, especially so close to the end of the rally.'' Makinen, who was in his hotel and waiting for a car to go to the airport, was also stunned by the finish and offered sympathy to Sainz. ``My brother Duomo rang from the last stage to tell me what had happened to Carlos,'' Makinen explained.
``I couldn't believe it I told him to stop joking. I thought nothing would happen to Carlos, and I feel very sorry for him. He was very unlucky.'' Sainz was the third major star to crash out of the rally. Makinen went out Sunday, and former world champion Colin McRae went out with mechanical problems Monday while leading the race. ``I've been in rallying for 30 years but I've never known an occasion like this,'' said Mitsubishi chief Andrew Cowan. ``I feel very sorry for Carlos and the Toyota team they must be devastated.'' (AP)
Sainz's fourth place would have given him three points, one more in the final season standings than Makinen. Briton Richard burns in a Mitsubishi won the rally with a 3 minute 46 second advantage over second-place Juha Kankkunen's Ford with Bruno Thiry's Ford in third. Makinen, who entered the rally with a two-point lead on Sainz, slid out of the race on Sunday's first day when he skidded on a patch of oil and hit a concrete pillar.
Sainz, one of the most popular drivers on the circuit, was left in tears on the cold, wet roadside in southern Wales as co-driver Luis Moya smashed his crash helmet to the ground in frustration. It was a cruel finish. ``The engine blew, it couldn't have been worse,'' Sainz said. ``It seems incredible that something like this happened,'' he added. ``We only needed a few hundred meters.
You can't have worse luck than that.'' ``It's impossible to put into words how I feel,'' he went on. ``We had backed off earlier in the day because of the damp and foggy conditions and were doing all we needed for the championship. It's so difficult to comprehend what has happened, especially so close to the end of the rally.'' Makinen, who was in his hotel and waiting for a car to go to the airport, was also stunned by the finish and offered sympathy to Sainz. ``My brother Duomo rang from the last stage to tell me what had happened to Carlos,'' Makinen explained.
``I couldn't believe it I told him to stop joking. I thought nothing would happen to Carlos, and I feel very sorry for him. He was very unlucky.'' Sainz was the third major star to crash out of the rally. Makinen went out Sunday, and former world champion Colin McRae went out with mechanical problems Monday while leading the race. ``I've been in rallying for 30 years but I've never known an occasion like this,'' said Mitsubishi chief Andrew Cowan. ``I feel very sorry for Carlos and the Toyota team they must be devastated.'' (AP)