Chris Atkinson (born 30 November 1979 in

Bega, New South Wales Bega () is a town in the south-east of New South Wales, Australia, in the Bega Valley Shire. It is the economic centre for the Bega Valley. Place name One claim is that place name ''Bega'' is derived from the local Aboriginal word meaning "bi ...

, Australia) is a professional

rally Rally or rallye may refer to: Gatherings * Demonstration (political), a political rally, a political demonstration of support or protest, march, or parade * Pep rally, an event held at a United States school or college sporting event Sport ...

driver. In the World Rally Championship (WRC), Atkinson drove for the Subaru World Rally Team between 2004 and 2008. His best finish on an individual WRC event is second, which he achieved at the

2008 Rally México The 2008 Rally México, officially ''22º Corona Rally México'', was the third round of the 2008 World Rally Championship season. The rally was held on February 29 — March 2 and began with a ceremonial start on Thursday, February 28. It was ...

and Rally Argentina. Other podium placings include third-place finishes at the 2005

Rally Japan Rally Japan (ラリージャパン) is a rally competition held in Hokkaidō, Japan. The event made its debut in the FIA World Rally Championship during the 2004 season. From 2004 to 2007, the event was held on the twisty and narrow gravel roads ...

and the

2008 Monte Carlo Rally The 2008 Monte Carlo Rally, officially 76ème Rallye Automobile de Monte-Carlo, was the 76th Monte Carlo Rally and the first round of the 2008 World Rally Championship season. The rally took place during January 24–27, 2008, beginning with two ...

. Atkinson drives for Team MRF, and competed in the 2012

Asia-Pacific Rally Championship The Asia-Pacific Rally Championship (APRC) is an international rally championship organized by the FIA encompassing rounds in Asia and Oceania. Group N cars dominated the championship for many years but in recent years cars built to R5 and S ...

and made a guest appearance in the

World Rally Championship The World Rally Championship (abbreviated as WRC) is the highest level of global competition in the motorsport discipline of rallying, owned and governed by the FIA. There are separate championships for drivers, co-drivers, manufacturers and t ...

. Atkinson won the 2012 Asia-Pacific Rally Championship. On 16 August 2012, it was announced that Atkinson would be the number one driver for the

WRC Team Mini Portugal The WRC Team Mini Portugal was Mini's factory-supported World Rally Championship team. Established in February 2012 after the Prodrive-run Mini WRC Team had its support from parent company BMW reduced, the team debuted at the Rally of Sweden. ...

outfit for the last five races of the 2012 WRC season.

Early career

Prior to his motorsport career, Atkinson had a career as a stockbroker. He graduated at Bond University in commerce, majoring in finance and accounting in 1999 after receiving an academic scholarship for studies. Atkinson was a co-driver for his brother Ben, but after attending a rally school with his brother, the pair swapped positions, scoring a class win and third overall. Atkinson's brother, Ben Atkinson, is a co-driver for

Cody Crocker Cody Crocker (born 18 October 1971) is an Australian rally and racing car driver. Crocker won seven titles between 2003 and 2009 and with 24 wins and four consecutive championships is the most successful driver in the history of the Asia-Pacific ...

in APRC. For his first full season of competition, Atkinson contested the Australian Rally Championship aboard a privately entered

Group N In relation to international motorsport governed by the FIA, Group N refers to regulations providing 'standard' large scale series production vehicles for competition. They are limited in terms of modifications permitted to the standard specifi ...

Mitsubishi Lancer Evo, finishing inside the top ten in

and in the overall top 20 on every round he contested, as well as setting two second-fastest stage times. The Atkinsons finished ninth outright to become Privateer Champions. This performance brought Atkinson to the attention of Suzuki, who offered him the opportunity to drive one of its

Super 1600 Super 1600, also known as S1600, is a rally car formula that was primarily used in the Junior World Rally Championship between 2001 and 2010, as well as international rallycross championships and various national rally championships. Any automobil ...

Ignis models with the Suzuki Sport team in the 2003

WRC career

Atkinson's first world rally was in 2004 at the

Rally New Zealand The Rally New Zealand is an annual rally race in New Zealand. It was first included as a round of the World Rally Championship in 1977. The race is famous for its fast flowing gravel roads which carry the competitors through forests and alongside ...

in a

Subaru Impreza WRX STI The is a compact car that has been manufactured by the Japanese automaker Subaru since 1992. It was introduced as a replacement for the Subaru Leone, Leone, with the predecessor's Subaru EA engine, EA series engines replaced by the new Subaru EJ ...

. For 2005, he was signed by Subaru World Rally Team to drive the

Subaru Impreza WRC The Subaru Impreza WRC is a World Rally Car based on the Subaru Impreza road car. It was used by Subaru World Rally Team, Subaru's factory team, and replaced Subaru Legacy RS in 1993 World Rally Championship, 1993. The car was debuted at 1993 Ral ...

alongside 2003 world champion

Petter Solberg Petter Solberg (born 18 November 1974) is a Norwegian former professional rally and rallycross driver. Solberg debuted in the World Rally Championship in 1998 and was signed by the Ford factory team in 1999. The following year, Solberg started ...

. He finished 12th overall in the drivers' world championship with 13 points. His best results were third in Japan and fourth in Australia. AtkinsonAUS2006

After finishing the 2006 season tenth overall in the drivers championship with 20 points and a fourth place as his best finish, Subaru told Atkinson that his job was on the line, and if he could not balance his speed with safety and achieve quality results he would be replaced by another driver. At the start of the 2007 season Atkinson finished fourth at the 2007 Rally Monte Carlo, recording three stage wins. On the final day of the rally, Atkinson was 0.8 seconds behind fourth place man

Mikko Hirvonen Mikko Hirvonen (born 31 July 1980) is a Finnish former rally driver, and a current Rally-Raid driver, who drove in the World Rally Championship. He placed third in the drivers' championship and helped Ford to the manufacturers' title in both 2 ...

and had to beat him in the super special stage, a 2.4 km run through

Monaco Monaco (; ), officially the Principality of Monaco (french: Principauté de Monaco; Ligurian: ; oc, Principat de Mónegue), is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Lig ...

which uses part of the world-famous

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

course. Hirvonen set a time of 1:50.9 meaning that Atkinson had to at least set a time of 1:50.1 to beat him, but Atkinson did better and took the stage win with a time of 1:49.9. Hirvonen was the first person over to Atkinson to congratulate him. At the

2007 Rally Finland The ''57th Neste Oil Rally Finland'' was the 9th round of the 2007 World Rally Championship. It was run on 2–5 August 2007 and based in Jyväskylä, Finland. Results Retirements * Kristian Sohlberg - rolled (SS2); * Jari-Matti Latva ...

, Atkinson posted the fastest time on the short opening super special stage on a horse-racing course at Killeri, to lead the rally for a short time. Atkinson finished the 2007 season seventh overall in the drivers' world championship. Chris Atkinson - 2008 Rallye Deutschland

Chris Atkinson - 2008 Rallye Deutschland

At the beginning of the 2008 season, Atkinson took third place in

Monte Carlo Monte Carlo (; ; french: Monte-Carlo , or colloquially ''Monte-Carl'' ; lij, Munte Carlu ; ) is officially an administrative area of the Principality of Monaco, specifically the ward of Monte Carlo/Spélugues, where the Monte Carlo Casino is ...

; while at the 2008 Corona Rally Mexico, Atkinson managed second, 30 seconds ahead of

Jari-Matti Latvala Jari-Matti Latvala (born 3 April 1985) is a Finnish rally driver who has competed in the World Rally Championship (WRC). His co-driver for most of his career was Miikka Anttila, who co-drove for Latvala between the 2003 Rallye Deutschland and 2019 ...

. He finished the season fifth in the drivers' standings, and for the first time, outscored hitherto team leader Solberg. After Subaru's season-ending announcement of its withdrawal from the WRC, Atkinson signed for the new Citroën Junior Team for the 2009 season. In his only rally for the season with the team in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, he produced a strong showing to finish fifth, despite colliding with a

telegraph pole A utility pole is a column or post typically made out of wood used to support overhead power lines and various other public utilities, such as electrical cable, fiber optic cable, and related equipment such as transformers and street lights. It c ...

during the first day, and suffering a spin on SS18.

Re-entry into WRC (2012)

After signing with Monster World Rally Team in 2012, Atkinson raced alongside Ken Block in Mexico. Atkinson won a stage, SS12 – Leon Super Special but finished with a DNF due to mechanical failure. Atkinson also signed up for a one-off drive in a Citroën DS3 WRC for the

Qatar World Rally Team The Qatar World Rally Team is a Qatari World Rally Championship team, based in Cumbria, United Kingdom. History They made their debut at the 2012 Rally of Sweden, entering a single Citroën DS3 WRC for Nasser Al-Attiyah and co-driver Giovann ...

for

Rally Finland Rally Finland (formerly known as the Neste Rally Finland, Neste Oil Rally Finland, 1000 Lakes Rally and Rally of the Thousand Lakes; fi, Suomen ralli, sv, Finska rallyt) is a rally competition in the Finnish Lakeland in Central Finland. The ra ...

. However, his medium term WRC future was granted when it was announced he would replace Armindo Araujo as the lead driver for the factory-backed WRC Team MINI Portugal in the last five rallies of the 2012 season. 2012 rallye deutschland by 2eight dsc4764

2012 rallye deutschland by 2eight dsc4764

Atkinson contested the last five rounds of the 2012 WRC season with the Motorsport Italia-run

MINI The Mini is a small, two-door, four-seat car, developed as ADO15, and produced by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and its successors, from 1959 through 2000. Minus a brief hiatus, original Minis were built for four decades and sold during ...

squad to finish the year 13th in the Championship. His best result for the year was achieved at

Rallye Deutschland The ADAC Rallye Deutschland is a rally event held in Germany. The event was first held in 1982 and originally hosted by e.g. Frankfurt, Mainz and Koblenz. In 2000, the rally was relocated to the region around Trier. Previously part of the Europ ...

(Rally Germany) where he secured 5th behind the wheel of the MINI John Cooper Works

WRC WRC may refer to: Broadcasting stations * WRC-TV, a television station (virtual channel 4, digital channel 34) licensed to Washington, D.C., United States * Several radio stations in the Washington, D.C. area: ** WTEM, a radio station (980 AM) l ...

. Atkinson was snapped up by the Citroën team for

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...

, however, the team only used him for Rally Mexico, where he finished 6th, 11 minutes off the winner ( Sebastien Ogier).

Hyundai Hyundai is a South Korean industrial conglomerate ("chaebol"), which was restructured into the following groups: * Hyundai Group, parts of the former conglomerate which have not been divested ** Hyundai Mobis, Korean car parts company ** Hyundai ...

hired him mid-year as a test driver for their i20 rally car, which led to a part-time deal for

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

. In 2014 he raced at the rallies of

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

and his home event in Australia, finishing 7th and 10th respectively. In both events, Atkinson was the last of the Hyundai drivers.

Regional series

In April 2010, Chris Atkinson began a partnership with the Proton R3 Rally Team. Competing in the

(APRC), Atkinson drove a Proton Satria Neo Super 2000, alongside co-driver Stephane Prevot. After making a guest appearance at the

Intercontinental Rally Challenge The Intercontinental Rally Challenge was an FIA-sanctioned rallying series organised by SRW Events and Eurosport Events, and aimed to "give new opportunities to young or amateur rally drivers competing in recognised regional and international ral ...

(IRC) Monte Carlo Rally, Atkinson has dominated the 2011 APRC, winning the Malaysian Rally, Rallye de Nouvelle Caledonia and the International Rally of Whangarei. However missing round two in

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...

and the final round in

Hokkaido is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel. The lar ...

saw him finish second to his teammate

Alister McRae Alister McRae (born 20 December 1970) is a British rally driver who competed in the World Rally Championship. He is the son of the five-time British Rally Champion Jimmy McRae and the younger brother of the late 1995 World Rally Champion, ...

who competed in all rounds. Atkinson competed in an Australian-run

Skoda Škoda means ''pity'' in the Czech and Slovak languages. It may also refer to: Czech brands and enterprises * Škoda Auto, automobile and previously bicycle manufacturer in Mladá Boleslav ** Škoda Motorsport, the division of Škoda Auto respons ...

in the 2012 FIA

, driving for the MRF team in a Skoda Fabia S2000, co-driven by regular wingman Stephane Prevot and the pair were crowned 2012 FIA Asia-Pacific Rally Champions. In 2014, Atkinson signed with FAW-VW Rally Team from China. He competed with a S2000 with two rallies. At the end of 2014, with the coming of FAW-FW Golf 7 SCRC, Atkinson restarted his prominence in CRC (China Rally Championship). In the debut of the Golf 7 SCRC, Atko won by 25 mins in the penultimate rally of 2014 CRC in Longyou. And in the Wuyi, the last one, he did not give the champion away. For 2015 and 2016, Atko won 9 of 11 in CRC, defeating the Subaru Rally Team China driver Mark Higgins. However, CRC does not count the points achieved by a foreign driver, or he would surely be the Driver's Champion of CRC in 2015 and 2016. 2015: Guiyang (1st), Zhangye (Ret, Mark Higgins won), Beijing (1st), Dengfeng (1st), Longyou (1st), Wuyi (1st), Jixi (3rd, Jari Ketomaa won) 2016: Dengfeng (1st), Zhangye (1st), Jinzhong (1st), Changchun (1st)

Other racing

At the

24 Hours Nürburgring 4 (four) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 3 and preceding 5. It is the smallest semiprime and composite number, and is considered unlucky in many East Asian cultures. In mathematics Four is the smalle ...

in 2006, Chris made his circuit racing debut driving a Subaru Impreza for the Autosportif Racing UK placing second in class. From that lead a drive in the 2007 Bathurst 12 Hour again in a Subaru Impreza where he finished first in class and second outright. In 2009 he competed in the third round of the

Australian Mini Challenge The Australian Mini Challenge was a touring car racing category in Australia. First held in 2008, the Mini Challenge supported both the V8 Supercar Championship Series and the V8 Supercar Development Series.2008 V8 Supercars Eastern Creek round ...

co-driving with two-time

Fujitsu V8 Supercar Series The Dunlop Super2 Series (formerly known as Dunlop Series, Fujitsu V8 Supercars Series, HPDC V8 Supercars Series, Konica Minolta V8 Supercars Series and Konica V8 Supercars/Lites Series) is an Australian touring car racing competition, specifical ...

Champion Steve Owen finishing second in the 30-minute endurance race. Atkinson competed in the final four rounds of the 2016 Global RallyCross Championship, finishing the championship in 11th in a campaign that included a finals appearance in Seattle. He is likely to stay in rallycross for 2017, whether it be in the GRC or the World Rallycross Championship.

Complete WRC results

APRC results

Complete Global Rallycross Championship results

( key)

Supercar

Complete Americas Rallycross Championship results

Supercar

Career highlights

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

– Winner, Asia-Pacific Rally Championship * 2011 – 2nd, Asia-Pacific Rally Championship * 2010 – 5th, Asia-Pacific Rally Championship * 2009 – 14th, World Rally Championship *

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

– 5th, World Rally Championship * 2007 – 7th, World Rally Championship * 2006 – 10th, World Rally Championship * 2005 – 12th, World Rally Championship * 2004 – Winner, Asia-Pacific Super 1600 Championship *2004 – Second, Australian Rally Championship * 2003 – Winner, Asia-Pacific Super 1600 Championship *2002 – Winner, Australian Privateers Cup

References

Subaru World Rally Team Official Site

Plenty of Rallies for Chris Atkinson in 2011

External links

Chris' official website

Driver Database stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Atkinson, Chris 1979 births Living people Australian rally drivers Bond University alumni Intercontinental Rally Challenge drivers People from the South Coast (New South Wales) Racing drivers from New South Wales World Rally Championship drivers Global RallyCross Championship drivers Citroën Racing drivers