Your Nation's Top 5

[Doon]

If we are including all 'National Championships', and none 'retired' drivers;

1. Mark Higgins
2. Kris Meeke
3. Andy Burton
4. Neil Weaver
5. David Higgins

[N.O.T]

Mark higgins above kris Meeke ?????????

[Donalduck]

Top 5 in Norway:
1 Petter Solberg
2 Andreas Mikkelsen
3 Mads Østberg
4 Henning Solberg
5 Eivind Brynildsen

[J.Lindstroem]

Top 5 in Sweden in my opinion.
1. PG Andersson
2. Patrik Flodin
3. Patrik Sandell
4. Mattias Ekström
5. Victor Henriksson

[Plan9]

OK, so we have some time to kill before the next round in Finland.

I’m starting this thread to find out who members think are the top 5 drivers from their own countries.
There seems to be a lot of drivers getting very high profiles by competing in the WRC, but are the best your country has, or are the ones with the most money?
Are the father & son combos from The Netherlands the best you have? Or just the ones with the most cash?

The only rules are they must be currently active in WRC, IRC, regional championships or national championships (either yours or in another country). Which means ‘retired’ drivers can’t be listed even though some would easily make the top 5. An example of this would be Gronholm I guess.

I want to create a bit of debate from forum members ranking their own drivers.
Very interested in how the Norwegians rank their top 5. Also other high profile rallying countries… Finland, Sweden, France, Italy, Britain, Belgium, etc.

I will start by ranking what I believe are currently New Zealand’s top 5.

1. Hayden Paddon PWRC
2. Richard Mason NZRC
3. Emma Gilmour NZRC
4. Dean Sumner NZRC
5. Chris West NZRC

Other NZ forum members may argue. I hope so, that’s what this thread is about.
Let the debate begin!

Regards, Maui

Hey mate, can we use the Millen's? I think that Rod and Reese would have to be my numbers 3,4 with Gilmour at 5. But I am not sure if you would allow occasional rally-x, rally america and hillclimbs as strictly rally according to your rules....

[TheFlyingTuga]

I don't remember a single rally where Sousa defeated Magalhaes in last couple of years. Can You help me find some?

Hi Mirek!

That's only my humble opinion off course!
Sousa and Magalhães were never in competition with each other for a championship! When Bruno run in the Portuguese Champ with the Peugeot Bernardo drove a Gr.N car. I know they had Azores and Madeira rally's both in S2000 cars, but Bernardo was thinking in the Portuguese Champ, and Bruno was running for the IRC. Also, Bernardo did better time's last year in the rallies that had equal roads of the one Bruno made the year before!

Bruno it's a good driver, but not the best from his generation. At least I don't think so... António Rodrigues (that had some bad carreer management back in 2007) and Mex Machado (retired to fallow is professional carrer)where better! Bruno just had... better godfathers!!

But, as I said, that my two cents and my humble opinion! Francis considered Bruno the best, and a lot of portuguese people would put Miguel Campos or Adruzilo Lopes on top of the list!

Greatings my friend

[mousti]

1 Bryan Bouffier
and then nothing just kidding
1 Kosciuszko
2 Oleksowicz
3 Solowow
4 Kajetanowicz
5 Ruta

Kajetanowicz needs more credit I think what he did with a Gr N against S2000's is fantastic..

1. F. Duval
2. T. Neuville (Because of the potential in the future)
3. F. Loix
4. M. Boon
5. I would almost say Tsjoen and Snijers, one is a gentlemen driver but maybe one of the best in the world and the other one is a legend who's still fast

We have alot of talent but my top 5 consist more on people who have been driving with really fast cars and getting very nice results.

[rage82]

1.Dimitar Iliev {ERC, BGRC} - multiple bulgarian rally champion, won the Rally Bulgaria in 2007, the first bulgarian driver to win it after ILia Chubrikov in 1971.
2. Petar Gyoshev {ERC, BGRC} - the most talented driver nowdays, everybody is expecting a lot more to come from him.
3. Yasen Popov {BGRC} - maybe near the end of his career, still very fast but unfornately hasn't enough funds to drive a s2000 car.
4. Krum Donchev {BGRC} - four times bulgarian rally champion, vise champion in ERC in 2006.
5. Todor Slavov {ERC, BGRC} - third in JWRC last year, the biggest success of bulgarian in WRC.

[Viking]

1 Petter Solberg : 36, WRC, More than 400 stage wins (most of them not in the best car/seat) shows no signs of ageing (well maybe his hair is a little thinner).
2 Andreas Mikkelsen 21, IRC, Huge potencial, can (and will) go all the way.
3 Mads Østberg 23, WRC, Norways next WRC champ says Martin Holmes.
4 Henning Solberg 38, WRC, Got to admire Hennings efforts in getting money so Wilson can put together cars from M-Sports trashbin (has lost some motivasion).
5 Anders Grøndal 27, PWRC, Too small backing to show his real potencial i am afraid.

[Mise]

Finland top 5 as I see it.

1 Hirvonen
2 Latvala
3 Hänninen
4 Ketomaa
5 Gardemeister