Tommi Mäkinen
Mäkinen in 2016 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | Finnish |
| Born | 26 June 1964 Puuppola, Jyväskylä, Finland |
| World Rally Championship record | |
| Active years | 1987–2003 |
| Co-driver | Jari Nieminen Risto Mannisenmäki Rodney Spokes Timo Hantunen Seppo Harjanne Kaj Lindström |
| Teams | Mitsubishi, Subaru, Nissan |
| Rallies | 139 |
| Championships | 4 (1996, 1997, 1998, 1999) |
| Rally wins | 24 |
| Podiums | 45 |
| Stage wins | 361 |
| Total points | 544 |
| First rally | 1987 1000 Lakes Rally |
| First win | 1994 1000 Lakes Rally |
| Last win | 2002 Monte Carlo Rally |
| Last rally | 2003 Rally Great Britain |
Tommi Antero Mäkinen (Finnish pronunciation: [ˈtomːi ˈmækinen]; born 26 June 1964) is a Finnish racing executive and former rally driver.
Mäkinen is one of the most successful World Rally drivers of all time, ranking fifth in rally wins (24) and third in championships (4), tied with Juha Kankkunen behind Sébastien Ogier (8) and Sébastien Loeb (9). In 2018, as a head of Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT, he became the first person in the history of rally driving to win a Championship both as a driver and as a team principal.
He is a four-time World Rally Champion, a series he first won, and then successfully defended, continuously throughout 1996, 1997, 1998 and 1999, on all occasions driving the Ralliart Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution. He also aided Mitsubishi to the 1998 world constructors' title as well as winning the 2000 Race of Champions. Mäkinen's navigators include compatriots Seppo Harjanne, Kaj Lindström and Risto Mannisenmäki, the former retiring from alongside Mäkinen having previously served 1985 champion, and fellow "Flying Finn", Peugeot's Timo Salonen.