The world
motor sport and the Audi mourn the loss of a very important personality, the
Finn Hanu Mikola, who
passed away at the age of 78. The 1983 World Rally Champion, at the wheel of the
of Audi Quattro, will
is remembered beyond his undeniable talent and successes,
for his contribution to the sovereignty of the quattro, initially in the international Motorsport scene, before it became synonymous with top-of-the-line all-wheel drive
and confident and assured driving on every slippery surface.
It is no exaggeration that the world of motoring owes a lot to the "Flying Man".
Finn!"
The oxymoron of
Micola's contribution to the development and success of the quattro is that before 1983 and the world title, the
Finn had become famous and was particularly popular for his very fast
his sideways driving, with which he stirred up the crowds in his wake. All
but they started to change in 1980, when the Audi chose Mykola to "base" on him the project quattro, showing
confidence in his evolutionary abilities, something for which in the process
was vindicated.
The successes
came quickly, with Mykola forgetting his beloved side-slip and showing off
the value of four-wheel drive. He was preceded at the wheel of a Audi Quattro in the inaugural 1981 Monte Carlo rally, before
abandoned by accident. He won the next race, the Rally Sweden and the
the same year and the RACbut 1981 - like 1982 - turned out to be the year
evolution and refinement of the quattro. Of course, it should be noted that in 1982, with a combination of the
winners who achieved with Audi Quattro Hanu Mikola and team–mate of Michel Mouton, the Audi won its first World Constructors' Championship.
The triumph for
Mykola came the following year, when, with Arne Hertz at the wheel, with Arne Herz as co-driver
of Audi Quattro, with four wins and three second places was crowned
World Rally Champion, at the age of 41 - still holds the record
of the oldest man to win the title! The following year, the success was
universal for the Audi, after winning the world titles in both the
drivers (with Stig Blocmvist this time) and manufacturers, with
Mykola to contribute the most, with one win, four seconds and three
third places, in a total of nine appearances!
With 18 in total
wins in world championship rallies, Mikulá practically retired in the
1993, although he made some sporadic appearances, mostly at anniversary races.
In 2011 he was admitted to the Rally Hall of Fame, a further recognition of his great contribution to the Motorsport.
To 2020 marked 40 years of its history quattro, with the
the value, success and technical details of the system have been analysed
several times in similar texts in the previous year. The lines preceding,
they did not focus on quattro but in the contribution of
Hanus Mikola in this technological innovation and are dedicated to the
his memory.
