Flying Finn Hannu Mikkola, rally champion legend, dies at 78

HELSINKI — Hannu Mikkola, the 1983 rally world champion who earned the nickname the “Flying Finn” and international renown in a driving career spanning more than 30 years, has died. He was 78.

Mikkola’s son Vesa Mikkola, a former rally driver, tweeted Saturday that “we lost my father Hannu to cancer this weekend. Most knew him as a rallying great who ushered in the golden years of the sport. To me he was dad.”

Mikkola started his driving career in Volvo cars in the early 1960s but made his reputation driving a series of Ford Escorts in world rally events in the 1970s, including a win in the East African Safari Rally in Kenya in 1972 and a British Rally Championship in 1978.

DESERT WRAPUP: A gallery of memories from this year’s Dakar Rally

On his home turf, he won Finland’s 1,000 Lakes Rally on seven occasions among other achievements.

We lost my father Hannu to cancer this weekend. Most knew him as a rallying great who ushered in the golden years of the sport. To me he was dad – and an incredible one at that. Always supportive, loving and genuine. Also a loving grandfather to my two boys. Rest In Peace Dad ❤️ pic.twitter.com/xL3L21E5Qz

— Vesa Mikkola (@wazu33) February 27, 2021

Mikkola was at the forefront of the four-wheel drive revolution in world rallying and claimed the 1983 title in an Audi Quattro, the first for an all-wheel drive car in FIA World Rally Championship history.

He later teamed up with the Mazda team before retiring from professional motorsports in the early 1990s.

Mikkola made 123 WRC starts – with a total of 18 wins – and continued to compete as a guest driver at a variety of events until 2017, WRC said in a statement following his death.

News of Mikkola’s death prompted several homages from his former colleagues and fans around the world and in Finland, a motorsports powerhouse that has produced several Formula One and rally champions.

Dakar Rally winner Carlos Sainz and two-time WRC champion Petter Solberg both paid tribute to Mikkola on Twitter

Very sad day for the rally family! One of the best ever drivers has passed away, Hannu Mikkola All my condolences for his family and friends. R. I. P.

— Carlos Sainz (@CSainz_oficial) February 26, 2021

Really sad to hear the news about Hannu Mikkola – he was a legend, a proper gentleman, a real Champion, and a great father to great kids. Sending all my condolences to his family and friends. RIP. pic.twitter.com/ygZU2TPAJh

— Petter Solberg (@Petter_Solberg) February 27, 2021

The organizers of the WRC Arctic Rally that took place over the weekend in Rovaniemi in Finland’s Lapland region, observed a minute of silence at the podium in tribute to Mikkola.

In addition, the Finnish Air Force’s F-18 Hornet fighter jets conducted a memorial flyover at the venue in honor of one of the Nordic country’s most famous rally drivers.

FIA President Jean Todt, a former rally driver, attended the event and in a tweet called Mikkola “a legendary driver and a lifelong friend.”

Chase Sexton announced on Instagram he will sit out this weekend’s Pro Motocross race at Hangtown in Rancho Cordova, California after a practice crash on Tuesday left him with a concussion.

Sexton’s crash on Tuesday happened during a test session at Fox Raceway.

“Bummed to make this post but I’ll be sitting out this weekend,” Sexton said. “As you guys saw I had a big one during qualifying at Pala, then another one on Tuesday this week that banged me up pretty good. Nothing broken just need a few days to get back to 100%.”

Despite his crash in the first qualification session in Pala, California, Sexton mounted up for both motos and finished second in each race behind his teammate Jett Lawrence, who was making his Motocross debut and won with a pair of first-place finishes. Sexton padded his SuperMotocross points’ lead over the injured Eli Tomac, who is still second in the combined Supercross and Motocross standings despite missing the SX finale at Salt Lake City and the outdoor opener with a ruptured Achilles tendon.

Sexton has an advantage of 78 points over Cooper Webb and cannot give up his SMX lead by missing this round.

At stake, however, is the risk of losing ground to Lawrence in the Pro Motocross championship. Sexton currently trails his teammate by six points and is liable to lose significant ground this weekend.

In addition to his concussion, Sexton has also been diagnosed with mononucleosis and the combination of the two conditions caused the team to make the difficult decision to keep him out of the lineup at Hangtown.

“I’m super-bummed to miss this weekend’s race,” Sexton said in a press release. “I feel like I rode well at Pala, and I was really looking forward to Hangtown because it’s a good track for me. Unfortunately, I was already pretty banged up from my qualifying crash on Saturday, and now with mono and Tuesday’s concussion on top of it, I want to do the right thing and hopefully be back on the track soon.”

A return date for Sexton has not yet been announced.