Baron Grégoire de Mevius (born 16 August 1962) is a Belgian rally driver[1][2] active in the years 1988–2001. He first broke out into the World Rally Championship scene racing in the Group N category in the Mazda 323.[citation needed] With an unsuccessful spell of Group A races in 1990, he was never considered to be a talent in spotlight of rally stardom. However, in 1993 he finally managed to secure a place as a privateer in the Group A WRC category. Although he never challenged for the title effectively, he made some good efforts scoring within the top 6 in several gravel rallies. His best result was in the 1998 Network Q Rally of Great Britain where he secured a 4th place in the Privateer Belgacom Turbo Team' Subaru Impreza.[citation needed]
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | Belgian |
| Born | 16 August 1962 |
| World Rally Championship record | |
| Active years | 1988–2001 |
| Co-driver |  Luc Manset Willy Lux Abdul Sidi Arne Hertz Hervé Sauvage Jean-Marc Fortin Jack Boyère |
| Teams | Subaru, Ford, Mazda, Nissan |
| Rallies | 48 |
| Championships | 0 |
| Rally wins | 0 |
| Podiums | 0 |
| Stage wins | n/a |
| Total points | 8 |
| First rally | 1988 1000 Lakes Rally |
| Last rally | 2001 Network Q Rally of Great Britain |
After his retirement from the WRC, he moved to Rally Raid events such as the Paris-Dakar Rally where he often competed with the manufacturer Nissan team and for BMW X-Raid. During the 2000 Paris–Dakar–Cairo Rally for Nissan, he was involved in a freak accident, involving four cars running near the top of the field - all arrived at a collapsed dune at the same time, with several competitors, including De Mévius, injuring their backs.[3]
In the 2003 Dakar he was in third place with the BMW, until an impact with a rock damaged the steering. [4] In the 2004 Dakar Rally, again with BMW and again on the podium in the early running, a significant engine issue plus a roll meant an eighth-placed finish. In 2005, he was back to the Nissan France team, running an older-spec pick-up on the event. Sadly, a significant crash led to retirement and an air-lift to hospital.
His sons, Ghislain De Mévius and Guillaume De Mévius, are also rally drivers.
References
edit- ^ "Peterhansel back in front". BBC Online. 8 January 2004. Retrieved 10 April 2011.
- ^ United arab emirates yearbook. Trident Press Ltd. 2006. p. 311. ISBN 978-1-905486-05-2.
- ^ "Dakar 2000 (video 17 of 22)". YouTube. 12 February 2024.
- ^ "Dakar 2003 (video 15 of 24)". YouTube. 17 March 2024.
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