A little history of Estonia in the WRC: before Ott Tänak, the leaping Markko Märtin

We're not going to lie, Estonia is not really an easy country to locate on a map. This parliamentary republic, located between Russia to the east and Latvia to the south, nestles in the Baltic zone and has only 1,3 million inhabitants over a perimeter of 45 km. 

In other words, it is a very calm country, with a low population density (29,2 inhabitants/km2 compared to 113 for France). Obviously, with such a population, it is more difficult to influence important sports. Motorsport is no exception to this rule.

Ott Tänak and Martin Järveoja became the first Estonian drivers to win an FIA world title, going so far as to provoke a message and a staging from the National President, Kersti Kaljulaid:

First #WRC champion since 2004 not to be named Sébastien is named Ott. My personal congratulations to @OttTanak, Martin Järveoja and @TGR_WRC! #ProudToBeEstonian pic.twitter.com/UI82CwLDHk

— Kersti Kaljulaid (@KerstiKaljulaid) October 27, 2019

But before this first-rate performance, one man put Estonia on the map by WRC. This is Markko Märtin. If we stick to its statistics (five wins in 86 starts), it would be tempting to diminish the influence that former representative Ford had and Peugeot .

Now, let's put it into perspective. His career in the World Cup lasted only eight years, including only four over a full program between 2002 and 2005. Above all, his rise to power coincides with the golden age of the WRC, where manufacturers jostled at the entry gate. . On certain rounds, the officially supported cars exceeded fifteen! 

Moreover, French domination had not yet begun. Those were the days when getting 25 WRC wins was worth an envious record (hello Colin McRae). In this ultra-competitive context, Markko Märtin benefited in 2002 from the support of M-Sport and its outstanding talent scout, Malcolm Wilson.

The Briton saw the potential of the young man (aged 26 at the time) and signed him for a full season with the Focus RS. Accompanied by his co-driver Michael Park, he came close to winning in Acropolis (Greece) by leading the first eight special stages, until suffering two punctures. 

As a symbol, the Rally Great Britain is marked by a duel between two young shoots: Petter Solberg and Markko Märtin. The Norwegian will end up winning, but the first podium for the native of Tallinn (the Estonian capital) is the promise of a happy future. 

In 2003, M-Sport introduced the radical evolution of the Focus. Huge rear wing, widened tracks, the style is successful! Markko Märtin quickly got his hands on this car. The rough terrain of the Acropolis finally smiled on him from his third outing with the evolution. 

“The team put in a lot of effort to allow the Focus to win a WRC round, he reminded the reporters present at the final stop point. It was a very tough weekend for me, I started badly but then improved. Fortunately the car was perfect, very reliable. I was able to focus on driving. »

However, emotion overwhelmed Markko Märtin a few weeks later, not far from his home. Until then, Rally Finland had been the preserve of the Finns. Well, okay, Estonia is not that far away, but beating the regulars on their home field is strong! 

More than the “Markko, where are you?” » pronounced by Michael Park, it is an immense leap made in the Ouninpohja sector which will go down in posterity. The car takes off 57 meters at a crazy speed of 171 km/h! Enough to provoke the exclamation of the public:

From the perspective of a fan, it goes very, very quickly:

In addition, the Estonian makes his mark at the Tour de Corsica. Failed braking on SS 2 sent him into the ravine. The crew escaped unscathed: 

Fifth at the end of the 2003 campaign, Markko Märtin reached a new level in 2004. Winner of the first edition of the Mexico rally, he followed Sébastien Loeb by one point after five innings.

Unfortunately, a bad patch during the summer will rule him out of the title fight. But the most resounding exploit of his career occurs in Corsica then in Catalonia (Spain). If in 2019 it has become normal for a Nordic to beat the French on asphalt, this turnaround was unexpected at the start of the 2000s.

On the land of Loeb and Citroën, Markko Märtin finds the right feeling and the right method. “Winning on tarmac was one of my dreams, he will confide. Corsica is the perfect place to get there. »

Before him, only the great Markku Alén had won in Corsica, while he succeeded Tommi Mäkinen in Catalonia. That is to say ! Having become a fast and consistent driver on all terrains, Markko Märtin rose to the rank of rival of Sébastien Loeb before the start of Monte-Carlo 2005.

Alas, the third of the 2004 season will disappoint. Now wearing the red colors of Peugeot, he has difficulty extracting the quintessence of the (unreliable) 307. After four podiums, he was unable to climb to the top step. 

The adventure will take a tragic turning point in Wales. Part of the decor, the French coupe-cabriolet hits a tree sideways on the passenger side. Co-pilot Michael Park was killed instantly. 

Shocked by the loss of a friend, Markko Märtin will no longer drive in the WRC. His attention turns to promoting the rally in Estonia. He launches a team dedicated to young shoots. His attention will focus in 2007 on a taciturn blond: Ott Tänak. 

The latter took the start of his first world rally in 2009 in Portugal. The handover was complete. 

Find in issue n°2240 of AUTOhebdo, on sale Monday evening digitally and Wednesday on newsstands, the analysis of the title of Tänak in Catalonia by our special correspondent.