Grégoire de Mevius | |
Birth Date: | 1962 8, df=yes |
Nationality: | Belgian |
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 |
Races: | 48 |
Championships: | 0 |
Wins: | 0 |
Podiums: | 0 |
Stagewins: | n/a |
Points: | 8 |
First Race: | 1988 1000 Lakes Rally |
Last Race: | 2001 Network Q Rally of Great Britain |
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. 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.
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.