American rally driver Ken Block competed for the Hoonigan Racing Division, previously the Monster World Rally Team, from November 21, 1967 to January 2, 2023.
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Ken Block also contributed to the founding of DC Shoes. [Reference needed] Additionally, he participated in numerous action sports competitions, such as skateboarding, snowboarding, and motocross. Block turned his business attention to Hoonigan Industries, an apparel line for auto fans, after surrendering his stake of DC Shoes. Before his passing, he served as the business’s co-owner and “Head Hoonigan In Charge” (HHIC).
After 11 years of partnership, Hoonigan Racing Division and Ford Performance announced their separation in January 2021. Block declared in April that he would be returning to Subaru. Block revealed in September that he and Audi would be working on “joint ventures in the sphere of electric mobility.”
Rallying (2005):
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Block started competing in national rallies with the Vermont SportsCar squad in 2005. Block competed in a 2005 Subaru WRX STi that Vermont SportsCar had prepped. His debut rallying competition was Sno*Drift, where he finished sixth in the Group N class and seventh overall. Block finished in the top five five times during the 2005 season, finishing third overall in the Group A division and fourth overall in the Rally America National Championship. Ken Block received the Rally America Rookie of the Year honour at the conclusion of his debut rallying year.
2006:
Block and Travis Pastrana, another member of the DC rally squad, agreed to a new sponsorship agreement with Subaru in 2006. The colleagues adopted the name “Subaru Rally Team USA” as a result of their agreement with Subaru. Block received a brand-new 2006 Subaru WRX STi prepared for Vermont Sports Car along with the start of the new rally season. At X Games XII, he participated in the inaugural X Games rally competition. Block ultimately came in third place and won the bronze medal. He later participated in the 2006 Rally America National Championship and came in second place overall.
2007:
Block participated in the X Games XIII rally event in 2007 and finished in second place overall, earning a silver medal. Block placed third overall in the 2007 Rally America National Championship. [9] Block participated in a few World Rally Championship rounds this season, including Rally Mexico and Rally New Zealand. Block placed in the top five on two stages of the Rally New Zealand. Block finished 2007 with 19 podium finishes and 8 overall triumphs in rally competitions.
2008:
Block received a brand-new 2008 Subaru WRX STi that has been prepared for rallying in order to compete in 2008. Block made the decision to participate in the Canadian Rally Championship’s Rallye Baie-des Chaleurs in order to test out his new 2008 rally car and get ready for the World Rally Championships later in the year. At the contest, Block won his first Canadian rally. This was only the new car’s second event.
Lacking a Canadian competition licence, Block and his co-driver were unable to earn any championship points at the race. Block participated in the Rally New York USA competition and won. Block and Dave Mirra tied for third place in the X Games XIV rally competition. This incident occurred because both competitors’ cars had problems. Block, who advanced to the event’s semifinals, experienced a radiator issue as a result of a clumsy jump landing. The medals were given to both of them since the bronze-place contenders’ damaged automobiles prevented them from competing.
The 2008 Rally America National Championship, which Block participated in, ended on October 17, 2008. With a convincing victory in the last race, he placed second overall in the competition. Block won the stage of the Lake Superior Performance Rally (LSPR) by more than a minute over his nearest rival, placing him second overall. Block will next compete in three World Rally Championship races this rally season.
2009:
Block made an appearance on a Top Gear programme about cars. Gymkhana 2, a popular YouTube video, was produced by Block.
Top Gear (2002 Tv Series):
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Top Gear is a British automotive magazine and factual television programme that debuted on October 20, 2002. It was created by Jeremy Clarkson and Andy Wilman as a relaunch of the original 1977 programme of the same name for the BBC. The program’s primary focus is on the analysis and review of automobiles, though this focus was expanded after the airing of its earlier series to include films that featured driving-related challenges, unique competitions, timed laps of notable automobiles, and celebrity timed laps on a track that was specifically created for the relaunched programme.
Since its debut, the programme has drawn praise for its presentation and visual flair, which emphasised providing viewers with general entertainment, as well as criticism for the content’s controversial nature. The show was also recognised for its oftentimes contentious humour and history, which can be found online as jokes and memes as well as in the automobile community. Up until the start of its twenty-ninth season in 2020, the show was shown on BBC Two.
Since its revival, Top Gear has been one of the BBC’s most financially rewarding programmes. Episodes of the programme are also broadcast globally in numerous nations around Europe, North America, Southeast Asia, and other regions, making it the most extensively broadcast factual television programme in the entire world. It has grown to be an important show in British popular culture. Due to its popularity, a range of merchandise has been produced, including live tours, limited-edition DVDs, books, and an array of international versions in nations like the United States, Australia, South Korea, China, and France.
2010:
Block parted ways with Subaru in 2010 and joined Ford to race on a part-time basis for the Monster World Rally Team in the World Rally Championship. He shared a Ford Focus RS WRC 08 with longtime co-driver Alex Gelsomino. As a result, Block became the first American driver to compete in the World Rally Championship. He earned two points after placing ninth in Spain. Along with competing in his fifth X Games, he also competed in his sixth season of the Rally America Championship in a Ford Fiesta open class. For the fifth time in a row, Block won the Rally in the 100 Acre Wood (Rally America) on February 27. This surpassed John Buffum’s previous record.
2011:
During the shakedown stage of the 2011 Rally de Portugal in Faro, Portugal, on March 23, Block and his co-driver Alex Gelsomino were involved in a Ford Fiesta RS WRC rollover and were subsequently transported to the hospital. Later, a member of the Monster World Rally crew confirmed that both individuals were okay. He earned 6 points by placing 8th in France and 9th in Wales.
2013:
Block did well in his first race of the 2013 season, finishing in the top ten in the Mexican rally to earn his first six championship points and record his best-ever seventh-place finish.
2013 World Rally Championship:
Image Via Wikimedia Commons
The Federation International de automobile recognizes the World Rally Championship as the top level of international rallying. The 2013 World Rally Championship was the World Rally Championship’s 41st season. The season consisted of 13 rallies, with the first one, the Rallye Monte Carlo, taking place on January 16 and the last one, the Wales Rally of Great Britain, on November 17. While Ford and Mini stopped providing factory support for the Fiesta RS WRC and John Cooper Works WRC, respectively, they continued to make their vehicles available to customer teams. Volkswagen joined the championship as a function Object() { [native code] } with the Polo R WRC.
The Super 2000 and Group R, the replacement division for Group N, made their debuts in 2013 as well. The World Rally Championship Academy, Group N Production Cars, and Super 2000 support series were reorganised as part of this introduction. The Super 2000, four-wheel-drive Group R and Group N categories became the FIA World Rally Championship-2, the two-wheel-drive Group R categories became the FIA World Rally Championship-3, and the World Rally Championship Academy became the FIA Junior World Rally Championship. A driver of a Group N car who has enrolled for WRC-2 will also receive an FIA Production Car Cup.
2014:
Block once again has Castrol as his sponsor. He took part in the World Rally Championship in Catalonia, Spain. Up until the final stage, when he sustained a tyre puncture and lost a lot of time, he was in 10th place. His final season at the WRC saw him finish in 12th place.
American Rallycross:
From 2011 to 2015, Block participated in the World RallyCross Championship. With six victories and 15 podiums, he finished second in 2014, third in 2013, and fifth in 2012. He made a full comeback for the 2018 Americas Rallycross Championship, winning two podiums and finishing fourth in the standings.
European Rallycross:
2014 saw Block finish third in the FIA World Rallycross Championship’s Norway round and first in the European Rallycross Championship’s Norway round. Block made the decision to compete exclusively in the World Rallycross Championship for the 2016 campaign.
Block earned his second podium in the championship at the German racetrack Hockenheimring by placing third in the Supercar Final.
Gymkhana:
Image Via Autoweek
Millions of people have watched a series of gymkhana films that Block created on YouTube. For the 2009 season of the BBC show Top Gear, Block brought James May to his stunt training at Inyokern Airport, a working airport in California that also included Ricky Carmichael. Block drove the Reliant Robin featured vehicle from the previous episode around the Top Gear test track in 2010. He was unharmed but was unable to finish a lap when the car rolled.
Block debuted his new Ford Fiesta in the first of a three-part Gymkhana 3 video series on August 24, 2010.Block’s third Gymkhana video, which included a Ford Fiesta, was published on YouTube on September 14, 2010. In its first week, the video received more than seven million views.
Block is shown driving around the Universal Studios backlot in the fourth Gymkhana film, The Hollywood Megamercial, which was published on YouTube on August 16, 2011.
Block’s fifth Gymkhana video, which features Travis Pastrana riding a dirt bike and Block driving a Ford Fiesta in San Francisco, was posted to YouTube on July 9, 2012. The video had 5.1 million views just 24 hours, making it the most popular video of the week before.
Other Motorsport activities:
In 2005, Block took part in the Gumball 3000 Rally with his DC Shoes colleagues. Three customised 2004 Subaru WRX STis sponsored by DC Shoes were sent out for the event.
Block and Brian Scotto participated in the One Lap of America competition in 2006. They placed 45th overall while driving a 2006 Subaru WRX STi together.
Block jumped his Subaru WRX STi rally vehicle 171 feet (52 m) in 2006 for the Discovery Channel programme Stunt Junkies, with a maximum height of 25 feet (7.6 m). The focus of the entire programme was Block pulling out this prank.
Block joined the DC Shoes Snowboarding team in 2007 at the Snow Park in New Zealand. While driving his rally car alongside the snowboarders on the slopes, Block performed enormous jumps and helped with stunts. He was transported to the hospital after crashing after landing a big jump that shattered one of his vertebrae. The session concluded the MTN.LAB 1.5 DVD and was featured on the cover of Snowboarder Magazine’s December 2007 edition.
Block was a co-founder of Gymkhana Grid, an annual gymkhana competition that takes place all over the world. In the championship match, he defeated Jake Archer to win the all-wheel-drive event in 2014.Block competed in the trophy truck division of the 2021 Baja 1000 and finished fourth.
Video Games:
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Block made three appearances in the Dirt racing video games produced by Codemasters. Block drives his Subaru Rally Team USA Impreza in Colin McRae: Dirt 2, which was released in 2009. He appears as a driver and gymkhana instructor in the 2011 video game Dirt 3. His Monster World Rally Team cars, such as the Ford Fiesta GYM 3 and the Ken Block Ford Focus WRC, are playable in the game. In 2012’s Dirt: Showdown, his Hoonigan / Monster Ford Fiesta makes numerous appearances, and his distinctive gymkhana driving style can be seen in the Head-to-Head and Trick Rush race modes as well as the Freestyle area.
Block serves as the style emblem in the 2015 Need for Speed video game.His Hoonigan-branded automobiles have also appeared in the Forza racing video game series from Microsoft. They initially appeared in 2017 expansion packs for Forza Motorsport 7 and Forza Horizon 3. Later, they were made available as launch vehicles for Forza Horizon 4 in 2018 and Forza Horizon 5 in 2021.Block and the drag racing video game CSR Racing 2 partnered in 2021.
Death:
On January 2, 2023, Block was killed by a snowmobile outside his ranch in Woodland, Utah, at the age of 55. According to the Wasatch County Sheriff’s Office, Block was riding in the Mill Hollow region when his snowmobile overturned on a sharp incline and fell on top of him. At the scene of the collision, Block was pronounced dead.