The 1990 Race of Champions took place on December 8–9 in the Spanish city of Barcelona. It was the third running of the event, and the first year that the International Masters contest was run, allowing up-and-coming rally drivers a chance to mix it with the champions in the main event. Stig Blomqvist retained his title won the previous year, defeating Tommi Makinen in the final.
Participants
DriverReason for Qualification Carlos SainzWorld Rally champion in 1990 Timo SalonenWorld Rally champion in 1985 Stig BlomqvistWorld Rally champion in 1984 Hannu MikkolaWorld Rally champion in 1983 Ari VatanenWorld Rally champion in 1981 Björn WaldegårdWorld Rally champion in 1979 Markku AlénFIA Cup for Drivers winner in 1978 Kenneth ErikssonWinner in the International Masters Alain OreilleFinalist in the International Masters François ChatriotSemi-finalists in the International Masters Dario Cerrato Tommi MakinenReplacement for the absent Walter Röhrl
International Masters
Preliminary stages
The 12 participants were split into three groups for the round robin first stage of the contest, with the best three from each progressing along with the driver with the fastest time among the losers. The drivers were split as follows:
Group A - David Llewellin, Jesús Puras, Kenjiro Shinozuka, Marc Duez (Puras eliminated) Group B - Kenneth Eriksson, Alain Oreille, Dario Cerrato, Tommi Makinen (Oreille progresses with best losing time) Group C - Armin Schwarz, François Chatriot, Josep Maria Bardolet, Josep Bassas (Schwarz eliminated)
Shinozuka, Llewellin, Bardolet and Bassas were then eliminated in the knockout second round.
Quarter-finals
WinnerLoser Dario Cerrato Alain Oreille Kenneth Eriksson Tommi Makinen François Chatriot Marc Duez
Oreille progressed with the best losing time.
Race of Champions
The main event followed the same format as the International Masters. The drivers were split into groups as follows:
Group A - Hannu Mikkola, Ari Vatanen, Kenneth Eriksson, François Chatriot (Vatanen eliminated) Group B - Timo Salonen, Stig Blomqvist, Markku Alén, Dario Cerrato (Alén eliminated) Group C - Carlos Sainz, Björn Waldegård, Alain Oreille, Tommi Makinen (Sainz progresses with best losing time)
Second round
WinnerLoser Tommi Makinen François Chatriot Dario Cerrato Alain Oreille Kenneth Eriksson Carlos Sainz Stig Blomqvist Björn Waldegård Timo Salonen Hannu Mikkola
Sainz progressed with the best losing time.
Quarter-finals
WinnerLoser Dario Cerrato Tommi Makinen Stig Blomqvist Kenneth Eriksson Carlos Sainz Timo Salonen
Makinen progressed with the best losing time.
References Information sourced from AUTOSPORT 13/12/90