To most drivers, just mastering one driving discipline takes years of effort, and being a champion can take even more effort.
For some drivers, however, it’s not enough to be good in one discipline. These are the rare individuals who take on two or more motorsport disciplines and still perform decently in both of them. Here are the three most versatile motorsport drivers in the world.
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1. Sebastien Loeb
To many fans and critics, Loeb might be the greatest rally driver of all time. He won the World Rally Championship in nine consecutive years and won a ton of accolades along the way.
But he has also competed in World Rallycross, Le Mans 24 Hours, Pikes Peak, X-Games, WTCC and the gruelling Dakar Rally. To anyone else, competing in that many disciplines will stretch you thin.
But Loeb isn’t your average driver. He set a new Pikes Peak record by an incredible one and a half minutes, he won his FIA GT series debut, he’s already taken four stage victories in his first year racing in the Dakar Rally, he’s beaten rallycross legends like Ken Block in their own sport and more. The Frenchman seems to be a natural champion in everything he does.
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2. Juan-Pablo Montoya
The Colombian has competed in Formula 1, IMSA, NASCAR and IndyCar. In 2000 as a rookie and in 2015, he won the Indy 500. In 2003, he won the Monaco Grand Prix for his Williams team. He’s also a three-time winner of the Daytona 24 Hours. And now he’s set his sights on Le Mans.
If he competes and wins, he will be only the second person in history to have won the Monaco Grand Prix, the Indianapolis 500 and Le Mans. The last person to achieve this feat was Graham Hill.
3. Simon Pagenaud
When it comes down to pure versatility, few racers come close to Pagenaud. He finished fifth in the 2012 IZOD IndyCar, winning the Rookie of the Year honors.
He finished second at the 2011 24-Hour Le Mans, raced at the 12 Hours of Sebring with the Muscle Milk HPD-ARX03a P1 prototype and competed in the 25 Hours of Thunderhill.
He has also test driven the Level 5 P2 ARX-03b, the Honda Civic in the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Series, the Riley-BMW Daytona Prototype at Daytona, a Ford Falcon at Australia’s V8 Supercars series and more.
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