Race of Champions
16 December 2007

The Race of Champions came to Wembley Stadium for the first time, for its 20th anniversary on 16 December 2007. The first competition was the RoC Nations Cup in which countries battled it out in teams against other nations. 

Team England, made up of Jenson Button in his first RoC appearance, and Andy Priaulx, faced Team Scotland in the first round. Scotland’s David Coulthard was partnered by Alister McRae who was taking the place of his brother Colin who tragically died in September. England won in straight heats and then went on to face Germany in the quarter finals. Wembley is no stranger to England-Germany clashes and this encounter did not disappoint, with a narrow victory from Team Germany.

The Race of Champions

The Germans, with legend Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel, went on to reach the Final against Finland and won the first heat. Schumacher then dramatically stalled in the second heat, allowing Finland to lap him as the Final went down to the wire. It was up to twenty year-old Vettel to claim an exciting win for the German team in his first RoC outing. Schumacher later joked that the older members of the teams had retired to the lounge to let the younger drivers fight it out!

When asked if he had fulfilled a life long ambition by winning at Wembley, Schumacher responded; “Yes, there weren’t any balls or any goals so it seemed to be a little easier for us.”

The German team celebrate their win

An exhilarating motorbike display took place with spectacular stunts and amazing tricks. The stadium’s acoustics then had the ultimate test when two Formula One cars took to the track, much to the delight of the crowd. Coulthard and RoC founder, Fredrik Johnsson, then led a moving tribute to Colin McRae featuring a bagpipe performance followed by McRae’s rally car driving around the track to a pyrotechnic display.

Colin McRae's rally car

Then it was time for the Race of Champions to begin, where drivers competed individually to be awarded the title of the Champion of Champions. After beating McRae in the first round, Button then narrowly lost out to Schumacher, who had come back from retirement to participate.

English hopes rested with Priaulx who faced Heikki Kovalainen in the quarter finals. Kovalainen produced the most spectacular crash of the day as he raced to beat Priaulx to the finish line, only to spin dramatically across the line, as Priaulx advanced to the semi finals. However, in his race against Mattias Ekstrom, Priaulx gave it too much throttle around the penultimate corner and span onto grass.

Mattias Ekstrom celebrates his win

Reigning Champion of Champions, Ekstrom then met Schumacher in what was set to be an exciting Final, and after winning a heat each, the Final came down to the last race. Ekstrom was narrowly in the lead for the race and as the two drivers raced for the finish line, Schumacher span out of control with Ekstrom taking the title for the second year in a row.