For years, rallying was seen as a man's sport.
asserted
rallying → see → sport
Then came Michèle Mouton.
asserted
Mouton → come → ?
She did not enter motorsport trying to become the fastest woman.
asserted
She → enter → motorsport
She just wanted to race.
asserted
She → want → ?
At the height of rallying's most dangerous era, Mouton became the first woman to win a round of the World Rally Championship and came within reach of winning the world title.
asserted
Mouton → become → title
Her story began in Grasse in southern France.
asserted
story → begin → France
Mouton initially worked as a co-driver, accompanying her friend Jean Taibi on the 1972 Tour de Corse.
asserted
Mouton → work → Corse
A year later, she moved into the driver's seat.
asserted
she → move → seat
Her father, Pierre, gave her an Alpine A110 with one condition: prove herself during the year or give it up.
asserted
father → give → it
She proved herself quickly.
asserted
She → prove → herself
When male drivers wanted her car checked
Her career changed direction when Audi came calling.
asserted
Audi → want → direction
Mouton's speed was so surprising that some male competitors questioned whether her Alpine was legal.
asserted
Alpine → question → ?
According to the official website of Motor Sport, male drivers pressed the FIA to inspect the car for irregularities.
uncertain
drivers → accord → irregularities
Mouton also showed that her ability was not limited to rally stages.
asserted
ability → show → stages
In 1975, she competed at the 24 Hours of Le Mans as part of an all-female crew and won the 2.0-litre class in a Moynet LM75.
asserted
she → compete → LM75
But rallying remained her main focus.
asserted
rallying → remain → ?
She moved to a privately entered Porsche 911 in 1977 and earned a factory drive with Fiat France the following year.
asserted
She → move → France
Her career changed direction when Audi came calling.
asserted
Audi → change → direction
A car flipped things for her
Mouton later joked that the Fiat 131 felt “like a truck” compared with the Quattro.
asserted
Fiat → flip → Quattro
Audi contacted Mouton in 1980, when the company's Quattro was entering competition.
asserted
Quattro → contact → competition
“I was called by Audi in 1980, June I think, but I can’t remember who it was,” Mouton recalled in an interview published by Motor Sport.
asserted
Mouton → call → Sport
“English was hard for me then, so I went to Ingolstadt with a teacher who could translate.”
uncertain
who → go → teacher
After a test in Finland with Quattro engineer Walter Treser, Mouton secured a works contract for 1981.
asserted
Mouton → secure → 1981
The difference between the Audi and the Fiat she had driven was immediately obvious.
asserted
she → drive → Audi
Mouton later joked that the Fiat 131 felt “like a truck” compared with the Quattro.
asserted
Fiat → joke → Quattro
The Audi had more power and power steering, but it also required Mouton to understand a very different machine.
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it → require → machine
“I didn’t like technical things so much, so I had to learn and adapt and understand how it worked,” she said.
asserted
she → like → things
She would soon show exactly what she could do with it.
uncertain
she → show → it
The win that changed women's place in the WRC
Mouton began the 1981 World Rally Championship season with co-driver Fabrizia Pons.
asserted
Mouton → change → Pons
Audi knew an all-female crew had publicity value, but few expected Mouton to challenge the established stars immediately.
asserted
Mouton → know → stars
The Quattro itself had reliability problems, while Audi was still building its rally operation.
asserted
Audi → have → operation
Mouton nevertheless finished eighth overall in the championship.
asserted
Mouton → finish → championship
Then came the Sanremo Rally.
asserted
Rally → come → ?
Mouton and Pons won outright, making Mouton the first woman to win a round of the World Rally Championship.
asserted
Mouton → win → Championship
It remains the defining achievement of her WRC career.
asserted
It → remain → career
The following season, she went even further.
asserted
she → go → ?
The 1982 season began badly after a crash at Monte Carlo.
asserted
season → begin → Carlo
But Mouton responded by winning in Portugal, Greece and Brazil.
asserted
Mouton → respond → Portugal
The Portugal victory came in difficult conditions, with spectators crowding sections of the route and dense fog making the stages even harder.
asserted
stages → come → route
By the penultimate round, the Côte d'Ivoire Rally, Mouton was fighting Walter Röhrl for the world championship.
asserted
Mouton → fight → championship
…and 59 more, not listed.
The Aporia
