Born on January 7, 1958, in Bassano del Grappa, Italy, Biasion began his motorsport career in local rally events. Before racing cars, he competed in skiing and motocross, achieving national and regional titles. At 20 years old, Massimo purchased his first race car, an Opel Kadett GTE, and competed with it in local rallies during 1979. He started serious rallying in 1980, entering European Championship and World Rally Championship events. His first race car in these events was an Opel Ascona 2000.
In 1983, Biasion competed in 11 European Championship events, driving Jolly Club's Lancia 037 Rally. After a dominant performance with seven victories and two more podiums, he secured the European Championship title. His best result at Rallye Sanremo was 5th overall.
Biasion was drafted to represent Lancia in the 1984 World Rally Championship, still under the Jolly Club banner. He achieved second place at the Tour de Corse and third place at Rallye Sanremo. In the 1985 season, he combined five WRC events with four ERC rallies, scoring three ERC victories and finishing sixth in the classification. His best WRC result was second place at the Rallye de Portugal.
In 1986, Biasion joined Lancia's works team, driving the Lancia Delta S4. His first WRC victory came at the Rally Argentina. In 1987, driving the Lancia Delta HF 4WD, he clinched three wins (Monte-Carlo, Argentina, and Sanremo) and two more podiums, finishing second in the championship behind his teammate Juha Kankkunen. Lancia became manufacturers' champion that year.
Lancia's dominance continued in 1988 and 1989, with Miki Biasion as the leading driver. He scored five victories each year and secured two World Rally Championship titles, both times ahead of his fellow Lancia drivers Markku Alen and Alex Fiorio. His victorious cars were various versions of the Delta, including the HF 4WD, Integrale, and Integrale 16V.
Two more seasons with Lancia followed. In 1990, Biasion recorded two victories (Portugal and Argentina), three podiums, and two retirements, finishing 4th in the championship. In 1991, he was again fourth, but failed to win any event, scoring five podiums.
Biasion switched to Ford in 1992, driving the Ford Sierra RS Cosworth 4x4. This contract made him the highest-paid driver of his day, but results were below expectations, with only two podiums (Portugal and Greece) and a fourth-place finish in the standings. In 1993, Biasion won the Acropolis Rally with the new Ford Escort RS Cosworth, which remained his last WRC victory. He achieved three more podiums and finished fourth in the classification for the fourth consecutive year.
Insufficient resources for Ford's factory team meant the Escort fell behind its rivals, and Biasion was not competitive for the top in the 1994 season. In his last full WRC season, he competed in eight events and took two podiums (Portugal and Sanremo), finishing 6th in the classification. He was dropped from the team for the following year and quietly retired after two more non-WRC events in 1995.
Biasion's focus shifted to the Dakar Rally. Throughout his career, he was co-driven by Tiziano Siviero, with the exception of the 1988 Portuguese Rally, where Carlo Cassina substituted due to Siviero's health problems. In 1998, Biasion and Siviero competed with Iveco Eurocargo in the truck category at the Dakar Rally. They retired from Dakar but won the World Truck Championship that year and repeated the success in 1999. They finished 5th at Dakar in 1999.
In 2003 and 2004, the pair competed at the Dakar Rally in the car category, driving a Mitsubishi Pajero. They finished 15th in their first attempt and retired the following year. In 2005, Biasion was again in an Iveco truck but did not finish. New Dakar adventures followed in 2007 with a Fiat Panda 4x4, and again in 2012 and 2013 with Iveco trucks, finishing 6th in 2012 and 13th in 2013.
Massimo 'Miki' Biasion was born on January 7, 1958. He was married to Italian rally driver Chantal Galli, who won the Italian women's rally championship several times. They had four children: Bettina, Isotta, Jacobo, and Olivia. The couple is now divorced, and Biasion is currently married to Paola.
Biasion won the World Truck Championship in 1998 and 1999 driving an Iveco. He is considered one of the greatest Italian rally drivers in the history of the World Rally Championship, remembered for his two WRC titles and numerous podium finishes.
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