Stigs identity confirmed as Ben Collins

[bodgit]

The identity of Top Gear's mysterious Stig has been one of the best kept secrets in television.
But after years of intense public curiosity it has been revealed that he is a 33-year-old racing driver from Bristol.



Ben Collins is the mystery man behind the white mask, a former American NASCAR, Formula 3 driver and Daniel Craig stunt double.
Famed for his on-the-limit driving style, the Stig's identity is normally protected because he never removes his trademark white helmet or racing suit and never talks on camera.
However, the secret apparently came out when a Bristol newspaper ran a story claiming that Collins was at a Bristol photo studio where limited-edition prints of the Stig were being produced.
The media has long known who the Stig is but has refrained from revealing his true identity. A Top Gear spokesman said: "We never comment on speculation as to who or what The Stig is."
Rumour has it that if the Stig's identity was ever revealed the driver could be sacked from Top Gear. The original Stig, Perry McCarthy, was launched off an aircraft carrier and 'killed' after his identity was revealed.
In 2007, Ben Collins wrote a series of stunt-driving articles for MSN Cars.

[Kecky]

The Stig is dead.........Long live the Stig.........

Maybe the next one will wear an orange suit

[savageman25]

I think it would have been better if the media had just left the stig alone and unmasked.
Now everyone nows who he is it has, for me, kind of ruined the idea of the stig.

[Cosworth]

Known this for years.

Also according to Jimmy Carr when I met him at the NIA after his show it also used to alternate between 2 rally drivers..

[DaveG28]

Didn't know about the rally drivers (to be honest, he drives like a track racer not rally driver, would be surprised if a rally driver was doing those laps), but have known it was Ben Collins for a few years, since Perry Mccarthy was dropped off a boat!!

[Chris Doughty]

rally drivers know how to race circuit cars too, they don't handbrake the cars around turns if they don't need to be.

Colin McRae didn't drift his ASCAR round the rock when he did a bit of racing the in RAC ASCAR

[DaveG28]

Originally Posted by DoughtyUK.net

rally drivers know how to race circuit cars too, they don't handbrake the cars around turns if they don't need to be.

Colin McRae didn't drift his ASCAR round the rock when he did a bit of racing the in RAC ASCAR

I didn't explain well enough, it's not they don't handbrake turn, I mean when you look at the stig exiting the longer corners, he has the grip balanced so well on the edge of adhesion. Very few rally drivers could do it that well (and I would assume the absolute top dogs AREN'T going to be available for loads of BBC work!!) as it is totally alien to how a rally car is driven. Very few rally drivers can make it as circuit racer too (Loeb has done some ok tests I think) and same vice versa (Ekstrom from the DTM has I think?) but most would never quite be there. Although admittedly its hard to tell exactly how fast the Stig is!

As for ASCAR on an oval, different world again!!! Although again the best can probably win at both (Jeff Gordon?). If they all could, people like Marcos Ambrose couldn't pitch up in NASCAR and blow most of them away straight away on the few road circuits they do!! In fact, check qualifying for a NASCAR road race, all the Europeans and Aussie circuit racers do so much better than normal.

Anyway, rant over sorry!! Just meant to say I'm not saying rally drivers can't drive on road, just would be surprised to find out the stig's driving was from a rally driver.

[savageman25]

So its not just ben collins as the stig, its lots of diffrent drivers?

[captain-codpiece]

Somwone once told me Damon Hill did it as I one off, or maybe I was dreaming. I do have some pretty wierd dreams.....

[FERRETTI]

I have been led to believe that the Stig concept was developed to allow the use of multiple drivers with limited controversy. One of the main reasons for this (along with availability) is to allow manufactures to user their own test drivers as some withheld permission for lap times to be set under any other circumstances.

The "death" of the first Stig was a tool used to propagate the notion of individuality (and it was funny).

It's a simple theory which seems to makes sense, the only problem is it sort of draws a line under all the guessing games and oh how we do like to speculate.