Date of Birth: 30 August 1963
Place of Birth: Trefeglwys, Wales
Lives: Wales
Marital status: Lives with Helen andchildren son Iwan and daughter Sioned
First rally: 1983 WRC debut: 1994
Hobbies: Shooting, cycling
Career highlights:
2003 World Rally Champion with Petter Solberg 2002 Second place,
World Rally Championship 2000 Signed to Subaru World Rally Team
1999 Signed to Ford World Rally Team
1997 Winner, British Championship 1996 Second place
, British Championship 1993 Winner,
Welsh National Championship 1992 Winner,
Welsh National Championship 1990 Winner,
Group N category, British Championship
Phil Mills is no stranger to success at the highest level but it was his move to the Subaru World Rally Team in August 2000, along with Petter Solberg, which established the Welshman's role in one of the most exciting driver partnerships in World Championship rallying.
After many promising results their potential was realised on last season's Rally GB when a second consecutive victory secured Petter and Phil the Drivers' and Co-Drivers' World Championship titles for 2003.
Back to basics
Like most British co-drivers, Phil started competing at the most basic level of the sport when, in 1983, he began co-driving on British road rallies with members of his local motor club. He learned quickly and in 1984 clinched his first class title on the Welsh Road Rally Championship.
For the rest of the 1980s, Phil was a regular co-driver at club level, using the time to build his experience on a variety of different stage conditions. In the period between 1988 and 1990 he somehow managed to squeeze in 88 rallies!
Going international
Phil's wealth of experience brought him his international break in the 1990 British Championship when he co-drove Graham Middleton in the Group N production car category and finished third overall on the Welsh Rally.
Phil won the Welsh Championship in 1992 and 1993 with Brian Bell, and in 1993 joined Malcolm Wilson Motorsport to act as team co-ordinator on that year's Rally GB. Phil then carried out gravel note duties for Malcolm Wilson when he won the British Championship in 1994, partnered Sebastian Lindholm in the British Championship and scored his first international success alongside multiple Middle East champion Mohammed Bin Sulayem in the Rally of Jordan.
British Championship success
Phil further added to his reputation as a co-driver in 1996 when he joined Mark Higgins at Nissan, finishing second in the British Championship and taking fourth overall on Rally GB. The duo went one better to win the British Championship in 1997 while the ever busy Phil continued to carry out his co-ordination duties for M-Sport on the World and Middle East Championships and also found time to co-drive for Ford driver Armin Schwarz on the Corsica Rally.
Phil and Petter - a partnership is formed
Phil competed in five further World Championship events with Higgins during 1998, gaining more vital WRC experience, which was put to good use when he joined Petter Solberg at Ford in 1999. Mills' wealth of expertise proved a vital boost to the promising but inexperienced Norwegian driver, and in their first two years together they achieved a string of excellent results that established Petter as one of the sport's most promising drivers for many yearsP
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