Ken Block death: Top 3 legendary Gymkhana videos of Pro-Stunt Driver - WATCH

The world of motorsport paid tribute to American Ken Block, the professional rally driver whose daring stunts made him an internet sensation, after his death aged 55 in a snowmobile accident. Block's Hoonigan Racing team confirmed his death in a statement on Instagram on Monday. "Ken was a visionary, a pioneer and an icon. And most importantly, a father and husband. He will be incredibly missed," it said. The accident occurred in Utah's Wasatch County and the Sheriff's Office said that Block was riding on a steep slope when the snowmobile upended and landed on top of him.

Ken Block: Career

Having begun his rallying career in 2005, Block was named Rookie of the Year in the Rally America Championship. He competed in the World Rally Championship and won several rallycross medals at the X Games. The American co-founded sportswear company DC Shoes and produced the Gymkhana video series, which featured him driving on dangerous tracks and obstacle courses.

The series racked up millions of views on YouTube. He also featured on the BBC programme Top Gear, including a sequence drifting and performing tyre burnouts around London with actor Matt LeBlanc.

Top 5 Gymkhana Videos:

Gymkhana, a rally inspired automotive sport involves performance cars that are driven on an open field or parking lot. Drivers skilfully manoeuvre their cars around a series of obstacles like cones, slaloms, 180-degree turns, 360-degree turns, etc. 

Gymkhana One

Ken Block became an instant YouTube star with his famous Gymkhana series and hence, the first video is a special one. Started 14 years ago, KenBlockRacing uploaded his first with the title, “KEN BLOCK GYMKHANA PRACTICE”. It was not the usual spectacular show, but nothing like this was ever seen by auto enthusiasts. It got 20 million views instantly.

Gymkhana Five

Gymkhana became a name to reckon with and Ken Block, the most famous automotive driver ever. He kept pushing his video quality and stunt level, ever since the Gymkhana One, which was more of a practice run. Also, this was the first time a Gymkhana video was shot on the actual streets of San Francisco, California, which nobody did before. Travis Pastrana, another famous stunt rider made a guest appearance in the series. 

Gymkhana Ten

This was the last and final installment in the series and the Gymkhana Ten will always be remembered for its sheer scale. Block was seen driving five mean machines in five locations including cars like 1965 Ford Mustang Hoonicorn V2, 2018 Ford Fiesta WRC, 1991 Ford Escort RS Cosworth “the Cossie”, 2017 Ford Focus RS RX, and lastly the Hoonitruck aka 1977 Ford F-150.

With agencies inputs