CATO MENKERUD
| Date of birth: | 23 August 1973 |
| Lives: | Lillehammer, Norway |
| Titles: | 2002 and 2003 Norwegian Rally champion |
| First WRC: | 1994 Rally Sweden |
| WRC starts*: | 70 |
| WRC wins*: | 0 |
| Co-driver to: | Henning Solberg |
Cato Menkerud contested his first World Rally Championship event in 1994 in Sweden with Helge Menkerud in a Mazda 323. He contested Sweden the following year, this time in a Ford Sierra Cosworth, and then in 1996 with Birger Gunersen in an Escort RS Cosworth.
In 1998 he contested the WRC round in Great Britain alongside Petter Solberg in a Toyota Celica GT4. 1999 saw no WRC action, and for 2000 there was just a solitary outing in Spain in a Seat Ibiza GTI co-driving with Birger Gundersen.
2001 brought Menkerud's first WRC event with Henning Solberg, in a Corolla WRC in Finland. Later that season the duo finished in 13th place in Great Britain's WRC round in a Subaru Impreza.
In 2002 Menkerud contested three WRC rallies with Alexander Foss in a Ford Puma S1600 and Rally Finland with Solberg in a Corolla WRC car.
Solberg and Menkerud entered two WRC events in a Mitsubishi Evo 6 in 2003, and then seven the following season in a Peugeot 206 WRC, with a best placed finish of sixth in Sweden.
The following year, now in a Ford Focus WRC, they went one better with fifth in Sweden at the start of another seven rally WRC campaign.
2006 saw the pair continue with a 12-round championship campaign, now in a Peugeot 307 WRC, scoring their first WRC podium in Turkey and finishing eighth overall in the championship.
For 2007 he again co-drove with Solberg, contesting the full WRC season for the first time, and as part of the Stobart VK M-Sport Ford Rally Team using a Ford Focus RS WRC06.
Menkerud enjoyed a successful start to 2007 with Solberg as the pair picked up another podium, this time in their home-country of Norway. He enjoyed a fine opening half of the season and was kept busy reporting on each event for the Expert Motorsport Blog. The blog is one of the most popular websites in Norway, and covers everything about each event and what goes on around and between. Menkerud does a fine job of filling and maintaining the site - check it out at http://www.vgb.no/6339/.
The second half of the year saw Menkerud miss Rally Ireland due to the birth of his second child Lauritz, but it did see his second podium for 2007 and third of his career as he and Solberg took third in Rally Japan; their first attempt at the Asian event. Menkerud finished the 2007 championship as the sixth placed co-driver.
In 2008, Menkerud once again joined Henning Solberg for a full season in the WRC with the Stobart VK M-Sport Ford Rally Team. The duo notched up strong points finishes in Mexico, Jordan, Turkey and Finland - and were also in contention for overall podium positions in Greece and New Zealand, only to be denied by retirements caused by mechanical issues.
Menkerud will renew his partnership with Henning Solberg for 2009 in the Stobart VK M-Sport Ford Rally Team as they contest a full FIA World Rally Championship campaign.