His driving style, however, was anything but flamboyant. Neat, serious, precise, and devastatingly quick, Pond was a driver ahead of his time. He took great care of himself and while many of his contemporaries unwound with a cigarette and a pint at the nearest King’s Arms, Pond was busy studying lines.

It was a disciplined approach that saw him consistently punching above his weight in cars like the Triumph TR7 and Rover SD1. When Group B rolled around, Pond found himself behind the wheel of the iconic Metro 6R4. Despite its status as a fan favourite, the diminutive hatchback often struggled against more sophisticated competition. 

Pond’s talent wasn’t confined to rally stages. In an era where the crossover between circuit racing and rallying was almost unheard of, he made an immediate impact in the British Touring Car Championship. Driving a Rover 3500, Pond took pole position on his debut at Donington and won the very next race at Silverstone. This combination of circuit prowess and a rally driver’s mindset made him the perfect candidate to attack the four-wheeled TT record.

His choice of vehicle for the challenge made the task even more remarkable. The Rover 827 Vitesse was no slouch as a production car, but it wasn’t exactly a supercar. Popular with motorway police and executives alike, it was a comfortable saloon with a turn of pace, but that’s it. Its predecessor, the much-loved rear-wheel-drive SD1, had given way to the 800 Series – a product of Rover’s partnership with Honda. Built on the co-developed front-wheel-drive Legend platform, it was powered by a 2.7-litre naturally aspirated KV6 engine delivering 177bhp and 0–60mph in 8 seconds.

However, Pond’s car wasn’t quite standard. Despite Rover’s claims that the Vitesse was showroom-spec, mechanic Dave Appleby later revealed it was running on slicks and had been stripped to the bone, weighing just 1,160kg – 200kg lighter than stock.

Not that it helped during Pond’s first attempt in 1988, when rain stopped play. He returned in 1990, this time ditching his co-driver – a gamble that required a photographic memory of the course’s 100-plus corners, countless bumps, jumps, and cambers. Yet the decision paid off. Pond powered around the TT course at an average speed of 102mph, an astonishing feat of concentration and bravery. Clocking 22 minutes and 9 seconds, he became the first driver to conquer the island at a three-figure mean.

The lap, as ever, was captured by motorsport junkies Duke Video. Watching Pond pilot the Rover at full commitment through the narrow streets is enough to earn the respect of even the most hardened bikers. Commentary from Pond himself accompanies the onboard footage, showcasing his smoothness behind the wheel, while exterior shots reveal just how hard he worked the poor Rover to extract every millisecond of time. At multiple points, the Vitesse hits an indicated 150mph as Pond threads the needle through merciless hazards.

His record stood for 21 years until Subaru arrived at the TT in 2011 with an army of mechanics and Mark Higgins behind the wheel of a modified Impreza WRX. Higgins raised the average speed to 115mph, shaving over two minutes from Pond’s time. Ten years later, Higgins’ record still stands.

In his beloved WRC, Pond came agonisingly close to a career-defining victory in 1985. In true underdog fashion, he mounted a serious challenge at the RAC Rally, battling the rampant Lancia Delta S4s of Henri Toivonen and Markku Alén. After nine and a half hours of intense racing, Pond finished a mere 2.27 seconds adrift – the best result the Metro 6R4 would ever achieve.

Tony retired from rallying in 1986 after Group B was outlawed, taking up a development role with MG Rover, where he contributed to the MGF. Sadly, he passed away in 2002 at the age of 56 after a battle with pancreatic cancer.

His TT lap record may have been surpassed, but Tony Pond’s influence on rallying culture and his standing as one of Britain’s most versatile and talented drivers are beyond doubt. In many ways, his life mirrored his career: remarkable, full of promise, but cut short before its full potential could be realized. Tony Pond’s name will always belong among the greats, not just for his skill behind the wheel, but for what he represented – a relentless drive to excel, regardless of the odds.