Top Gear UK test driver The Stig has been unmasked as professional stuntman and Le Mans racer Ben Collins.

For years the identity of The Stig has been a closely guarded secret, but Collins (who has previously competed in Formula Three, Le Mans, GT and NASCAR) has apparently outed himself to staff at a Bristol gallery.

The 33-year-old let his secret slip when he asked them to help him produce a limited-edition print of The Stig in action.

Gallery owner Simon Whitehead, 27, said: "I was absolutely amazed when he said he was The Stig, it was quite a big thing in a weird way."

Builder Jason Goody, 21, also discovered The Stig's identity when he did some work at Collins' home and found the famous white suit and gloves on display in a cabinet.

Other fans of Top Gear, presented by Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May, have been closing in on Collins in recent months. One YouTube clip shows The Stig, in full disguise, talking with a Bristol accent to a foreign TV crew – and then cuts to Collins sounding very similar.

Collins has always denied being The Stig and could face the sack if he admitted it. The first Stig, stunt driver Perry McCarthy, lost the job after outing himself in his book Flat Out, Flat Broke, published in 2002.

Perry McCarthy was known as The Black Stig and always wore a black suit and helmet before he was "killed off" during the third series in 2003. Collins has since become The White Stig, and wears an all white helmet and suit.

So, will the White Stig be kill off in next series??

Source: Autoblog