The second round of the FIA World
Rallycross Championship at Montalegre, Portugal, was giving all
the chances to win to PSRX Volkswagen, but then a determined
Mattias Ekström appeared to turn the table and get the first
triumph for current champions EKS RX this season.
The qualifying was like a PSRX
Volkswagen show as Petter Solberg dominated the table with
Mattias Ekström in second, although Johan Kristoffersson was
leading until he messed up things a bit by not going to the Joker on
Q3. Another potential contender that was in big trouble for
forgetting to Joker was Hoonigan's Andreas Bakkerud,
but he compensated his Q2 miss with impressive runs in Q3 and Q4,
jumping from 23rd to 10th and qualifying to the
semifinals.
On semifinal 1 PSRX Volkswagen cars had
the front row all for them, and Solberg took normal route while
Kristoffersson went to the Joker as part of their split strategy.
Both Polo GTI cars were on a heavy charge with Kevin Hansen between
them, but once Kevin went to the Joker the Volkswagen 1-2 returned
and Reinis Nitiss appeared from way behind them to steal the
last qualification spot to the final as Kevin Hansen was unable to
react.
The second semifinal was deemed to be
the toughest one, and EKS RX took the upper hand with Mattias Ekström
and Toomas Heikkinen while Team Peugeot-Hansen opted
for an early Joker for Sébastien Loeb and Timmy Hansen, while
Andreas Bakkerud was eliminated due to a contact with Guy Wilks that
destroyed the suspension of his Ford Focus RS RX.
While Ekström was leading comfortably,
Heikkinen's wing mirrors were full of Peugeots, and Loeb and Timmy
took second and third once Topi went to Joker, but although the
strategy and pace were good, the French-Swedish combo was unable to
pose a threat to Ekström's impressive run, outpacing both 208s and
winning the race easily.
The final was a straightforward
VW-Peugeot-Audi clash, and Solberg and Kristoffersson were for
different tactics to take first and second places, while EKS RX split
their cars and Peugeot-Hansen opted for an early Joker.
Solberg lost stability due to a rear
left tire puncture on Lap 3 and this cost him big time on the Joker,
sending him to the back of the pack, while Kristoffersson had his
hands full with Reinis Nitiss, Ekström, Loeb and Hansen, but he was
still a contender leaving the Joker in third. Unfortunately for him
the pace was huge in the lead battle, and Ekström barely held Loeb
for the win.
Ekström reigns supreme on top with 58
points while Kristoffersson and Solberg come behind him with 44 and
42 points respectively. Between the teams, PSRX Volkswagen leads with
86 points, barely ahead of EKS with 77 points, while Peugeot-Hansen
and Hoonigan share the third place with 49 points.
On May 5th-7th
the World RX visits its second FIA top-grade circuit as Hockenheim
will share track time with DTM and its support races.
PHOTO: FIA World Rallycross Championship
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