Belevskiy’s comeback secures Euro RX1 win at Höljes

Non-stopping rain, a soaked track, impressive youngsters and the miraculous comeback of the current FIA Euro RX1 Championship leader, as Yury Belevskiy barely escaped from the drop in Qualifying to head straight to victory at Höljes, but the Swiss had to overcome a consistent Mika Liimatainen and the bravery of the newcomers Lukas Andersson and Joni Turpeinen.
 
Rallycross tracks are well known for the instant changes the surface can have, and in wet condition this turns up to eleven, so the Qualifying didn’t show any consistent contenders through the four Heats. Although Mika Liimatainen did his part to top the table with his PGRX Hyundai i20 RX, the ones who caught the attention were Lukas Andersson, Martin Enlund and current RallyX champion Joni Turpeinen. While Enlund was more measured and methodic in his approach, Andersson and Turpeinen ran all four Heats like there was no tomorrow, which saw them prevailing as the surface dried in Q4, giving them the position just below Liimatainen.
 
The surprise of the Heats was the current leader Yury Belevskiy, as the Lousada winner wasn’t dealing well with the rapidly changing surface and other things thrown at him, meaning he only escaped the drop zone after Q4, narrowly beating a returning Mats Öhman, who was also having difficulties at launch to make his new Volkswagen Polo KMS 601 RX look like how it was at the latest RallyX North round at Älvsbyn.
 
Semifinal 1 had Peter Hedström outpacing everybody before the first corner to take the lead while Liimatainen kept the chase and Enlund went early to the Joker. No one wanted to Joker early on fears that the slippery surface would hinder them, and while Hedström went straight to the win and Liimatainen got second place, Damian Litwinowicz just had to block Enlund’s attack to guard the third place until the finish line.
 
In the second Semifinal, the experience of the grid was all behind the 16 years old duo of Andersson and Turpeinen, who kept their top positions while Filip Thorén went to the Joker to get out of the train formed in front. Eventually, lack of traction opened the door and Turpeinen took the lead from Andersson, with only Nils Volland behind them as the rest went to the Joker. Volland fell behind Yury Belevskiy after the Joker, while Turpeinen completed a mostly clean Joker to go straight to the win, while Andersson was almost passed by Belevskiy at the line, but they left no room for Volland.
 
The Euro RX1 Final had the return of the rain in biblical proportions, with Turpeinen leading the field while Belevskiy passed Liimatainen in the first lap Joker. Turpeinen then lost traction and opened the door for Andersson, only for them go with elbows out, which still kept Andersson in the lead.
 
A collection of mistakes took Turpeinen out of contention for the win and eased the situation for Andersson while Belevskiy was on the chase, and thanks to an awkward Joker from Andersson, Belevskiy became the leader and Liimatainen was all over Andersson. The track was soaked in the final lap, and Belevskiy somehow navigated the wet mess to win the race, with Andersson in second and Liimatainen completing the podium.
 
Euro RX1 - Höljes event resuts
 
Belevskiy dominates the classification with 53 points while Liimatainen is the nearest threat to his title challenge with 39 points, with Litwinowicz being close to the PGRX driver with 35 points. The championship resumes the action on 20 July at Nyirád, in Hungary.
 
PHOTO: Volland Racing