The final weekend of FIA World Rallycross Championship was something that came up in the last hour to offer a final event for the 2024 season after the China and Australia plans failed, so Johan Kristoffersson still had business to conclude on track at Istanbul Park, and while he hasn’t added another win to his collection as Ole Christian Veiby got the top spot, the KMS Horse Powertrain driver still did what was enough to secure the seventh World RX title with a round to go.
With the long wait until a final round is decided, the grid changed a little bit as it lost Anthony Pelfrene and René Münnich, while Euro RX1 champion Patrick O’Donovan and Rallycross France competitors Juha Rytkönen and Steven Bossard brought their machines, so that the Peugeot 208 WRX and the pair of Hyundai i20 RXs can have some action after their priorities in the season were past them.
For Johan Kristoffersson, it wouldn’t need a ticket in the Final to settle the seventh title for good, so he pushed when it was really necessary to beat Kevin Hansen in the table, as he went for a more measured approach in Heat 1 to see Niclas Grönholmd win while O’Donovan won the other race, and in Heat 2, Kristoffersson was pitted with his direct rival and with some aggressive lunges he climbed the other to beat both Hansens and Grönholm, which was a spectacular show to secure the seventh title.
The Semifinals would revert the situation of the event, so those using the calculator for championship purposes would shift focus to add another event win in their resumes. Semifinal 1 had Kristoffersson blocking Bossard’s aggression to stay in the lead with the right door literally open while leading the line that had Ole Christian Veiby at the back with the Joker already done.
With the opposition getting out of the way one by one, Veiby got second place and eventually the lead as Kristoffersson conceded the top position in order to help the Norwegian, and behind both KMS Horse Volkswagen Polo RXs, Timmy Hansen just resisted in third as both PGRX Hyundais decided to help themselves instead of fighting internally, although it didn’t help Rytkönen to get a spot in the Final.
Semifinal 2 would be a golden chance for CEDT to get two PWRs in prime position for the Final as they had the inside line of the grid, but while Grönholm and Klara Andersson were in qualifying spots, Kevin Hansen was the one on top while O’Donovan had a spin and lot of work to do to stay in contention, but the Irishman needed a lap only to dispatch Andersson for third.
Despite O’Donovan’s best attempts, the order didn’t change until the finish line, with Kevin Hansen having a comfortable win while Grönholm held the second place from O’Donovan while Andersson never closed down the gap she lost in the initial moments of the race.
The Final had Veiby making good use of a rocket start to beat Kevin Hansen for first place while Kristoffersson was all over the No. 71 Peugeot 208 RX1e, and when the World champion was going for his signature lunge on the inside, Kevin Hansen shut the door in his face and sent him to the tire stack. The rest of the field was a total mess as they went on total folkrace mode, which basically secured the win for Veiby with a significant margin to the opposition.
Türkiye RX I - Event results
Kristoffersson ended the ninth round with 223 points against the 179 of Kevin Hansen, and with Ole Christian Veiby having 172 but Timmy Hansen and Niclas Grönholm having 164 and 163 points, the same team play used on Saturday might be considered on Round 10 on Sunday to help Veiby get the runner-up spot.
PHOTOS: Kristoffersson Motorsport
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