Hockenheim round for World RX

At the end of last week, the FIA World Rallycross Championship announced that an additional round of the championship would be included in 2015, at Hockenheim in Germany on the first weekend in May. The event will run alongside the DTM’s season opener at the venue, a week after World RX’s first event of the year in Portugal. The brand new rallycross circuit will be constructed in the Sachs arena stadium, the final part of the famous circuit’s lap. “It is a great honour to partner with DTM at their 2015 season-opening weekend at the Hockenheimring. We have been extremely impressed with the professionalism we have seen from ITR in running DTM and we can’t wait to show the German motorsport audience just how special World RX is,” said World RX managing director Martin Anayi. “There is a natural link with [Mattias] Ekstrom competing in both Championships and also with permanent World RX driver [Anton] Marklund competing in the new Audi Sport TT Cup. We were thrilled when the opportunity arose to build a purpose built rallycross circuit in one of the world’s most famous venues.  Coupled with the fact that an RX event would be held on such an important weekend in the German motorsport calendar was the icing on the cake.”

Tanner Foust will race in four rounds of the World Rallycross Championship this season; in Britain, Canada, France and Spain, in a Marklund Motorsport VW Polo Supercar. The America driver will also compete in a full GRC campaign in the Andretti Motorsport VW Beetle he used at the end of 2014, while also taking in select rounds of Formula Drift and LORRS (Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series). “I’m looking forward to being able to return to the World Rallycross Championship for a select season of events this year. The tracks in the series are incredible and I’m especially looking forward to the Lydden Hill event, there is something special about racing at the home of rallycross,” he said. “I’m going back to my roots with drifting, racing in rallycross, scraping the rust off some road racing skills, and continuing to learn more about off-road racing,”

Swede Ramona Karlsson has bought a Volkswagen Scirocco Supercar from Kristoffersson Motorsport, and has set up a crowdfunding scheme to become the first female Supercar team owner. Karlsson plans to race in the European Rallycross Championship in 2015, and the Swedish round of World RX at Holjes. “Motorsport has been my biggest interest since I was a little girl, and I have a lot of passion for the sport. But it has always been characterised by a macho culture, which sometimes can create tough conditions for women to succeed. It would be a big dream come true to work with people with the same attitude and values, and to build up something for the long term,” said Karlsson, who tested her new car at the end of 2014. “To reveal the Scirocco feels really great. I tested the car in Holjes last autumn, and it didn’t take long until I decided that I really wanted it.”

Tickets are now on sale for the British round of the World Rallycross Championship. ‘Early birds’ will be treated to a cheaper rate. See the Lydden Hill website for details. “It is a great honour to have World Championship motor sport back at Lydden Hill again in May, and we are delighted to confirm that ticket prices have been held at 2014 levels for those booking before the end of March,” said Lydden Hill owner, Pat Doran.

The World Rallycross Championship has announced a multi-year partnership with Rebellion Timepieces as official timing partner to World RX. The winner of each World RX race will be awarded an X1 Rebellion watch. A limited-edition official World RX watch range will be launched later this year.

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