Chicherit’s French burn-up. Solberg scoops Arvika Nordic win

27 May Oscar Ortfeldt (Ford Fiesta) wins the second round of the Italian Rallycross Championship at Maggiora. The event also forms the fourth round of the CEZ series but draws few of the usual competitors, Austrian visitor Alois Holler best of them in his Focus with which he takes second place ahead of Marco Noris (Mistubishi Lancer). The Super1600 win is taken by Andrea Carretti in Tedak’s Alfa Romeo Mito.

2 June The third round of the Estonian Rallycross Championship at Kehala has a dramatic end when Ain Laiverik rolls out of the event in the third lap. Laiverik and points leader Andri Oun make contact on the jump after the Jokler Lap merge, Laiverik’s Mitsubishi Lancer sent into a series of rolls. The race is halted with the win awarded to Raini Roomets (Skoda Fabia) ahead of Ameriico Joffert (Subaru Impreza) and Laiverik credited with third place after Oun was judged to be at fault for the incident.

3 June Guerlain Chicherit gains his third successive victory in the French Rallycross Championship at Chateauroux, but only at the conclusion of a dramatic afternoon that ended with Chicherit in hospital for the effects of smoke inhalation and the top two finishers on the road, Antoine Masse and Samuel Per, disqualified from the final. Chicherit had been fastest in two qualifiers, Fabien Pailler and Julien Febreau respectively fastest in the first and third qualifiers. Pailler’s day came to end with retirement in the semis where Febreau and Fabien Chanoine won. Masse led Peu home in the final, Chicherit third on the road and with the damaged rear end of his car catching fire at the end of the race. While Chicherit was cared for after the race, officials disqualified Masse for cutting the course and Peu for contact. That handed Chicherit his third win in as many events. Febreau was elevated to second with Jonathan Pailler taking third. Super1600 was more straight forward, Yvonnick Jagu dominating in his Skoda Fabia. David Vincent and Florian Zavattin took the wins in D3 and D4 while Baptiste Menez ended Emannuel Danveau’s winning run in the Twingo Cup.

3 June the second round of RallyX Nordic took place at Arvika and was won by Oliver Solberg. Round one winner Thomas Bryntesson was unbeaten in the qualifying heats and topped the order again. in semi-final one. Bryntesson and Solberg battled through the first lap of the final, Solberg going ahead at the start of the second lap and then drawing away for a clear victory as Bryntesson struggled with a puncture. Lukas Walfridson rose through the final to claim second place with Philip Gehrman completing the podium. Bryntesson retained the series lead after being classified fourth – one place higher than he had ended the race after Oliver Eriksson was disqualified for his part in a first lap incident that resulted in Peter Hedstrom’s retirement from the race. In Supercar Lites Guillaume De Ridder (below) was again victorious, the Belgian fending of a strong challenge from Ben-Philip Gundersen to win. Simon Olofsson placed third.

7 June The FIA World Motor Sport Council meeting in Manila confirms that the FIA World Rallycross Championship will switch to electric cars from 2020. the FIA statement said:

Proposals to transform the current FIA World Rallycross Championship into the FIA Electric World Rallycross Championship from 2020 were approved by the World Council. A general outline for Sporting Regulations was agreed:

• Sporting format of the events (12 to 14 per season) to remain identical to the current format (practice, four qualifying heats, two semi-finals and one final).
• Entries reserved for two-car teams.
• Two World Championships will be contested: one for Drivers and one for Manufacturers (four best results among cars from each Manufacturer per event to count towards the Manufacturers’ Championship classification).
• Creation of a Team Trophy, for private teams taking part in the Championship.

General prescriptions for Technical Regulations were outlined as follows:

• Four-wheel drive ‘Silhouette-type’ cars, with two electric motors (one front and one rear), 500kW, a common battery and a common chassis.
• The “powertrain” regulations are derived from those applicable for Formula E cars, with some restrictions aimed at controlling costs and development.
• Private companies may homologate their own cars, on the condition that they use the common battery and chassis, and design their bodywork from a generic car model required by the FIA.
• Williams has been designated as Single Battery Supplier to the FIA Electric World Rallycross Championship for the seasons 2020 to 2023.
• Oreca has been designated as Single Chassis Supplier to the FIA Electric World Rallycross Championship for the seasons 2020 to 2023.

The move to electric cars will bring an additional category of car to the established World RX events as the current breed of internal combustion engined (ICE) Supercar will remain part of the overall event package.

World RX promoter IMG issued a statement saying:

IMG has collaborated with the FIA and a number of car manufacturers on this project for the last eighteen months, whilst working hard to ensure privateers can also compete in the new Championship. 

We will continue to work closely with the car manufacturers in the run-up to the 30 July deadline for their commitment to the electric Championship.

Paul Bellamy, IMG’s Senior Vice President for Motorsports said: “We are pleased about the single supplier appointments as the success and track record of each company speaks for itself.”

7 June The entry list for the Swedish round of the FIA World Rallycross Championship is published. On the back of a strong ARX run at Silverstone, Timo Scheider is to make his World RX season debut in one of ALL-INKL.COM Munnich Motorsport’s Seat Ibizas. The German squad is set to run three Supercars in the event, Rene Munnich and Mandie August both to drive in Euro Supercar. The event will be the last for the European Championship TouringCar category, and a capacity 20-car entry (plus one reserve) includes Irish championship front runner Peter McGarry who will drive Derek Tohill’s 2010 and 2013 title winning Fiesta (below). Euro Supercar exceeds its 30 car entry limit and has four drivers on a reserve list, including former WRC driver Tobias Johansson and Nordic RallyX event winner Oliver Solberg.