Kristoffersson brushes all aside in Hell

8 June EKS Audi Sport posts this track preview ahead of World RX of Norway – comic genius!

9 June Team Peugeot Total turns the spotlight on it’s team coordinator, Susann Hansen, who has been featured here at Rallycross World a couple of times in the past.

10 June Johan Kristoffersson bags his fourth World RX win of the year with a dominant run through the Norwegian round of the championship at Hell in Norway. The Swede won all four qualifiers, his semi-final and the final, so becoming only the second driver in World RX history to take a ‘clean sweep’. Now with a 31 point lead at the head of the points chart, Kristoffersson’s position was further helped by Sebastien Loeb’s failure to make it tor the final. The first time this year that Peugeot’s French star has not started the main event, his slip and third place in the event for Petter Solberg leaves the Norwegian just two points behind Loeb in the championship.

Between the two VWs in the event, Mattias Ekstrom placed second which was a great escape from a day in which he had received a five-second penalty in Q3 and non-finished Q4, just slipping into the semis in tenth place. Kevin Hansen takes fourth place, the young Peugeot driver gaining space on the road when Timmy Hansen and Andreas Bakkerud tangled in the first corner.

The event also forms round three of the RX2 championship and, after being stopped by mechanical problems in each of the first two rounds, brings the first win for Guillaume De Ridder who takes the lead from Oliver Eriksson on the Joker Lap strategy and then fends of the Swede for a narrow win. Henrik Krogstad makes it to the podium in his home event.

The third round of the FIA European Rallycross Championship for Super1600 was won by Jesse Kallio (Renault Twingo) who overcame top qualifier Aydar Nuriev (Skoda Fabia) to take his first S1600 win. Rokas Baciuska placed third on the debut of Volland Racing’s new Audi A1 and Artis Baumanis (Skoda Fabia) maintained his series lead with a fourth place finish. Daniel Holten (Fiesta) won round two of the TouringCar championship, leading home Jan-Emil Wilsburg (Citroen DS3) and points leader Steve Volders (Fiesta).

Alex Wurz’s debut in World RX was troubled by gearbox problems with his MJP Racing Team Austria Fiesta and the Austrian ended the event classified 18th.

12 June

RallyX Nordic publishes and amazing onboard lap from its recent Arvika event. Riding with Mats Ohman and captured on a 360-degree camera, the footage perfectly captures Ohman at work in a busy first lap.

14 June

Peugeot is expected to introduce two new Peugeot 208 Supercars for the next round of the World Rallycross Championship at Holjes in Sweden (June 29 – July 1), to be driven by Sebastien Loeb and Timmy Hansen. The new cars, although outwardly the same as the existing versions, will included a new engine and chassis. The French team’s third entry, for Kevin Hansen, will also feature an upgrade, Hansen Jnr will race one of the cars that Loeb and Hansen have driven so far this season.

Obituaries

10 May Adrienne Debenham died, she was 86 and had suffered a stroke earlier in the year. The wife of long-time rallycross commentator Arthur Debenham, Adrienne was a gentle and softly spoken Irishwoman, ever present in the commentary box detailing race results, assisting and supporting Arthur throughout.

4 June Rallycrosser and hillclimber Norman Kittle died, he was 69. Hugely successful in hillclimbs and speed events in his native Northern Ireland, Kittle turned his hand to rallycross with an MG Metro 6R4 and proved fast in local and British Championship events.

9 June Martin Biranne, the owner of Mondello Park, died suddenly, he was 82. An accomplished racing driver and successful property developer, Birrane bought Mondello Park in 1986 describing the circuit as “a wasteland in need of some tender loving care”. The FIA European Rallycross Championship first appeared at Mondello the following year and Biranne (wearing glasses in the group below) was frequently present at the circuit’s major rallycross events.