Battle for France continues as Solberg and De Ridder grab Nordic crowns. Trogen wins Academy

7 October Tamas Karai (Audi A1) wins the final round of the Hungarian Rallycross Championship at Mariapocs. Karai wins all three qualifiers and the final at the Rabocsi Ring, leading home Atilla Mozer’s similar Audi and Csaba Spitzmuller’s Skoda Fabia. Slovakian racer Miroslav Pospichal (VW Polo) wins the over two-litre TouringCar category, the up to two-litre win collected by Romanian Andre Vajda (Suzuki Swift)

7 October The weather plays its hand in the French championship at Lessay where rain in the first day helps to mix the order. Title rivals Antoine Masse (Peugeot 208) and Guerlain Chicherit (Renault Clio) both fall foul of the wet track on Saturday but rescue themselves with a qualifying win each on Sunday. Fabien Chanoine (below) is top qualifier in his Renault Clio ahead of Chicherit, Masse and Philippe Maloigne (Clio). Masse and Maloigne win in the semi-finals, Maloigne ahead again in the final for his first win of the year. Chicherit and Masse complete the podium and will go to Dreux in ten-days to settle the championship. Super1600 champion-elect Yvonnick Jagu (Skoda Fabia) takes his fourth event win of the year. Valentin Comte wins the Twingo Cup for the fourth time and keeps the pressure on points leader Emmanuel Danveau. Xavier Briffaud (Mini) and Xavier Goubill (Peugeot 306) win in Divisions Three and Four respectively.

7 October RallyX Nordic completes its 2018 season on the new rallycross track at Tierp Arena north of Stockholm. Oliver Solberg (Citroen DS3) survives a dramatic day to win the event and take the title.

Defending champion Thomas Bryntesson (Fiesta) is top qualifier but suffers a puncture in his semi-final, handing the win to Solberg. Oliver Eriksson’s title challenge ends when he tangles with Andreas Carlsson (Renault Clio) and hits the wall in the final. Robin Larsson, back in his own Audi for this event, is second ahead of Philip Gehrman (VW Beetle), the only other drivers to complete the race distance. Several leading runners come to grief in the semi-finals including Ulrik Linnemann (Honda), Lukas Walfridson (Clio), Ola Froshaug (Fiesta) and Peter Hedstrom (VW Polo), but none quite so dramatically as Daniel Thorens who escaped injury after rolling his Polo.

The Supercar Lites (RX2) championship is taken by Guillaume De Ridder who staves off the challenge from Ben-Philip Gundersen to collect his first rallycross title. Marcus Hoglund takes the event win ahead of De Ridder and Jimmie Walfridson.

The RX Academy also reaches its conclusion at Tierp where Sami-Matti Trogen rolls out of the final but clinches the title and its valuable prize of a drive in the 2019 RX2 International Series. Isak Reiersen led the final from Marko Muru and Trogen’s title rival Oskar Leitgeber before Trogen rolled out of fourth place in the second lap. As the race could not be restarted the Stewards decided base the event result on points scored in the event, giving Trogen the edge over Leitgeber and Muru in the series.

7 October The Belgian championship comes to an end at Maasmechelen. Kristof Bex (Volvo S40) wins the over two-litre Supernational class ahead of the similar car of Luc Maris who is the champion. Martijn Vanhove (BMW) is already champion in the up to two-litre section which is won on the day by Kurt Lambers (BMW M3). Davy Van Den Branden (Citroe DS3) takes the event win in Super1600, leading home champion Steve Otzer (Citroen Saxo). The lone driver in Supercar is champion-elect Johnny Verkuringen (Subaru Impreza).

8 October The annual Supercar Lites (RX2) test day attracts 22 drivers from eight countries to Tierp to try their hand in the one-make racecars. RX Academy front runner Sloan Cox (New Zealand) and British RX Supernational event winner Jack Thorne are among those who test.

Pictures: RabocsiRing  / RallycrossFrance / RallyX Nordic / RX Academy / Johan Dingenen / Supercar Lites