Bakkerud Monsters GP3R. Foust ends Subaru ARX rout. Galli in Italy. More.

2 August    ESmotorsport Labas gas is fined for its absence from World RX of Canada. The Stewards of Meeting in Canada convene a hearing and issue a decision that fines the Lithunanian team €50,000 for each event it fails to attend (starting with round seven in Canada). The decision states the reason for the fine as: “A permanent individual competitor has a responsibility vis-a-vis the FIA to ensure that the car entered takes to the grid for each competition of the championship.”

3 August    Round five of the ARX2 Championship takes place on the first day of the Canadian World RX event at Trois-Rivieres’ GP3R event and is won by Fraser McConnell. The Jamaican racer seals his second win of the year in a close battle with 2018 champion Conner Martell who, after winning rounds three and four, is now chasing down a second title. Cole Keatts places third ahead of Gray Leadbetter who achieves a personal best fourth ahead of newcomer Lane Vacala and Michael Leach, the latter driving with a broken right hand.

3 August  Gigi Galli maintains his lead in the Italian Rallycross Championship after winning round three at Adria. Culminating in finals run into the night, Galli wins the event with his Kia Rio Supercar and is joined on the podium by 15-year-old Czech racer Dan Skocdopole (Hedstroms Motorsport VW Polo) and Franco Mollo (Fiesta R5). The Super1600 category is won by debutant rallycross driver Mauro Grezzini (Peugeot 208 R2) and Marvello Gallo won the Kartcross section.

4 August    The FIA World Rallycross Championship got its sixth different winner in seven events as Andreas Bakkerud claimed his first event of the year – and the first since the finale of the 2016 season in Argentina. Second qualifier to Niclas Gronholm (Hyundai i20), Bakkerud won semi-final two while a poor call on the Joker Lap cost Gronholm a place in the final and left him fourth in SF1 which was won by his team mate Timur Timerzyanov. Bakkerud (Audi S1) lead the final from lights to flag, worked hard by Janis Baumanis (Fiesta) throughout. Timerzyanov survived an impact with the tyre wall early in the race to come through to third place ahead of Guerlain Chicherit (Renault Megane). Kevin Hansen (Peugeot 208) was disqualified from the final for his part in a clash with Anton Marklund (Megane) which left the latter in the wall.

4 August    Tanner Foust and Andretti Rallycross end Subaru’s ARX winning streak and takes the first Volkswagen win of the year in round four of the series at GP3R in Canada. Patrik Sandell (Subaru) is the top qualifier but the order is shaken up in the semi-finals where Cabot Bigham (Volkswagen) beats Sandell in SF1 and Steve Arpin (Ford Fiesta) beats second qualifier Foust in SF2. Arpin leads the final, but runs wide in turn one where Foist picks up the lead with Bigham grabbing second place. The real mover in the race is series leader Scott Speed who starts from sixth on the seven-car grid having lost the lead of SF2 in the last few seconds of the race when the gearbox in his Subaru failed. Equipped with a new box and fighting back strongly Speed reaches third place behind the VW duo.

Fraser McConnell repeats his round five victory to win the sixth round of the ARX2 series at GP3R. The lead battle is again conducted with Conner Martell, the pair trading fastest laps and rarely more than fractions apart in a closely contested final. Cole Keatts again completes the podium. With six of nine rounds run, McConnell leads the series by 21 points over Keats with Martell third, 23 points further adrift. Leadbetter, Vacala and Leach again complete the finalists.

7 August  Tom Coronel is the latest driver added to the Titans RX entry list for rounds five and six in Montalegre. The Dutch all-rounder will be joined on the grid by Portuguese rally star Armindo Araujo. “Let’s first enjoy the ride and see how my fans react and respond to my style in this new discipline, because I’m an overall racing driver – I do GT, Le Mans, WTCR, Dakar, this is just the one in between,” said Coronel.

8 August  The entry list for World RX of France is published and reveals 21 World RX competitors and a full field of 30 Supercars for the FIA European Rallycross Championship. Toomas Heikkinen makes his World RX return GRX Set’s Hyundai i20 (last seen being carefully piloted in Sweden by Reinis Nitiss) while home hopes will ride with the Fabien and Jonathan Pailler who return to the series after their outing in Sweden. 2018 French Champion Antoine Masse leads the irregulars in Euro Supercar, along with former champions Gaetan Serazin and David Meslier.