Niclas Grönholm emerged on top of a bruising FIA World Rallycross Championship final on the opening day of action at Nyirád in Hungary on 27 July 2024, as Kevin Hansen and Johan Kristoffersson dramatically came to blows at the first corner.
On a scorching hot day in rallycross’ ‘Red Cauldron’ – so-called due to the distinctive colour of its unsealed sections, having been built on the site of a disused bauxite quarry – the racing kept the large and enthusiastic crowd entertained from the first green light to the final chequered flag.
As the ‘Battle of Technologies’ resumed following a sensational season curtain-raiser in Sweden three weeks ago, it was advantage Kevin Hansen in his electric Peugeot 208 RX1e at the end of the heats, with the Hansen World RX Team ace keeping a completely clean sheet. His closest challengers were surprise packages René Münnich and home hero Janko Wieszt, both in sustainably-fuelled combustion-engined cars and the latter making his World RX debut.
Championship leader Kristoffersson uncharacteristically found himself down in sixth, having dominated his first heat race but then been forced out of the next one by a technical issue. It is not for nothing, however, that the Swede is a six-time world champion, and he subsequently survived a first corner crunch in the semi-final before overhauling Grönholm after the joker laps – the pair running briefly side-by-side – to book a front row grid slot for the final.
Alongside him on pole position was heats pace-setter Hansen, but it was Kristoffersson who got the better launch in his internal combustion Volkswagen Polo KMS 601 RX, and with neither of the pair willing to concede as the field barrelled into Turn One for the first time, contact was inevitable, sending both cars backwards into the barriers.
Hansen was stranded on the spot and was later disqualified, while Kristoffersson was able to continue, but nursing damaged suspension. In the immediate aftermath of their coming-together, Grönholm and Timmy Hansen in the other Peugeot similarly clashed at Turn Two, pitching the Swede into a spin – and elevating the Finn into a lead he would not relinquish.
Grönholm went on to take the chequered flag more than five seconds clear of Kristoffersson’s team-mate Ole Christian Veiby, as the CE Dealer Team by Volvo Construction Equipment ace celebrated his eighth career triumph – the first for electric power in World RX’s new dual-technology era.
“It’s been an up-and-down day, but I’m happy to end on top when it matters. This track is not easy to drive but it’s very cool – definitely a nice addition to the calendar. It’s been a good start to the season overall – it’s pretty clear to see we’ve taken a step forward. There’s been a lot of hard work since 2022, and we’re slowly but surely getting to where we want to be.”
Grönholm reflected
New father Veiby navigated through the carnage of the first few corners to seal second place in his battle-scarred VW, with Wieszt delighting the thousands of trackside fans by reaching the rostrum in third ahead of the delayed Timmy Hansen and Kristoffersson.
Klara Andersson showed strong speed in the second CE Dealer Team car – winning her heat two race following Kristoffersson’s misfortune – but the Höljes star came unstuck at the semi-final stage when she swiped the wall in the joker.
The Nyirád action continues on Sunday, 28 July 2024 with the remaining heats, semi-finals and finals in the support series and round four of the 2024 World RX campaign.
FINAL RESULT: WORLD RX
1. Niclas GRÖNHOLM (FIN) CE Dealer Team (EV) 5 laps
2. Ole Christian VEIBY (NOR) KMS – Horse Powertrain (ICE) + 5.364s
3. Janko WIESZT (HUN) Impossible RX Team (ICE) + 7.722s
4. Timmy HANSEN (SWE) Hansen World RX Team (EV) + 9.193s
DNF Johan KRISTOFFERSSON (SWE) KMS – Horse Powertrain (ICE) + 1 lap
DSQ Kevin HANSEN (SWE) Hansen World RX Team (EV)
Full results for all categories can be found at www.fiaworldrallycross.com
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