10 Oct RACE REVIEW – WORLD RALLY CROSS – 7 & 8 OCTOBER 2023
SUPER SCHEIDER ENDS KRISTOFFERSSON’S WINNING STREAK AT KILLARNEY
SUPER SCHEIDER ENDS KRISTOFFERSSON’S WINNING STREAK AT KILLARNEY
Timo Scheider brought Johan Kristoffersson’s winning streak in the World Rallycross series to an end with a sensational performance at Killarney on Sunday 8 October, as his maiden victory ensured the title fight would go on to the Hong Kong season finale.
For the first time in World Rallycross history, the entire field took to the track in equal machinery at Killarney and Scheider was a leading contender from the outset.
While Kristoffersson emerged on top on Saturday – his 39th career victory – the Volkswagen Dealerteam Bauhaus star did not have things all his own way. Kevin Hansen broke Kristoffersson’s previously unbeaten record in the single-lap SuperPole shootout, before heat honours went the way of three different drivers.
Kristoffersson exploited an error by the younger of the Hansen brothers in heat one to seize the initiative, which he retained to the chequered flag to post the fastest time of the session. Despite his comparative lack of experience in the all-electric ZEROID X1, Timo Scheider sprung a surprise in heat two as the German outpaced all of his rivals, with Timmy Hansen – who clinched the world championship crown in Cape Town in 2019 – prevailing in heat three.
Kristoffersson’s commendable consistency earned him top qualifier honours ahead of fellow heat winners Hansen and Scheider, and the Swede dominated the opening semi-final before surviving a Turn One squeeze in the final to make good his escape – assisted by a healthy dose of drama in his wake.
“It was a tricky day, but I was lucky enough not to be in the traffic too much,” the five-times world champion said later. “I imagine it was easier for me than for the others, because it was difficult to follow with such limited visibility.
“These cars are a little bit different to the ones we are used to driving and the field is really tight. The first couple of corners in the final were pretty exciting and I actually thought I was going to spin in Turn Two; the track also got quite rutted in places, so I just played it safe to avoid any punctures and bring it home. Now we’ll try to do the same again tomorrow.”
The sequence of events behind began when Ole Christian Veiby caught one of the aforementioned ruts midway through the final, pitching him sideways and enabling Timmy Hansen to pull alongside, with contact between the pair into the next corner forcing the Swede onto the grass.
With both drivers delayed, an opportunistic Scheider threaded the needle between them, but the biggest beneficiary in the end was Kevin Hansen, who had already jokered and was able to leapfrog all three to clinch the runner-up spoils.
Scheider narrowly fended off the elder Hansen for third – with Grönholm a distant fifth and Veiby retiring due to the earlier clash.
FINAL RESULT: SATURDAY
1. Johan KRISTOFFERSSON (SWE) Volkswagen Dealerteam BAUHAUS 5 laps
2. Kevin HANSEN (SWE) Hansen World RX Team + 3.925s
3. Timo SCHEIDER (DEU) ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport + 4.427s
4. Timmy HANSEN (SWE) Hansen World RX Team + 4.710s
5. Niclas GRÖNHOLM (FIN) CE Dealer Team + 6.226s
6. Ole Christian VEIBY (NOR) Volkswagen Dealerteam BAUHAUS + 1 lap
SUPPORT RACES
The local rallycrossers delivered superb action in the Support Races; after running third, fourth and second in the combined Class A & B heats, Ernest Page (BMW E36) put in stunner to take Saturday’s final by three seconds from Faizel Jacobs and Junaid Hamid, each in a Subaru Impreza, while Wayne Wilson was the top Class B finisher in his Nissan Maxima.
Charl Gill, in an old BMW E30, had a patchy day with a fifth, a win and a DNF in the Class C heats before dominating the final with a six second win over Trevor Hutchings (Volkswagen Golf 1) and local Rallycross chairman Steve Humble (Opel Astra).
The one-make E36 Cup delivered the closest final of the day, however, as Jean Meyer, Divan Wentzel, Barry Williams and Eugene finished in that order within less than three seconds after five closely fought laps.
SUNDAY
The second day didn’t start well for Scheider as rear motor failure restricted him to the fifth-fastest time in the single-lap SuperPole shootout and a puncture then dropped him out of the lead in heat one. Unbowed, he battled back to top the timesheets in both heats two and three – in so doing, vaulting to the summit of the intermediate standings and earning himself pole position for the opening semi-final.
Another flawless run saw Scheider pip Kevin Hansen to the chequered flag by little more than three tenths of a second, before he held his nerve once more in the final, executing a textbook launch and keeping his pursuers calmly at bay throughout.
“It’s pretty difficult to describe this right now,” Scheider said afterwards. “I feel quite emotional. I’ve been chasing this win for some time; it hasn’t always been easy, but we’ve kept fighting and I always try to squeeze the most out of what I have.
“The level of competition in World RX is so high and we all know how difficult it is to beat Johan, so I’m super-proud for both myself and the team – they put so much energy into this project and have kept believing in me. It’s quite overwhelming, to be honest. I want to dedicate this victory to my dad, who passed away last year. And to all of the fans here in Cape Town – thank you for being amazing!”
Scheider’s Killarney success promoted him to third in the title standings, just three points behind Kevin Hansen, who repeated his Saturday result by scooping the runner-up spoils again on Sunday.
To do so, the Hansen World RX Team ace had to fend off a charging Kristoffersson, who admitted to ‘completely sleeping’ at the start of the final, enabling his countryman to dive up the inside and into second place. Try as he might, the championship leader was never able to get back ahead, obliging him to wait a little longer in his quest to secure a sixth career crown.
Klara Andersson crossed the finish line fourth following a much-improved display compared to the previous day, just ahead of 2019 world champion Timmy Hansen, but their positions were reversed when the CE Dealer Team driver was handed a penalty for contact. Niclas Grönholm – the winner in South Africa four years ago – wound up sixth.
FINAL RESULT: SUNDAY
1. Timo SCHEIDER (DEU) ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport 5 laps
2. Kevin HANSEN (SWE) Hansen World RX Team + 1.021s
3. Johan KRISTOFFERSSON (SWE) Volkswagen Dealerteam BAUHAUS + 1.344s
4. Timmy HANSEN (SWE) Hansen World RX Team + 6.656s
5. Klara ANDERSSON (SWE) CE Dealer Team + 6.175s (One-place penalty)
6. Niclas GRÖNHOLM (FIN) CE Dealer Team + 8.532s
SUPPORT RACES
Page proved that Saturday’s result was no fluke, blasting through to a second and two wins in the combined Class A & B and taking the honours in the final by three seconds from team-mate Dexter Bruce’s similar E36 and Wayne Wilson in the family’s Class A Maxima while son Stacy was the top Class B finisher in the Class B Nissan.
Steve Humble, having lost third gear on the Harp Motorsport Astra, battled throughout the day with a DNF and two thirds in the Class C heats, then reset the limiter on the Opel’s engine so that he could rev the nuts off it in second and howled through to win the final by less than a second from Glen Phillips (who was out for the first time in a VW Golf 1 that he’d never seen before this event, let alone driven!) and Ismail Peck, in a BMW 318ti.
Humble said later that the sustained high revs had caused the Astra’s power steering belt to fly off its pulleys during the final and he finished the race with arm pump so bad that he was unable to pour a glass of cooldrink afterwards.
Jonty Ekermans in a battered but reliable Ford Escort Mk2, put in three consistent heats and a strong final to take Class B honours from Peter van Reenen’s Golf 1 and Nashrene Schloss, in only her second Rallycross outing and driving Sandro Biccari’s Harp Motorsport Kadett for the first time.
