Mark Higgins joins entry list for World RX of Great Britain.

The reigning Motorsport British Rallycross Champion Mark Higgins is set to join the FIA World Rallycross Championship for the fourth round of the 2019 season at the Speedmachine Festival in the UK.

Higgins made his World RX debut with Albatec Racing last season and will also drive the team’s Peugeot 208 for his second home appearance. 

Also joining the fifteen permanent World RX drivers for his second event with Team STARD will be Finland’s Jani Paasonen.

PHOTO CREDIT: FIA World Rallycross Media

A fairytale start for Team Hansen MJP.

Team Hansen MJP's Kenneth Hansen, Kevin Hansen, Timmy Hansen, and Susann Hansen.
PHOTO CREDIT: Red Bull Content Pool.

Motorsport has its very own way of creating fairytales. Fairytales are often stories with a magical or positive outcome.

But, I hear you asking yourself: How can World RX have its own fairytale in 2019? That's simple...  

On a wintery day in Sweden on 18 October 2018, Peugeot announced their withdrawal from the World RX championship. The announcement came after uncertain around the future of the championship, but the withdrawal would mean that the Hansen brothers and family would be left with an uncertain future. 

An unfortunate end to a strong team, heading into the final race of the season. The Hansen family were inundated with questions about the future. Will we see the Hansen's in Rallycross again? The only replies from drivers and management were: "We are working on it." 

The question on many motorsport writers lips: Could the Hansen's return to World Rallycross? 

It definitely is not easy to go from a well-structured team to nothing. But, the Hansen family remained focused and worked throughout the off-season.

With no factory teams in the 2019 World Rallycross Championship, the future of the series appeared rather bleak. The big names of Mattias Ekstrom, Andreas Bakkerud, Timmy Hansen, Kevin Hansen, Sebastien Loeb, etc. all without a seat is just unheard of in motorsport. 

The FIA deadline for permanent entries looked, but no agreement had been reached yet. Time had come and gone... Did the Hansen's make the deadline? Would we see the Hansen family in World RX?

The world's media received a joyful press release on 6 March 2019, formally confirming that the Hansen family beat the deadline and have successfully entered the World RX championship.

The Hansen family partnered with Max J. Pucher to form Team Hansen MJP. Two Peugeot 208 WRX Supercars were acquired for Timmy and Kevin Hansen.

With the first round of the championship only weeks away in Abu Dhabi, preparations were well underway to get both cars ready for the season.

The 2019 FIA World Rallycross Championship season-opening weekend has arrived with some uncertainty but plenty of excitement for the fans and all involved in the championship. With the start of every new season comes some uncertainty surrounding a potential series leader for that particular year. For the first time in the history of the champion, the 2018 World RX champion Johan Kristoffersson would not defend his title. That, in turn, meant a new champion would be crowned come the checkered flag in South Africa in December.

Timmy Hansen and Andreas Bakkerud were tipped as the leading contenders heading into the season opener in Abu Dhabi. 

The World RX action received the green light on Saturday morning and the season got underway. Who would be the leading contenders? 

After the first day of competition, it became evident that competition would be fairly close, but Team Hansen MJP's Timmy Hansen was the clear favorite after claiming the overnight top qualifiers spot. Despite Timmy claiming the top spot overnight, Andreas Bakkerud slotted into second while younger brother Kevin took third overnight with two qualifying heats, semi-finals, and a final remaining. 

As the weekend progressed in the scorching Abu Dhabi heat... Q3 got underway. Timmy Hansen led Andreas Bakkerud. 

With an alternate strategy, Bakkerud opted for an early joker lap. Trying to defend the position Timmy took the joker lap on the next lap to cover off a charging Bakkerud. 

Could Timmy stay ahead of the Monster Energy RX Cartel's driver Andreas Bakkerud? It appeared very close as they sped towards the lap merge. And, the unthinkable happened Bakkerud collided into the right-hand side of Timmy Hansen's Peugeot sending him running off track. 

Despite the damage to the Peugeot 208 Supercar, Hansen crawled to the checkered flag holding off Niclas Gronholm behind. 

Timmy Hansen's Peugeot 208 WRX Supercar chassis being rebuilt
PHOTO CREDIT: Matter France. 

After an evaluation in the paddock, it was deemed that Hansen's car was irreparable due to chassis and roll cage damage and needs to be rebuilt. 

With sadness on one side of the garage, it was not doom and gloom for the Hansen family, as younger brother Kevin was still in contention for race victory. 

Lined up in the final, Kevin had an exceptional start but had to contend with Niclas Gronholm who appeared marginally faster. 

Gronholm started ramping up the pressure and got close enough to affect an overtake. Hansen later got a tap on the rear with a lap remaining and nearly spun. 

Gronholm swept to the inside to claim the lead and claimed the race victory, but after an investigation from the race stewards. Gronholm received a three-second time penalty, thus handing race victory to Kevin Hansen. 

A weekend of ups and downs for Team Hansen MJP who claimed a win in the season opener and the matter of fixing Timmy's supercar for the remainder of the season.

Could Team Hansen MJP repair the chassis and roll cage damage in time? Team boss and 14-time European Rallycross champion Kenneth Hansen was fairly positive and said it would take a week or two. 

After nine days of extensive repairs, the chassis and roll cage damage of Timmy Hansen's Peugeot 208 Supercar was repaired and the team conducted a test before sending it to the second round of the championship. 

Off they went with a rebuilt Supercar, but what could possibly happen in Barcelona? 

The question was soon answered after the first day of competition when Timmy Hansen got his groove back. The Swede claimed wins in Q1 and Q2 with younger brother Kevin in second overall on Day One. 

It was all to play for on Sunday with two qualifying rounds, semi-finals and a final to go... Have other teams found some more pace after set-up changes? Can anyone close the gap overnight? No-one could answer the questions Timmy was asking. 

He claimed wins in Q3 and Q4 claiming the overall top qualifiers spot and stamping his authority on the race weekend. If that was not all... Timmy won the Semi-final. 

Kevin Hansen did not have it that easy, he had to contend with starting on the outside for Q3 and Q4, but he progressed to the semi-finals and clinching the win. 

The two Hansen MJP drivers and brothers would start the final front row of the grid. But who would win? Championship leader Kevin or his older brother Timmy Hansen who asserted his dominance on the race weekend.

With her sons locking out the front row of the grid for the final, Team Hansen MJP team manager Susann Hansen told her sons: "Just give it your all, this is now or never. You were in the position, just give it everything!"

All attention turned to the Ready to Race lights and away they went.. Timmy from pole leads into turn one with his brother Kevin alongside. Kevin was able to keep up with his brother on the opening laps, but Timmy began to scamper away towards the latter half of the final.

The World RX of Catalunya PODIUM.
PHOTO CREDIT: FIA World RX Media.

Bakkerud then began pressure Kevin, but the young Swede stayed calm and managed to maintain his second place. With Timmy clinching his sixth World RX victory and Kevin coming across the line in second place, it was one for the record books, a Team Hansen MJP 1-2. 

"This means the world to us," said Susann Hansen in tears. "Its a true dream come true. We fought so hard for being here at all, and now having them one and two. It's just amazing!"

"It's been such a rollercoaster and now we are here first and second. It's overwhelming!"

Kenneth Hansen admitted that his teams 1-2 finish in Barcelona is even better than winning rallycross 14 titles. 

"I’ve been fortunate enough to have a lot of success in my career as a driver, winning many races and championships, but actually I think this feeling right now is even better," said Kenneth Hansen. "I can’t actually believe that it’s happened, so it’s going to take a while to sink in."

"I feel so happy and most of all so proud, both of what we have created with the Hansen MJP team but also as a dad."

"It’s hard to describe what it’s like seeing your boys finishing first and second, fighting so hard but so fairly. They think of the team first and they’re great friends," he adds. "I think Timmy had something extra this weekend, while Kevin had to fight a bit harder, but they learn from each other all the time and that’s the biggest strength of our family team."

The Team Hansen MJP fairytale continues....

TEXT - Junaid Samodien

Timmy Hansen bounces back with an historic clean sweep.

PHOTO CREDIT: Red Bull Content Pool.

Team Hansen MJP's Timmy Hansen bounced back from a disappointing Abu Dhabi to deliver a dominant and unbeatable performance in Barcelona, to become one of three drivers in the history books to claim a clean sweep.

After a devastating first round in Abu Dhabi for Timmy, which required a complete rebuild [chassis and rollcage] of his Peugeot 208 WRX Supercar after a collision with Andreas Bakkerud, he proved to be the driver beat from the start of Q1 in Barcelona. 

Hansen won every single qualifying session, the semi-final and the final. The Swede's win in Spain is only his sixth World RX career victory.

“I think this has been the best weekend of my career so far. We got off to the best possible start on Saturday, winning the qualifying heats, and then we won the semi-final too," said Timmy Hansen. 


Timmy lined up alongside his brother in the final, but produced a faultless drive in the final and claimed victory. Younger brother Kevin claimed second place in the final making it a 1-2 for Team Hansen MJP. 

''For the final I lined up against Kevin, and we played a good team game as we agreed that we would give each other plenty of room," he said. "The final was perfect as well, and when I saw in my mirror that Kevin was behind me to finish second, that was a really special moment as well."

"I was actually feeling very emotional: this was the perfect revenge after everything that happened in Abu Dhabi," he adds. "Now I’m just going to enjoy the moment and head to Spa with even more confidence."

TEXT - Junaid Samodien

Kevin Hansen extends championship lead in Spanish sunshine.

PHOTO CREDIT: Red Bull Content Pool.

FIA World RX of Abu Dhabi race winner Kevin Hansen extends his Championship lead in Barcelona.

The young Swede left Barcelona with an eight point lead in the championship over Niclas Gronholm (second overall), and an 18 point advantage over his brother Timmy Hansen (in third overall). 

Kevin ended the first day of racing in second overall. Sunday morning was a different story for the young Swede who started alongside his brother in Q3, but finished the session only fifth fastest. In the fourth qualifying heat, Hansen started on the outside and needed to muscle his way through the field. He ended the session in fourth place. 

“We had a really good Q1 and Q2; then I had to get my elbows out a bit more in Q3 and Q4, but I really enjoyed it," said Hansen. 

If there is any consolation for Kevin, he claimed the fastest lap of the weekend - 42.670s.

"I got the fastest lap of the weekend too, which made me really happy, as the ultimate pace compared to Timmy is perhaps the area where I’ve been lacking before, but now we’re getting there," he said. 

In the final Kevin started alongside his brother. He managed to hang onto his brother in certain parts of the circuit, but Timmy started edging away. Hansen then opted to take his joker while running second on the fifth lap. 

On the final lap, Andreas Bakkerud took his joker lap, handing Kevin the opportunity to close in and claim second in the closing stages. 

Kevin went on to claim second place behind his brother Timmy Hansen, in a Team Hansen MJP 1-2. 

"Timmy did an amazing job this weekend; he really deserved to win," he said. "I wouldn’t say that he was completely uncatchable as there were times that I was close to him, but we drive each other on, which is perfect as it’s all about the team."

"Now I’ve extended my championship lead but this is not something that I’ve been thinking about much: we’re only on round two out of 10 so there’s a really long way to go.”

TEXT - Junaid Samodien

Marklund suffers mechanical issues in Barcelona

PHOTO CREDIT: GC Kompetition

GC Kompetition's Anton Marklund suffered from mechanical issues at the second round of the 2019 FIA World Rallycross Championship.
In the first qualifying heat, Marklund's car suffered from a blackout and he was forced to miss the start. The race was red-flagged after Herve Knapick rolled his car, but due to the strict regulations, Marklund was not allowed to restart and he was given a DNS.

Marklund lined up alongside Chris Hoy and Oliver Bennett in the second qualifier and claimed the heat win, but he damaged his front dampers over the jump on lap 2. Despite the race win, his final time was only good enough to place him in 18th overall.

Anton’s final qualifier on Sunday saw him jump the start resulting in him having to joker twice. He got off to a good start and claimed third place into turn 3.

The two joker lap penalty did not help Marklund's charge and he missed out on a semi-final spot finishing 14th overall.

“It’s been a tough weekend with mechanical issues on Saturday, but we decided to push ahead and make a lot of changes overnight to test something new, especially to the dampers," he said.

"The Bilstein guys were super busy and the hard work paid off, so that we had a fast car on Sunday with a p3 in Q3 and the 3rd fastest lap time in Q4. Unfortunately, we didn’t quite manage to make up for lost time but Sunday’s pace was really promising, so I’m looking forward to following this up to push ahead in Spa, Belgium.”

TEXT - Junaid Samodien

Guerlain Chicherit: "It's been a weekend of ups and downs"

PHOTO CREDIT: GC Kompetition.

The second round of the 2019 FIA World Rallycross Championship got off to a positive start for GC Kompetition’s Guerlain Chicherit claiming second place in the first qualifying heat, but the positive start was short lived when he suffered from a loss of power in the second qualifier. 

The Frenchman suffered from engine issues in Abu Dhabi, which his team were unable to solve ahead of the Barcelona race weekend and he required an engine change. 

“It’s been a weekend of ups and downs for us - some really good race pace and solid starts but unfortunately also technical issues that have cropped up again following Abu Dhabi that we didn’t manage to fix fully in the time in between races," said Chicherit 

Chicherit qualified for semi-final 1 alongside his junior team drivers Guillaume de Ridder and Cyril Raymond.

After a slow start in the semi-final, he ended up 6th at turn 1. He took the joker lap on lap 1 to allow himself clear air to push ahead to catch with the rest of the field. He was unable to overtake to fight for a place in the final, Chicherit ran wide on the last straight to block Timerzyanov enabling his GCK Academy driver Cyril Raymond to claim 3rd for a place in the final.

"Overall, we’ve had a good first European race of the season though and the incredibly hard work of the entire team is really coming together now," he said.

Despite a messy weekend in Barcelona, Guerlain Chicherit is confident that his teams [GC Kompetition and GCK Academy] can achieve better results in the coming races. 

"We’ve certainly shown a lot more confidence on the track in pushing for positions and having 3 cars in the semi-finals and our very first final for our young team GCK Academy is an incredible result and I’m really proud of both Guillaume and Cyril who’ve developed hugely since sitting in the GCK Clio R.S. RX for the first time."

"We’ll be busy now to get all four cars ready for Spa, Belgium, for even better results.”

TEXT - Junaid Samodien

Cyril Raymond clinches strong result in only second World RX outing.

PHOTO CREDIT: GC Kompetition.

GCK Academy’s Cyril Raymond clinches best World RX result after only his second outing in the Supercar field.

Raymond lined up for his first World RX final on the third row of the grid alongside Janis Baumanis and behind Timmy Hansen, Kevin Hansen, Nicolas Gronholm and Andreas Bakkerud. 

Starting from the outside, Cyril ran wide into the first corner dropping to 6th. The Frenchman took the joker lap on the first lap behind Gronholm and showed strong pace. He eventually overtook Baumanis on the last lap to claim 5th place.

After the strong showing in Barcelona, Raymond slots into 5th in the drivers' championship standings.

“We had a near perfect weekend - 5th in the World Championship is huge for me, it’s a great result!" said Raymond. "To be among the top 5 World RX drivers is crazy."

Raymond praises the team for the Barcelona result. "Without the work of the team behind me, I could never have realized that we believed until the end, we always believed. Engineers and mechanics have done a lot of work on the Clio R.S. RX, I’m really happy for the team who really deserve this after the long months of hard work," he said.

"They are always there, they are full of support and it is great for the entire team, a big victory for our 2nd ever race."

Despite the strong result in Barcelona, the Frenchmen keeps his feet firmly planted on the ground.

"We need to stay concentrated, it’s a long championship but it’s only the second round in my first ever World Rallycross season and we have already achieved a top 5 spot so I’m very happy," he concludes.

TEXT - Junaid Samodien

GRX Taneco leaves Barcelona without the desired result.

PHOTO CREDIT: Gronholm RX Taneco

GRX Taneco heads home after an unsuccessful weekend in Barcelona at round two of the FIA World Rallycross Championship. 

Niclas Grönholm finished fourth in the Final, while Timur Timerzyanov could not progress further than the Semifinal.

The Finnish team showed very strong speed in Abu Dhabi, while glimpses of the speed was shown on Saturday with Timur Timerzynov finishing the day in third place overall. 

Timerzyanov is disappointed after having a strong opening day in Barcelona. “Finishing the race in fourth place of the Semifinal is not what I was hoping for, especially after promising Qualifying runs of Saturday," he said.

"I was up to speed for the first few laps of the Semifinal, but started to lose speed and maybe we didn’t play our tactics right at that moment."

Despite the setbacks at the second round of the championship, Timerzyanov remains confident that they will return to form. The Russian is sixth in the standings after the second round of the championship.

"The championship season is still in its early stages and I am sure we will come back for more exciting fights,” said Timerzyanov.

After struggling with technical issues on Day 1, Niclas showed good speed during the Qualifying heats on Sunday and set the second fastest lap time twice in a row. 

“I must say this was a mixed weekend for me," he said. "Despite some issues with the car, I managed to be close to the Top by the Semifinals and got through to the Final."

In the final Grönholm got stuck behind Janis Baumanis and could not capitalize on the speed he showed in the qualifying heats. 

"Sadly, there I had to follow a fellow competitor, who was slower than me, for several laps and I lost out on a possible Podium spot. It is what it is now and we have to look forward, but not forget what happened today," said Grönholm.

GRX Taneco Team Principal Marcus Grönholm remains upbeat about his teams' performance in Barcelona, despite not clinching a podium finish.  

“In a way I think the season has started well – we have shown that both our drivers can be really fast and fight for the maximum points, but this time it didn’t work out for us as we hoped it would," said Marcus Grönholm.

"We have to sort out some problems that we had with the cars and I am confident about the future.”

TEXT - Junaid Samodien

Sir Chris Hoy claims points on World RX debut.

PHOTO CREDIT: Xite Racing.

Former Olympic champion Sir Chris Hoy claimed two points on his FIA World Rallycross Championship debut in Spain.


Since his retirement from competitive cycling in 2013, Hoy took up a number of motorsport challenges – most notably the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2016 in the LMP2 class. He has also competed in European Le Mans and the British GT Championship.

The Scotsman enjoyed his first taste of World RX. “I’ve had the best experience of my motorsport career so far,” he said. "Its been absolutely awesome. I can't overstate how much fun I have had to be behind the wheel of one of these amazing vehicles. To be part of it. To race. To line up on this grid here. The adrenaline yesterday and today was just incredible."

"So, its like a dream come true for me and I definitely want to come back and try again," he adds.

Hoy came into his maiden World RX race weekend with no true experience only a test session with the Xite Racing team at the Pembrey Circuit ahead of his debut in World RX. 

With no true experience in the World RX Championship, Hoy did not know what to expect in his maiden World RX race weekend. "I did not know what to expect. I certainly did not expect to get championship points. I just did not want to make an idiot of myself and get in other peoples way," said Hoy.

"At the start, I was thinking that I would be getting lapped and keeping other people up. So, it was nice to feel that I was battling towards the end. By race four, I felt like I was able to push on a little bit."  

On Saturday morning in the third qualifying session, Sir Chris Hoy came within metres of claiming the heat win, but Jani Passonen shut the door and the two made contact. Hoy rolled to a stop but quickly restarted and raced to the checkered flag finishing second.

"If I was a little bit quicker, I would have got through that gap and I might have won the third race, but that is what Rallycross is all about," Hoy said. "A bit of contact and a bit of bumping."

"I've learnt so much. Its funny last night going to bed, going to sleep your brain sort of processes all the information and then you wake up in the morning, and I felt that I hit the ground running today. And, I felt that I was on a different level to yesterday. Got some races under my belt and a bit of testing and got a little bit closer to some of the fast boys." 

TEXT - Junaid Samodien

REPORT: Timmy Hansen enters the record books with dominant win in Spain

PHOTO CREDIT: Red Bull Content Pool. 

Team Hansen MJP driver Timmy Hansen claimed his first win of the 2019 FIA World Rallycross Championship in a dominant fashion.

Hansen rebounded from an event-ending qualifying crash in Abu Dhabi to claim a clean sweep of wins.

The Swede joins Bakkerud and Kristoffersson to become one of three drivers to claim a clean sweep of wins in World RX. 

Team Hansen MJP spent nine days repairing Timmy's damaged Peugeot 208 Supercar following a hefty impact in Abu Dhabi damaging the chassis and roll cage. 

“We had to work incredibly hard and put all our resources into re-building my car from Abu Dhabi. The mechanics worked day and night and got the car here in good condition,” he said.

Hansen admits after a disappointing weekend in Abu Dhabi, he just wanted a clean weekend. 

“Honestly, I just wanted a good, clean weekend but I started with a win in Q1 and Q2 and won all four qualifying races. I think it’s only the fourth time that’s been done and only the third time anybody has the perfect weekend so I’m really happy to be in the history books," says Hansen.

“I really worked hard on my starts this weekend. You have to be super focussed to get a good launch with a rallycross car but we did it all the way through. And I’m really looking forward to building on this result.”

Younger brother Kevin finished second in the final after holding off a late charge from Andreas Bakkerud. The Norwegian started on the second row of the grid alongside Janis Baumanis. Bakkerud had a perfect start and jumped to the inside of the Hansen brothers trying to capitalize on the exit of turn one. 

He was unable to overtake the Hansen brothers and opted for a last-lap joker lap but still emerged behind Kevin at the run to the flag.

Kevin Hansen’s second place in Spain means the Swede maintains his overall championship points lead.

“I am really pleased with this result," said Kevin Hansen. 

"To get second place is very satisfying. I tried my best against Timmy but he was just too fast in the final."

“I don’t think about the championship too much. It’s nice to be leading and to know that I’ve been competitive so far. I am really enjoying the car and the whole feeling at the moment and I hope to keep this momentum going and keep a smile on my face,” he adds.

Bakkerud revealed that his Audi S1 Supercar had €60,000 damage after the qualifying collision in Abu Dhabi. 

Despite claiming a podium finish in Barcelona, the Norwegian said that his Supercar is not completed fixed yet.

“It’s been hard to play catch-up," he said. "We are still struggling from the crash in Abu Dhabi. We are still working on the car step-by-step but we are getting there."

“Three times in a row I have been on the podium in Barcelona so obviously I Iike it here."

Gronholm finished fourth in the final after getting stuck behind Janis Baumanis. The Finn maintains his second place in the championship on 48 points, eight points behind Kevin and 10 ahead of Timmy.

Cyril Raymond impressed in his GCK Academy Renault Clio Supercar and claimed fifth place in his first World RX final.

The GC Kompetition team had an improved performance from Abu Dhabi despite recurring engine issues for Guerlain Chicherit. The team was forced to change his engine. But despite the engine set back, the Frenchman claimed a place in the semi-finals alongside Cyril Raymond and Guillaume De Ridder.

Liam Doran had a mixed weekend but made it to the semi-final as did Timur Timerzyanov.

EKS Sport driver Krisztian Szabo had a last-corner spin in the second semi-final. The Hungarian claimed his first World RX heat win and claimed 10 points in the championship. While Timo Scheider had a strong start to the weekend but then ran into some difficulties. The German had a troublesome semi-final and claimed fifth place ahead of Szabo.

World RX debutant Sir Chris Hoy enjoyed his first taste of World RX and picked up two championships points.

Hoy’s Xite Racing teammate Oliver Bennett had a troublesome weekend with issues in nearly ever qualifying heat. ESmotorsport - Labas GAS's rookie Rokas Baciuska also did not have the cleanest of weekends in Spain.

Independent entry Tamas Karai was disqualified from the fourth qualifying heat after causing a collision at turn one. While Herve Knapick rolled his Citroen DS3 Supercar in the first qualifying heat and could go no further.

FULL RESULTS BELOW:

OFFICIAL RESULT provided by the FIA World Rallycross Championship.

TEXT - Junaid Samodien