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Tuesday, 4 February 2020

Abbring joins GCK for 2020 FIA European Rallycross campaign.

PHOTO CREDIT: FIA WorldRX Media.
Kevin Abbring will return to supercars competition in the 2020 European Rallycross season with GC Kompetition, driving a Clio R.S. RX. 

The 31-year-old's motorsport career started off in rallycross in the Dutch Ford RST series, where he went on to win the 2005 and 2006 championships before moving to the Dutch Rally Championship in 2007. He impressed with class wins in both the WRC and IRC and made his top line WRC debut with Hyundai in 2015, scoring points and winning stages at the highest level of rallying.

After a decade in rallying, Abbring returned to rallycross making his World RX debut in Hell, Norway, with ES Motorsport where his debut appearance in dreadful conditions was nothing short of exceptional. He claimed a fourth-place finish in Norway and repeated that feat at the Swedish track in Höljes

The Dutchman will compete in his first full-time RX championship, and he is keen to get his first taste of the car.

"I’m very pleased to work with GCK, and engineering company FORS, from 2020 onwards! GCK is not only the team with arguably the biggest potential, it’s also a team with extremely experienced and motivated people, with whom I worked closely in the past," said Abbring. 

"The team has invested a lot in the car and our main focus now is to bring those pieces together and find the optimum balance. I can’t wait to get our test programme going and get a first taste of the car."

GCK has always been a team to push for sustainable motorsport developments and that is something that Kevin is equally passionate about.

"Guerlain and GCK have been leaders in the drive to find sustainable and environmentally friendly solutions in rallycross, as well as other motorsports. For me, it is a great opportunity to work on a sustainable future with a team that has a strong focus on future motorsport developments," he adds. 

"It also offers me the opportunity to fight for a championship again and that’s my key focus! I have a lot of respect for Guerlain and the team and I am proud to be part of GCK."

Guerlain Chicherit, the team owner of GC Kompetition, is excited that Kevin Abbring will join his team for the 2020 European RX championship. "I’m super stoked to have Kevin represent GCK in European Rallycross," he said. "Kevin has enormous talent and is super committed to the sport. I look forward to working closely with him and supporting him through our pre-season testing and the season to push for the Championship title."

GCK has also made several changes and developments behind the scenes over the off-season, including the appointment of Paul Bourion as General Manager. Bourion has more than 25 years’ experience in the motorsport industry.

Meanwhile, FORS have also reinforced their support to GCK through the recruitment of a new engineer, Sébastien Lessoneur who worked as Technical Director for Hyundai Motorsport, EKS Audi and ES Motorsport more recently on their rallycross programme. 

Following today's announcement, it remains unclear if the GCK Academy will remain in the World Rallycross Championship or move to the European Rallycross Championship.

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