 |
| PHOTO CREDIT: Red Bull Content Pool |
Talented, determined, and fast… Klara
Andersson has made history this year with the CE Dealer Team, as she
became the first ever permanent female driver in the FIA World
Rallycross Championship.
At
the age of seven, Andersson began karting, spending the next six
years racing in Sweden, Norway and Italy, during this time multiple
regional championships were won, but it wasn’t until 2018 that she
switched focus to rallycross.
She then became a member of the Swedish Junior National Team of
Motorsport, a programme established to support the most talented
national drivers.
In
2019, Klara made a wildcard appearance at the 2019 RallyX Nordic
season finale, and finished runner-up in the Junior Rallycross
Championship before taking the step up too the senior category in a
car built by her father and herself (a rear-wheel-drive BMW 120) where she beat a
50-strong entry list to the title.
 |
Andersson posing with trophies alongside her BMW 120,
PHOTO CREDIT: Klara Andersson (Instagram) |
A
year later, Andersson tested STARD’s Projekt E car before joining the FIA
RX2e championship, where she impressed on debut, claiming a fourth
place finish at Spa-Francorchamps.
Having
proven her talent and skill, she was invited to the Extreme E rookie test, and was later signed by Xite Energy Racing to
compete alongside Oliver Bennett in the 2022 season opener, but after
returning a positive COVID-19 test, she
was unable to compete.
Whilst
that door closed, another opened. The 22-year-old was signed to the
Construction Equipment (CE) Dealer Team to partner Niclas Grönholm,
who has 64 starts and seven career victories too he’s name.
Klara impressed with a strong debut at the World RX of Norway (round one), finishing
fourth in the final.
With five rounds now under her belt, she made
history last time out in Portugal, as the first female driver ever to
reach the podium in top flight international rallycross having
claimed a third place finish.
Arriving in Chile, as the championship driver for Extreme E, Andersson had no guarantee that she would compete, but after Jutta Kleinschmidt was hospitalized following a rough landing during Free Practice 2 ahead of the Copper XPrix, she was drafted into the ABT Cupra team for the weekend.
It was a steep learning curve, but Klara impressed yet again, and in the semi-final pulled off a brilliant overtake on championship regular Sara Price (Chip Ganassi Racing's) to help claim the team's first spot in the final (this season).
The final was a rough affair, but holding her own, she kept focused and error free crossing the finish line in fifth, but due to penalties for those ahead, the team were promoted to third.
We caught up with the history-maker….
"I’m
the third generation in my family to do motorsport, so it was quite
natural for me to be put in a go kart when I was 7 years old, and I
immediately fell in love with the feeling of speed,"
she said. "My family has always
been my biggest supporters, and without them I wouldn’t be where I
am today in my career."
According to Andersson, her biggest success was claiming the SM (Senior) 2150 – Swedish
Rallycross Championship in 2021.
"Winning
the Swedish Rallycross Championship was big for me," she
says. "The level of Rallycross
in Sweden is really high, and to win with my BMW that my dad and I
built and have been working on for the last 3 years was amazing."
Having
had a successful career too date. If she did not follow the path to
motorsport. Where would she have gone? Or what career path would she
have followed?
"Motorsport
has always been a huge part of my life, so I would want to be
involved somehow. But I actually played ice hockey for 10 years
growing up before I chose to focus on motorsport when I was 13. So I
would probably still be playing if I didn’t make that decision,"
she tells us.
History
was made earlier this year, as the CE Dealer Team
signed Klara as one of there two drivers in the all-new electric era of
the FIA World Rallycross Championship. What does it mean too be the first permanent female driver in World RX?
"I’m
proud to have achieved my childhood dream, to be competing in the FIA
World Rallycross Championship. Of course it’s honourable to be the
first permanent female driver, but to be honest I see myself as a
driver competing against other drivers, and don’t see myself as
something different. I’ve always competed against men and been
respected by them as much as any other driver," she
said.
 |
Klara Andersson leading team-mate Niclas Grönholm at the World RX of Portugal.
PHOTO CREDIT: Red Bull Content Pool. |
After
all, at just 22 years old, she achieved a major goal on the track,
and hopes to inspire younger women to do the same.
"I
do however hope that more young girls get involved with motorsport,"
Andersson says. "It’s
one of few sports in the world where men and women can compete on
equal terms, which means you compete against the very best drivers,
no matter their gender. That’s one thing I love about motorsport,
and I’m so thankful that my parents gave me the opportunity to try
it."
Early
last month, the first-ever electric FIA World Rallycross Championship
round was held in Hell, Norway, and Klara was very impressive on
debut. So, how would she assess her debut, and what areas does she
feel there is room for improvement?
"I’m
proud of my and the team’s performance in Norway! It was an
emotional weekend for me to do my first race at the highest level of
rallycross. We knew it was going to be challenging, but to make the
final and perform lap times similar to the top drivers was big for
me. This is only the beginning and I’m super excited to continue
working with the team and develop as a driver,"
she said.
"For
me I’m focusing on feeling confident in the car and learning as
much about it as possible. Taking it step by step and being
consistent. I’ve never driven a supercar before, so to get used to
the speed is challenging but so much fun!"
 |
Klara Andersson celebrating with the ABT Cupra Extreme E team after a third place finish at the Copper XPrix.
PHOTO CREDIT: ABT Motorsport |
Having
driven a combination of cars through the years from go-karts,
ICE rallycross cars, and electric rallycross cars. How do they
compare? And, are they harder to drive?
"I
can only compare to my rear-wheel drive BMW 120, which is completely
different to my 4wd PWR RX1e! The difference in power and
acceleration is huge. For me the biggest difference with electric
rallycross cars is the instant torque, but also how the car is built
with the motors and how they are placed," she
explains. "It’s challenging
for both us drivers but also the team, because it’s so new! There
is so much to learn, which I’m really excited about."
Andersson competed successfully in a number of different
categories/championships in her career thus, but where does she see herself in 5 years?
"My
dream and goal has always been to race in the FIA World Rallycross
Championship. I also think Extreme E is a great championship, and I’d
love to race there in the future," she replied. "In the next 5
years, I’d want to keep driving in the FIA World RX, gathering more
experience, exploring different cars and championships, and living my
dream!"
You
can follow Klara’s adventure in the FIA World Rallycross
Championship at the fifth and sixth round of the championship next
month (October) at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, or follow her on klara_rx (Instagram).
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.png)
