World RX #7/12 – Canada, 4/5.08.2018
Team PEUGEOT Total scored 2nd and 3rd at the Canadian round of the FIA World Rallycross Championship (#7/12) with Timmy Hansen and Sebastien Loeb respectively. It’s a positive result that provides a useful boost of both driver and team points, especially considering that this is just the 2nd competitive outing for the latest PEUGEOT 208 WRX Evo, which only made its debut in Sweden last month. This result is also a fair reward to the entire PEUGEOT Sport team, which has been working hard to become competitive in a short period of time. The team’s junior Kevin Hansen, driving an earlier 2018-specification car, was less lucky, stopped in his tracks by a technical issue in the semi-final, after confirming his growing pace throughout the weekend up to that point.
QUOTE/UNQUOTE
Bruno Famin, PEUGEOT SPORT Director
“This weekend we showed again that the speed is there in the Evo car, but we have to keep on working on all the details that we need to convert this speed into victory. Of course it’s a good to have a double podium, but what we’re really always looking for is the win! Thanks to some excellent teamwork, we’ve made a good step since Holjes in Sweden, where the 208 WRX Evo made its debut last month. Now the work continues, with the goal of improving so that we can try to win at home in Loheac next month, which is our next target.”
Sebastien Loeb, PEUGEOT 208 WRX Evo #9
“For me it was an up and down weekend, as is often the case in rallycross. We had a perfect day on Saturday but today wasn’t as good: this morning I had a contact with Mattias Ekstrom and then in the semi-final I made a mistake, which was my fault, and that meant that I was starting the final on the 3rd row – which is never easy. Still, to start on the 3rd row and then end up on the podium is not bad, so in the end I am happy about this team result and to share the podium with Timmy. We’ve carried out plenty of evolutions on this car since driving it for the first time in Sweden and the progress is clear to see: we’re fighting against the top factory cars now and we’ve made up some positions in the championships. So it’s been a very nice battle all weekend and I’m happy to be on the podium at the end of it.”
Timmy Hansen, PEUGEOT 208 WRX Evo #21
“This was only the 2n d time that we were driving this car after introducing it in Sweden and I have to say I was much more comfortable with it here this weekend; we did some good work at the test in Riga, so I felt a lot more confident. We had a good weekend generally but during the final I didn’t make a perfect start. Despite that, we still managed to end up 2n d out of the 1st corner. After that I didn’t want to take any big risks, because it’s been a while since we’ve been on the podium. I really didn’t want to have a puncture or anything, so through Turn 5 in particular I was really safe every lap! We got through the race well and I don’t think Johan, who won, managed to pull out too big a gap in front of us so we can see that this new car is starting to get faster. We’ve still got a lot of work to do and it’s only going to move forwards from here.”
Kevin Hansen, PEUGEOT 208 WRX #71
“I had a really good start in the semi-final, I was almost first down to Turn 1, but then I tried to get through on the outside and I got stuck there: it’s not easy! So I was bumped down and then I jokered and came back into the middle of another big fight, where I was starting to make some progress. Unfortunately, on the next lap my car began to slow down with an engine problem and then I had to stop, so it was game over. The main thing is that in the end we have 2 cars on the podium, which makes me very happy: I think we have a team spirit like nobody else. From my point of view I’m very happy with my driving: I’m growing in confidence all the time and my feeling with the car is great.”
RESULTS OF FINAL RACE IN TROIS-RIVIERES
- Johan KRISTOFFERSON – 05:00.190
- Timmy HANSEN – 05:00.886
- Sebastien LOEB – 05:02.337
- Mattias EKSTRÖM – 05:03.556
- Petter SOLBERG – 05:04.228
- Janis BAUMANIS – 05:10.140
DRIVERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS AFTER ROUND #7/12
- Johan KRISTOFFERSSON / Volkswagen Polo R – 195 pts
- Sébastien LOEB / PEUGEOT 208 WRX – 140 pts
- Timmy HANSEN / PEUGEOT 208 WRX – 140 pts
- Andreas BAKKERUD / Audi S1 – 139 pts
- Petter SOLBERG / Volkswagen Polo R – 139 pts
- Mattias EKSTRÖM / Audi S1 – 134 pts
- Kevin HANSEN / PEUGEOT 208 WRX – 88 pts
- Niclas GRÖNHOLM / Hyundai i20 – 86 pts
- Janis BAUMANIS / Ford Fiesta – 64 pts
- Timur TIMERZYANOV / Hyundai i20 – 55 pts
- Jérome GROSSET-JANIN / Renault Mégane RS – 47 pts
- Robin LARSSON / Ford Fiesta – 37 pts
- Guerlain CHICHERIT / Renault Mégane RS – 36 pts
- Kevin ERIKSSON / Ford Fiesta – 20 pts
- Tommy RUSTAD / Volkswagen Polo – 13 pts
TEAMS’ CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS AFTER ROUND #7/12
- PSRX Volkswagen Sweden – 334 pts
- Team PEUGEOT Total – 280 pts
- EKS Audi Sport – 273 pts
- GRX Taneco – 141pts
- GC Kompetition – 83 pts
- Olsbergs MSE – 57 pts
NEXT ROUND – Loheac, France
The next round of the World Rallycross Championship is an extremely important one: PEUGEOT Sport’s home event at Loheac in Brittany from September 1 -2, after a well- deserved summer break for the whole team. Loheac is a fast and flowing circuit made up of 66% gravel and 33% asphalt, measuring 1.088 kilometres in total. The lap record belongs to Sebastien Loeb, so Team PEUGEOT Total will be looking for a strong result on home territory for the 208 WRX – and the local fans are sure to be out in force.
