Volkswagen RX Sweden is gearing up for its assault on the 2016 FIA World Rallycross Championship, with the series getting underway at Montalegre in Portugal next week.
The outfit is a joint effort between 2015 World RX teams Marklund Motorsport and Volkswagen Team Sweden. Their 2016 driver lineup of Johan Kristoffersson and Anton Marklund will pilot brand new Volkswagen Polo RX Supercars for the new season. The team has been testing recently at the Lousada circuit in Portugal ahead of the first round of this years World RX series.
Kristoffersson secured victory in Portugal last season and finished third overall in the championship and is looking forward to getting his 2016 season underway:
“My goal for this season is to arrive at the final round in Argentina fighting for the title,” he said. “I’m sure everyone has been working hard over the winter, but I feel absolutely more prepared for this season than last year. All the drivers go to the races with one goal, to win, and I am no different. The feeling in the team is really good, there’s a nice atmosphere and I’m looking forward to working with all the guys.”
Anton Marklund will drive a VW for the first time since 2014 and is looking forward to gaining consistent results in 2016:
“We are finishing our preparations by testing in Lousada in Portugal, which is great. We just need to fine-tune the last things before the first race. It will be important to have a trouble free race and set good pace straight away, so I have a solid start to the year. Compared to many of my rivals I have a lot less experience so I will continue to learn as much as possible this season, but that doesn’t mean I won’t be fighting for victory any less,” said Marklund.
“The aim is to make good results through the whole season that will also help the team in the fight for the World Championship title. I haven’t entered any race in my career with a mindset of being outside the finals, and my mindset remains strongly on winning races this season. Hopefully by teaming up with Volkswagen like I did in 2014 I can bring some trophies home to northern Sweden this year!”
Volkswagen RX Sweden Team Principal Michael Schneider is pleased with the developments made to the new Volkswagen Polo RX Supercar and is looking forward to seeing how the car compares to the opposition in Portugal:
“The first race is always something special for me as it will give an indication of the pecking order, and show the results of the hard work during the winter. We have new competitors this year and I’m sure all of the teams have worked hard to improve their performance. I’m really looking forward to it,” Schneider explained. “Rallycross is growing; we are competing against some of the best drivers from rallying and circuit racing in the world. The competition was very hard last season, but 2016 will be even harder! I would like to thank all of the guys in the team, our partners and suppliers for their efforts this winter.”
