Mattias Ekstrom has many titles to his name during his long career in Motorsport, however he can now add the following title to that list, 2016 FIA World Rallycross Champion!
The Swedish driver came into the World RX of Germany with a 27 point lead and needed to have a 30 point lead by the end of the event to secure the title and he made sure that he did exactly that. After being 3rd fastest in Q1 , Ekstrom guided his EKSRX Audi S1 Quattro to the fastest time in Q2 to be Top Qualifier on day one.
On Sunday, he ended up in second place after Qualifying finished which gave him pole position for Semi-Final Two. After winning this race, the former DTM Champion lined up on the front row for the Supercar Final where he finished in fifth place which was enough to secure the title ahead of rival Petter Solberg and Johan Kristoffersson.
Ekstrom was elated with winning his first FIA World Championship title, “I’m completely overwhelmed, it’s really hard to find words. This is for sure the best day in my entire racing career,” said the Swede.
“We started this project from scratch three years ago and there were a lot of ups and downs. But my amazing team, our friends and partners always stayed closely together with me. From the very first day, we were focusing on our big aim: to become World champions! It’s so good to know that all of the hard work pays off now. And it’s even greater to know that I have the best guys in the world around me.”
Whilst the drivers title has been sealed, there is still the task of completing the double and securing the 2016 FIA World Rallycross Teams Championship. With the EKSRX squad holding a 17 point lead over their nearest rivals Team Peugeot-Hansen, there are 56 points on offer. The final round of this years series in Argentina, which takes place at the Rosario circuit on 26 – 27 November where both Ekstrom and Topi Heikkinen will do all they can to help the squad win this title.
