The 2018 FIA European Rallycross Championship for Supercars is already looking at another competitive year as Reinis Nitiss secured the first win of the season in Spain where he took the victory in dominant fashion.
The former FIA World Rallycross Championship race winner went fastest in three of the four Qualifying sessions over the weekend and taking victory in the first Semi-Final race saw him secure pole position for the Final. 2017 Champion Anton Marklund joined Nitiss on the front row of the Final.
Nitiss took the Set Promotion run Ford Fiesta to its first Euro RX win of the year. Credit: Set Promotion
Ulrik Linnemann made his first Euro RX Supercar Final in his Volkswagen Polo with G-FORS driver Jean-Baptiste Dubourg lining up alongside him.
The back row of the grid was completed by Philip Gehrman in the Eklund Motorsport Volkswagen Beetle and Peter Hedstrom in his Volkswagen Polo.
Having survived the murky conditions of Saturday, Marklund came home second in the Euro RX Supercar Final. Credit: Tony Welam/McKlein
The start of the race saw Nitiss jump into the lead whilst Marklund had a poor start that dropped him down the field. The first turn has been a deciding factor in all of the races that have taken place this weekend and this Final was no different.
Linnemann and Hedstrom made contact coming out of the left hand hairpin and Hedstrom fell to the back. Marklund was making up for his poor start and Nitiss was leading Linnemann whilst both Gehrman and Dubourg decided to take an early joker on the first lap.
Dubourg took his first podium finish for the G-FORS team in Spain. Credit: Steve White / Fueltopia
Linnemann went for his joker on the second lap, however as he came out of the exit Dubourg had already passed him due to his earlier joker. Linnemann almost lost the Polo in a spin as he tried and failed to overtake the French Driver.
Nitiss stayed in front to take the win after a last lap joker, with Marklund and Dubourg completing the podium places for the first Final of the season.
Philip Gehrman closed in on Linnemann for fourth place towards the end of the Supercar Final. Credit: Steve White / Fueltopia
Linnemann fell into the clutches of Gehrman with the two drivers engaged in a thrilling fight for fourth place that would go down to the wire and would be settled in Linnemann’s favour whilst Hedstrom crawled home to take sixth place.
The next round of the 2018 FIA European Rallycross Championship for Supercars takes place at Mettet in Belgium on May 12-13.
