For the first time in the 2018 FIA World Rallycross Championship, Johan Kristoffersson missed out on the podium in a World RX Supercar Final.
The 2017 FIA World Rallycross Champion kept himself in the hunt during Qualifying before going on to win Semi-Final One to put him on pole position in the Final. But things didn’t go according to plan.
During what was one of the best races so far this season, Kristoffersson lost out during the race to come home in fifth place.
Johan Kristoffersson leads the Drivers Championship as World RX arrives at Silverstone. Credit: PSRX Volkswagen Sweden
He was beaten over the line by Mattias Ekstrom, who had completed his Joker on the final lap to deny Kristoffersson fourth place.
“It’s very important to keep scoring points towards the championship. The last race in Belgium, where I was fifth, that hurt a little bit. It was a bit of a crazy race in the final, with a lot of action in every direction. But that was then. This is now,” explained the PSRX Volkswagen Sweden driver.
But you can’t keep a good man down. Kristoffersson was the form driver last year. With this in mind, he heads to the 2018 World RX of Great Britain with a more cautious approach.
Johan Kristoffersson has had wins in Spain and Portugal this year. Credit: IMG / FIA World RX
Keeping in mind that the event has moved to Silverstone this year, the PSRX Volkswagen Sweden driver is already prepared for the challenge of a new circuit to learn.
“Every corner is fought over so hard – we saw that in Belgium last time. Hopefully Silverstone will be a little bit more open with some more room to overtake and make some different moves,” said Kristoffersson.
“The track is quite different in nature to the rest of the places we go to, there’s more gravel than we’re used to – more than half of the lap is on the dirt. So, if we get some dry weather, the dust could be a bit of a problem.”
Points win prizes in World RX and Kristoffersson needs a high score in each round to stay in front. Credit: IMG / FIA World RX
If there is one thing to learn about the FIA World Rallycross Championship, it is that points can make all of the difference by the time the final round of the season approaches.
With this important fact, Kristoffersson knows that he must keep scoring and scoring well in each round to maintain his lead.
“We have seen just how close the racing is this year. The priority for us has to be to take the points. We have to drive smarter than ever this season.”
