Niclas Gronholm is fast becoming an emerging talent in the 2018 FIA World Rallycross Championship as he made the Supercar Final for the second time this year at the 2018 World RX of Great Britain.
After staying in the top six of the two Qualifying sessions on Saturday and when Qualifying finished on Sunday, the GRX Taneco driver ended up seventh place overall with Kevin Hansen the only works driver behind him.
Gronholm made his second Supercar Final of the World RX season so far. Credit: Set Promotion
Gronholm explained that Saturday didn’t go according to plan despite finishing in sixth place.
“We started out well in Q1 but a mistake in the last bend put me off completely. Q2 didn’t go well. I can’t claim to be satisfied with the result because our goal is to do better each time,” said the Hyundai driver.
“I just can’t keep up with our rivals’ peak speed. We still have a lot of work to do.”
Groholm held his own against the bigger work teams at Silverstone last weekend. Credit: IMG / FIA World RX
When it came to the Semi-Finals, the former Finnish Rallycross Champion was looking at ending his weekend missing out on a place in the Final, however bad luck struck Timmy Hansen and gifted Gronholm a chance for the Final.
“I was lucky, Timmy Hansen buckled his wheel so I grabbed third place and made it into the final.”
The Supercar Final at Silverstone joined the trend of events this year where they have all been exciting races. This was no different as Sébastien Loeb came from the back thanks to a bad start.
The GRX Taneco Hyundai i20 Supercars have been a big surprise during the 2018 World RX Season. Credit: Set Promotion
However Gronholm saw a chance for a podium in front of him and he gave it his all as the GRX Taneco driver aimed high but ultimately missed out. He took the positives from a good weekend though.
“I gave it my all. I was closing in on Sébastien Loeb but it just wasn’t enough this time. I made a few mistakes in the last lap so missed out on a podium place,” said Gronholm.
“But it was a really good weekend for us and making it to the final for the second time shows how far we have come. That said, I know we still have a lot of work to do with the car.”
