KYB EKS JC’s Johan Kristoffersson wins 2021 World Rallycross Championship title

At the conclusion of the nine-round FIA World Rallycross Championship, the top two drivers were tied on 217 points each in the Drivers’ standings. But on a count-back of the number of wins, it was KYB EKS JC’s Johan Kristoffersson who claimed the FIA World title for a fourth time.
 
Kristoffersson entered the final double-header of the season at the Nurburgring in Germany 17 points behind the leader and won round eight on Saturday with a maximum 30 points score to close the lead to four points.
 
The Swede took two fastest times in qualifying in round nine on Sunday by the end of the semi-finals, Kristoffersson had narrowed the gap to just one point, meaning that whoever finished ahead, out of Kristoffersson or Timmy Hansen in the final, would take the title.
 
In the all-important final, Kristoffersson finished on the podium in third to secure the 2021 title, adding to his previous three World RX crowns.
 
Team-mate Enzo Ide also had an outstanding weekend. On Sunday the Belgian claimed his first ever World RX fastest time. He qualified for the semi-finals on the front row and finished second to move into the final. But, in the final he stopped after the first corner and was classified sixth. On Saturday, Ide has also made the final and didn’t finish, but was later disqualified for a start-line incident. The Belgian ends the season sixth in the Drivers’ standings and together with Kristoffersson, is third in the World RX Teams’ Championship for KYB EKS JC.
 
Full World RX results can be found here.
 
Joel Christoffersson, KYB EKS JC Team Principal:
"It feels fantastic to have been part of Johan winning his fourth World title. Not least after all of the hard work the whole team has done all season. Even though it has felt hopeless sometimes, we never gave up the fight and now we stand here with a World Championship. It’s totally unreal, and so good that the whole team has achieved this.
 
We came here 17 points off the lead with the aim of doing our best. We know that Johan is a fantastic driver, his attitude for the weekend, coping with the pressure, has been outstanding. Enzo has also impressed me a lot, and if it had not been for him, we might not have been here with another championship gold. Rallycross is all about team-work. Just look at Enzo's win in Q2 today, and his performance in the semi-finals. As I always say, Enzo's development curve has gone straight up and it was nice to finish his season like this.
 
Finally, I would like to thank all of our partners and Mattias [Ekström] who are so involved in making this possible. Of course many thanks to the whole KYB EKS JC team who fought day and night, without giving up, this season. You all deserve this title!”
 
Johan Kristoffersson (SWE):
“A fourth championship gold! This feels absolutely incredible. What an achievement by everyone in the team, they have worked really hard this year and constantly continued to believe that we really had the chance to take the title and didn’t give up! We managed to have a perfect weekend here in Germany and it was enough to win the championship.
 
After such a tough start to the season, it feels fantastic that we were able to finally turn everything around and come back to win. The season started in the worst possible way with being disqualified in Q1 at the first round, but France was our lowest point this year when we broke the car in the semi-finals. At that stage we were a long way off the lead, but still managed to fight back and win the title on the same points as Timmy [Hansen]. When you see this result, you realise that every single point in the season can make a difference.
 
I’m so incredibly grateful to everyone who made it possible for me to be in this position, together with EKS JC this year. There are many people behind this – thanks to them all!”
 
Enzo Ide (BEL):
“My performance was there this weekend, and even if we had some small problems, the team was able to solve them. Setting the fastest time in Q2 today feels brilliant, and is something I will take with me. I went into the semi-finals and final with the goal of supporting Johan. I actually had to ask Johan after the semi if he was pushing or just cruising, but he said he was pushing, which feels great that I could keep on his tail the whole race. 
 
Congratulations to Johan, I'm so happy for him. He really deserves this title. Johan, and the team's engineers, are a big part of my development this year. Johan is not only a fantastic driver, but also knows exactly how the cars and setups work. I started more-or-less from scratch at the beginning of the season and now I'm here. I’m very grateful for all the help I received, both from Johan and the team."