Nine JC Raceteknik drivers set for RallyX Nordic round one at Holjes
JC Raceteknik will field no fewer than nine drivers in the opening round of RallyX Nordic at Holjes in Sweden this weekend (May 6).
Having won both the Supercar and Supercar Lites RallyX Nordic titles last season, JC Raceteknik heads into the 2018 season among the title-favourites and fields a line-up featuring reigning champions, experienced racers and rising stars.
In the headline Supercar category, 2017 RallyX Nordic Champion Thomas Bryntesson will race the team’s Ford Fiesta Supercar with the aim of challenging for a second crown, partnered by fellow Norwegian Ola Froshaug. The pair got their seasons underway at the FIA European Rallycross Championship season opener in Barcelona, Spain last month.
In the single-make Supercar Lites category, JC Raceteknik will field cars for reigning champion William Nilsson and fellow Swede Marcus Hoglund, committing to his first full Supercar Lites campaign. Swedish cousins Jimmie Walfridson and Jonathan Walfridsson raced in RallyX on Ice with the team over the winter and return for the summer season, while RX2 International Series race-winner Sondre Evjen and fellow Norweigan Ben-Philip Gundersen, who won the FIA European Rallycross Championship for TouringCar in 2016, will race this weekend at Holjes before beginning their RX2 challenge in Belgium a week later.
Swede Iask Reiersein will compete in the single-make RX Academy category for Renault Clio RS RX cars, having raced in RX Academy On Ice in the winter months and taken part in the RX Academy pre-season training camp in Finland recently.
RallyX Nordic will be held over six rounds in 2018, with events in Sweden, Norway, Finland and Denmark. Find more information here.
Joel Christoffersson, Team Principal:
"It's exciting that the season is underway and we are all really ready for the first round of RallyX Nordic at Holjes. We had a good summer season last year in RallyX Nordic with two titles and a third overall. This year we continue to aim high and we will start with nine talented drivers in Supercar, Supercar Lites and RX Academy. "
Thomas Bryntesson (NOR), Supercar:
"It will be fun to drive in Holjes again this weekend. I'm keen to get back on Swedish soil and hope that everything works better in Holjes than it did during the first round of the European Championship in Barcelona. We will test in Strangnas during the week and hope to be prepared when RallyX Nordic starts this weekend. I'm really going to give everything to defend the championship title."
Ola Froshaug (NOR), Supercar:
"I'm going to Holjes with a good feeling. I had a good event there in the European Championship last season and was fourth. I also had a good race in Barcelona two weeks ago. The car is working well so I'm really looking forward to driving in Holjes again. As usual, the goal is get to the semi-finals, then hopefully the final.”
Marcus Hoglund (SWE), Supercar Lites:
"I've been driving in rallycross for several years, including some competitions in Supercar Lites, but now I've come to a stage where it's time to commit. I think the biggest challenge will be to succeed at the top and always perform, not to get nervous or lose focus. Competition will be really tough as more and more drivers sign up and improve all the time. I will not take a place in the final for granted, too many driver are targeting the title for that. But, I'll definitely fight for it too and I'm really looking forward to the first round in Höljes.”
William Nilsson (SWE), Supercar Lites :
"I'm really excited to start the new season, it will be really fun to compete again. The goal is to win RallyX Nordic and the Swedish Championship again. In the RX2 International Series I aim to win events to keep me at the top of the championship table. Last year, I was able to prove that I am the best in RallyX Nordic. So, the aim is to win events, but you cannot forget that competition will probably be even harder this year. Everyone is improving, and I have to do that too.”
Jimmie Walfridson (SWE), Supercar Lites:
"I'm looking forward to the season and it's going to be very special to drive a rallycross car at Holjes. The goal for the first round is to take as much experience as I can from there. It would be good to drive in the semi-finals, but of course I always want to get the best results”.
Jonathan Walfridsson (SWE), Supercar Lites:
"I'm pumped for a new season and it would be fun to be up to the top and fight at the front. This will be my fourth year in rallycross and the goal is to be in the top four. During the first round in Holjes I aim to be in the top three in the semi-finals, qualify for the final and hopefully then finish the podium in front of my home crowd.”
Sondre Evjen (NOR), Supercar Lites:
"I’m really looking forward to the season and to driving again. The level continues to rise, so my goal is to get to the podium in every competition and fight for championship in both the RX2 International Series and RallyX Nordic. The team looks strong this year, so I think all drivers will join in and fight the victories. It'll be fun."
Ben-Philip Gundersen (NOR), Supercar Lites:
"We have an exciting season ahead of us and I think 2018 will be very interesting. I drove in the whole RallyX on Ice this year, but this will be my first summer season in Supercar Lites. There are many very good drivers entered, so it will be a hard fight. The goal for me is to drive in as many finals as possible, and to get on the podium at least once.”
Isak Reiersen (SWE), RX Academy:
"Attending the RX Academy again feels really good. If I look back at the winter, I really notice how much I've learned and developed both on and off the track, so to be able to drive again will be useful for the future. My goal is to gather more experience and develop in order to make good results. Of course, that’s easy to say before the start. I know when I get onto the start line together with the other drivers, I always want to make as good a result as possible. I would like to thank JC Raceteknik for helping me with everything, it’s amazing.”
