A TRIP TO HELL FOR PEUGEOT 208 WRX DRIVERS SÉBASTIEN LOEB AND TIMMY HANSEN
After notching up back-to-back podium finishes at Mettet and Lydden Hill, the PEUGEOT 208 WRX drivers head for Norway for Round 5 of the 2016 FIA World Rallycross Championship on June 11-12.
Team Peugeot Hansen currently holds second place in the Teams’ standings and is determined to close the gap to the provisional leader in order to defend its 2015 crown. Sébastien Loeb will be out to ward off the probable fierce competition to claim another top-three finish, while Timmy Hansen hopes to keep the momentum going after his recent strong performance at Lydden Hill. The 2015 championship’s runner-up has leapt from 12th to seventh place in the Drivers’ classification and he has every intention of moving further up the order!
Meanwhile, the Peugeot Hansen Academy will have two PEUGEOT 208 WRXs at Hell, one for Davy Jeanney (#17) and another for Kevin Hansen (#71) who will take part in the European Championship event. The latter won the opening WorldRX heat at Mettet, Belgium, recently and he tops the provisional ERX standings going into the competition’s second round.
Now showing on our website is the latest film in our web series, WorldRX Inside. After the first 10 films that were posted last season, a number of new episodes will bring you an even deeper insight into the sport, as well as into Team Peugeot Hansen’s secrets. https://youtu.be/lK_wEKxZSu4
QUOTES
Kenneth Hansen (Team Principal)
“We have excellent memories of our trip to Hell last year because we came first and second there. It was our first one-two finish at world level. It’s good to be going back. We know the track well and we’ve got a specific set-up for it. The context is naturally different this year because the competition promises to be even fiercer but I think we’ve got some strong cards to play.”
Sébastien Loeb (N°9 PEUGEOT 208 WRX)
“My approach to Hell will be the same as it has been all year so far. My aim is to do well, even though the circuit is completely new to me. It appears to be different to those I have seen so far and it sits in a nice, picturesque setting. It seems quite hilly, with some tight turns and places that call for hard acceleration. It’s a technically demanding course which clearly suited the Peugeot 208 WRX last year, so I hope we will be competitive again this time round.”
Timmy Hansen (N°21 PEUGEOT 208 WRX)
“This circuit is in the middle of the Norwegian mountains, so it is quite hilly, with a big altitude difference between its highest and lowest points. As the weekend progresses, the dirt tends to get swept aside and patches of asphalt start to appear in places. It’s quite a tight and twisty track, with some hairpins where you have to brake late. You need an agile car which turns easily. It’s a fairly tricky place and it isn’t easy to overtake. In these Supercars, you really need to give it everything you’ve got. I can’t wait to get there.”
TIMETABLE
Friday, June 106:00pm: free practice
Saturday, June 119:00am: free practiceFrom 11:00am: qualifying heat 1 From 2:30pm: qualifying heat 2
Sunday, June 129:00am: warm-upFrom 10:30am: qualifying heat 3 From 12:15pm: qualifying heat 4 From 3:00pm: semi-finals and final
HELL, NORWAY
Length: 1.019kmAsphalt/dirt: 63%/37 %Lap record: 34.067s (Hedström)
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS AFTER 4 ROUNDS
2016 FIA World Rallycross Championship – Drivers
Mattias Ekström (EKS, Audi S1), 105 ptsPetter Solberg (Peter Solberg World RX Team, Citroën DS3), 100 ptsJohan Kristoffersson (Volkswagen RX Sweden, Volkswagen Polo), 70 ptsSebastien Loeb (Team Peugeot Hansen, PEUGEOT 208 WRX), 63 ptsToomas Heikkinen (EKS, Audi S1), 60 ptsAndreas Bakkerud (Hoonigan Racing Division, Ford Focus RS), 51 pointsTimmy Hansen (Team Peugeot Hansen, PEUGEOT 208 WRX), 46 ptsKevin Eriksson (Olsberg MSE, Ford Fiesta ST), 43 ptsRobin Larsson (Robin Larsson, Audi A1), 40 ptsJanis Baumanis (World RX Team Austria, Ford Fiesta), 35 ptsDavy Jeanney (Peugeot-Hansen Academy, PEUGEOT 208 WRX), 28 pts2016 FIA World Rallycross Championship - Teams
EKS, 165 ptsTeam Peugeot Hansen, 109 ptsVolkswagen RX Sweden, 102 pts
TV COVERAGE
TV coverage in more than 120 countries http://www.fiaworldrallycross.com/article/tvlisting. the semi-finals and final will be broadcast live from 2:00pm on June 12 in France on L’Equipe 21 and in Sweden on SVT.
BOUT RALLYCROSS
Rallycross events use mixed-surface dirt/asphalt circuits of about one kilometre in length and can feature one or more jumps. The drivers are knocked out as the weekend progresses and only the six fastest and bravest of them get to contest the final.
