Hansen World RX Team takes on its first ‘Battle of Technologies’ in Höljes
The Hansen World RX Team leaves the ‘Magic Weekend’ double-header in Höljes, Sweden, having narrowly missed out on a podium appearance, as the 2024 FIA World Rallycross Championship kicked off in dramatic fashion.
The newly introduced ‘Battle of Technologies’ did not disappoint, as electric and ICE cars battled against each other and the ever-changing elements in an action-packed start to the season. Other changes included the new Hoosier Racing Tires and a revised format, with the drivers now competing for position rather than time and championship points to be gained in every race.
With a career-best finish of second in last year’s championship standings, Kevin Hansen showed no signs of slowing down as he progressed into both Finals alongside team-mate and brother Timmy Hansen, who after a difficult 2023 campaign is looking for the performances that secured him the World Rallycross title in 2019. This time around the podium eluded both Hansen drivers, who finish the first event of 2024 with a fourth and sixth-place finish each across the weekend.
Saturday
The multiple World Championship-winning Hansen outfit entered the opening double-header of the campaign in its trusted all-electric Peugeot 208 RX1e cars, but the Ferratum World RX of Sweden 1 was full of high and lows for the Hansen World RX Team.
Both Heats saw Kevin in the gravel at Turn 1, putting him to the back of the grid for his Semi-Final race, where a strong launch allowed him to overtake Niclas Grönholm as the pair entered the joker on the first lap. Kevin went on to cross the line in third, marking a strong comeback to enter the Final alongside Timmy, who had finished in second.
The Hansen squad entered Saturday’s main event with momentum on their side, but Timmy and Kevin were unable to hunt down the pack following an early joker, and finished P4 and P6, respectively.
Sunday
A tricky day on Saturday was followed by tricky conditions on Sunday, as the rain started and unfamiliar Hoosier wet tyres were fitted to the cars.
Despite the adverse conditions at the Höljes circuit, Kevin hit the ground running with a win in his first Heat race, storming into the lead from pole position and building a comfortable advantage throughout his stint. Third place for Timmy in the other Heat 1 race put the Hansen brothers in a promising position heading into Heat 2, but the pair struggled in their respective races, finishing fourth and fifth.
Conditions worsened as the drivers took to the start-line for Semi-Final 1, and having jumped into third place from the back of the grid Timmy went sliding off-track along with two of his competitors. Crucially, he was able to rejoin the fray, where he retained third place and a spot in the Final. The rain continued to pour as the other Semi-Final race began, and a good start from Kevin saw him hunting down Grönholm from P2, where he would finish and progress into the Final.
In the Final, an early joker put Kevin in fifth place behind Timmy, as the pair pushed hard to close the gap to the front three. Following his own joker lap, Timmy found himself in P6 behind OC Veiby, as Kevin gained on Gustav Bergström. The pair battled for third, until a late charge from Veiby saw him leapfrog them both in the closing stages to take the final step on the podium, with Kevin getting ahead of Bergström for fourth place.
World RX returns with a double-header at the ‘Red Cauldron’ in Nyirád, Hungary, later this month (27-28 July).
Kenneth Hansen, Team Principal at Hansen World RX Team, said: “We have done our first event of the season and we had one very day day of racing and one with very wet conditions. We have succeeded in that we managed to get both cars into both Finals, but we are certainly not happy with the weekend without getting on the podium. We need to figure out more about the new tyres and about how to get more out of the car.”
Kevin Hansen, Hansen World RX Team driver, said: “It was a frustrating weekend for us. We were looking really good for a podium but just struggled a bit with the car in the wet. We weren’t able to hold it through the whole race. I made a small mistake in the Final which I think lost me third place today, but we try to bounce back from that. We didn’t expect this to be our strongest track, we need some longer straights for the electric cars to show their power and torque. I’m really looking forward to Hungary. It’s a great track, like the Monaco of rallycross with quick and narrow sections, and I can’t wait for us to bring the ‘Battle of Technologies’ there.
Timmy Hansen, Hansen World RX Team driver, said: “That’s the first weekend of the season done and I think the ‘Battle of Technologies’ turned out to be super exciting. There were definitely strengths on both sides and the races were close. We didn’t really have the performance this weekend, but I think still we got the maximum points that we could have. A lot of work to be done, especially around getting to know the new tyres, and around how to get more performance out of our package.”
The newly introduced ‘Battle of Technologies’ did not disappoint, as electric and ICE cars battled against each other and the ever-changing elements in an action-packed start to the season. Other changes included the new Hoosier Racing Tires and a revised format, with the drivers now competing for position rather than time and championship points to be gained in every race.
With a career-best finish of second in last year’s championship standings, Kevin Hansen showed no signs of slowing down as he progressed into both Finals alongside team-mate and brother Timmy Hansen, who after a difficult 2023 campaign is looking for the performances that secured him the World Rallycross title in 2019. This time around the podium eluded both Hansen drivers, who finish the first event of 2024 with a fourth and sixth-place finish each across the weekend.
Saturday
The multiple World Championship-winning Hansen outfit entered the opening double-header of the campaign in its trusted all-electric Peugeot 208 RX1e cars, but the Ferratum World RX of Sweden 1 was full of high and lows for the Hansen World RX Team.
Both Heats saw Kevin in the gravel at Turn 1, putting him to the back of the grid for his Semi-Final race, where a strong launch allowed him to overtake Niclas Grönholm as the pair entered the joker on the first lap. Kevin went on to cross the line in third, marking a strong comeback to enter the Final alongside Timmy, who had finished in second.
The Hansen squad entered Saturday’s main event with momentum on their side, but Timmy and Kevin were unable to hunt down the pack following an early joker, and finished P4 and P6, respectively.
Sunday
A tricky day on Saturday was followed by tricky conditions on Sunday, as the rain started and unfamiliar Hoosier wet tyres were fitted to the cars.
Despite the adverse conditions at the Höljes circuit, Kevin hit the ground running with a win in his first Heat race, storming into the lead from pole position and building a comfortable advantage throughout his stint. Third place for Timmy in the other Heat 1 race put the Hansen brothers in a promising position heading into Heat 2, but the pair struggled in their respective races, finishing fourth and fifth.
Conditions worsened as the drivers took to the start-line for Semi-Final 1, and having jumped into third place from the back of the grid Timmy went sliding off-track along with two of his competitors. Crucially, he was able to rejoin the fray, where he retained third place and a spot in the Final. The rain continued to pour as the other Semi-Final race began, and a good start from Kevin saw him hunting down Grönholm from P2, where he would finish and progress into the Final.
In the Final, an early joker put Kevin in fifth place behind Timmy, as the pair pushed hard to close the gap to the front three. Following his own joker lap, Timmy found himself in P6 behind OC Veiby, as Kevin gained on Gustav Bergström. The pair battled for third, until a late charge from Veiby saw him leapfrog them both in the closing stages to take the final step on the podium, with Kevin getting ahead of Bergström for fourth place.
World RX returns with a double-header at the ‘Red Cauldron’ in Nyirád, Hungary, later this month (27-28 July).
Kenneth Hansen, Team Principal at Hansen World RX Team, said: “We have done our first event of the season and we had one very day day of racing and one with very wet conditions. We have succeeded in that we managed to get both cars into both Finals, but we are certainly not happy with the weekend without getting on the podium. We need to figure out more about the new tyres and about how to get more out of the car.”
Kevin Hansen, Hansen World RX Team driver, said: “It was a frustrating weekend for us. We were looking really good for a podium but just struggled a bit with the car in the wet. We weren’t able to hold it through the whole race. I made a small mistake in the Final which I think lost me third place today, but we try to bounce back from that. We didn’t expect this to be our strongest track, we need some longer straights for the electric cars to show their power and torque. I’m really looking forward to Hungary. It’s a great track, like the Monaco of rallycross with quick and narrow sections, and I can’t wait for us to bring the ‘Battle of Technologies’ there.
Timmy Hansen, Hansen World RX Team driver, said: “That’s the first weekend of the season done and I think the ‘Battle of Technologies’ turned out to be super exciting. There were definitely strengths on both sides and the races were close. We didn’t really have the performance this weekend, but I think still we got the maximum points that we could have. A lot of work to be done, especially around getting to know the new tyres, and around how to get more performance out of our package.”
in World RX
