Timmy Hansen kicked off his 2025 campaign with second place as the FIA World Rallycross Championship returned to the spotlight this weekend at the legendary Lousada circuit in Portugal (31 May – 1 June). An updated track here at Lousada marked just one of the many exciting changes that came with Round 1 of the 2025 World RX season, as Timmy converted a third-place finish in Qualifying to second in the Final. Under the stewardship of the FIA, the championship is prioritising free-to-air coverage and digital accessibility. This season also marks the return of the popular time-based qualifying format, favoured by both the fans and World RX teams alike, as well as a new tyre from Hoosier racing for the drivers to get to grips with. Hansen World RX Team’s Timmy and Kevin Hansen hit the ground running as the championship entered this exciting new era. Two Heat wins for Timmy and a Heat win for Kevin saw the pair finish third and fourth respectively in the overall Qualifying standings – on 168 points each. This put the brothers on the front row of each Semi-Final race, and they would continue to match each other’s performances, with second place each setting them up on the second row of the all-important Final. The ‘Battle of Technologies’ – introduced in 2024 – continues to deliver thrilling action, with electric and combustion cars battling against each other in every race. For the Final it was four EVs and two ICE (internal combustion engine) cars lined up on the start, and it was a predictably chaotic 6-lap race. Timmy and Kevin slotted into second and third place respectively, with Kevin taking the joker on the first lap before setting off in pursuit of the leading pack. Despite defending hard against Johan Kristoffersson, Kevin was putting in lap times quicker than Niclas Grönholm up front. Gaining on the other CE Dealer Team driver, Kevin overtook Klara Andersson to take fourth on track. The Hansen World RX Team looked set for a double-podium, but carnage on the last corner of the race denied the Swedish squad. Timmy and Kevin were side-by-side as the former exited the joker on the final lap, following some lost time for Kevin in a rut on the long banked corner. Holding the inside line, Timmy protected second place, but KMS’ OC Veiby followed the 2019 World RX Champion through the turn to steal third place. Kenneth Hansen, Team Principal of Hansen World RX Team, said: “It’s been absolutely magnificent to be back in Lousada and to see the huge number of really passionate rallycross fans at the track across the weekend. It’s been a fantastic restart for World Rallycross here in Portugal with the FIA as our new promoter and a fresh start for every team with the EOT. “As a team, we’re very pleased with our opening weekend of 2025. We had the pace to win the race, but in the end Timmy took second and Kevin unfortunately finished in fourth, which would’ve likely been a third place if not for the last corner incident. “We’re very happy, especially as our preparations for the season happened very late. We were certainly behind the others when we arrived here in Portugal for testing but our team spirit, and the fact that everyone has given their all this weekend as well, means we’ve managed to get close to the others again. We’re in the fight and in a strong position heading to the next event at our home race in Sweden.” Timmy Hansen, Hansen World RX Team driver, said: “It’s fantastic to finish second in the first race of the year. The Equivalence of Technology test that was run last week has meant that the racing is very close this season, which makes it much more exciting. “Today, Niclas had a fantastic race, finishing in P1, and he really didn’t put a foot wrong all weekend. I actually felt quicker than him in both the Semi-Final and the Final, and I was all-over his bumper in both races trying to get by him, but sadly I did not quite have enough to make it happen. “Overall, the team has done an absolutely fantastic job this weekend, our form is strong and I’m feeling very motivated heading to the next race in Höljes, where I’m hungry for more points.” Kevin Hansen, Hansen World RX Team driver, said: “The atmosphere here in Lousada has been amazing, I love racing in Portugal and the fans have been incredible. We had a fantastic launch event on Thursday night and we’ve been able to soak up the atmosphere ever since, with packed grandstands across the weekend. We’ve got a new promoter for WRX this year and the season has really started well. “On to the racing, finishing P4 here in Portugal is disappointing as we had good pace here this weekend and I had the lead for a while in the Final. Unfortunately, we got caught out by a little bit of traffic and I also made a little mistake, then I got trapped in the last corner and got bumped down to fourth, which is super frustrating when the win was so close and we had it in our hands for a while. “Overall, it’s been a really positive weekend for the team, we’ve shown that our cars are performing well and that we have the ability to fight right up at the top. I’ll have a bit of a reset now and then all my focus is on the next race out in Sweden.” For more news from the paddock and deeper insights throughout the year, tune in to the ‘Hansen Brothers Podcast’, where Kevin and Timmy will share exclusives from behind-the-scenes, discussing the action both on-track and back in the garages! World RX returns at the start of the July with a rallycross classic, as the team returns to home soil for the ‘Magic Weekend’ in Höljes, Sweden (5-6 July).