METTET, BELGIUM: Round 4 of the 2017 World RX Championship took the HRD duo of Ken Block and Andreas Bakkerud to Mettet, Belgium, where the drivers both had a handful of wins off the starting line during their respective Qualifying Races, as well as demonstrating improved pace overall throughout the weekend. To really drive home the off-the-line prowess, Bakkerud even snagged the Monster Energy Supercharge award, which is awarded to the driver with the fastest reaction off of the starting line in the Final.
While neither driver made the podium (Block was taken out during his Semi Final race due to a mechanical issue that broke his steering, Bakkerud was put into a tire barrier during the Final and also suffered a mechanical after that) both came away in much better shape pace-wise than their previous two races, finishing Qualifying in 4th (Andreas) and 6th (Block) overall.
“This was a tough weekend for us,” said Block. “We came into this track knowing it was a challenging circuit for our car setups and despite that, both Andreas [Bakkerud] and I managed some good results. I’m definitely disappointed that I lost my steering in the Semi Final, as I was on pace and in position to make it into the Final.”
Block continued, “I’m also disappointed for Andreas, he had a great start in the Final but got taken out after some high-speed contact going into a turn which put him onto a trajectory directly into a tire barrier with a heavy side impact. Definitely not the weekend we were looking for! But, we showed quick pace and we’ll be back and ready to for the next round.”
The next round of World RX for HRD is Round 5 of the World RX championship, in Lydden Hill, United Kingdom, May 27th and 28th.
