HÖLJES, SWEDEN: Hoonigan Racing Division’s Andreas Bakkerud took 2nd overall this past weekend at World RX Sweden, making it his third event in a row with a podium (having finished 2nd in Norway and 3rd in the UK), bringing his total podium finish tally to four for the season. The 2nd overall this weekend also marked the fifth year in a row that Bakkeurd has made the podium during the Sweden round, an impressive statistic given the depth of talent in the racing field.
The track in Sweden happens to be the favorite of the entire race calendar for both HRD drivers, and Bakkerud and Block proved that, putting down fast times both in practice as well as during their Qualifying Races. During Q2 on Saturday, Block held the record for the fastest race lap of the circuit - unfortunately he only held that record for roughly 10 minutes as a driver in the next race of that Qualifier beat him by a few tenths - proving that he and his Focus RS RX possessed the speed, although unfortunately not the luck, required to make it to the podium.
Both HRD drivers did well in their respective Qualifying Races, with both advancing into the Semi Finals (Bakkerud sitting 4th overall and Block sitting 9th overall). In the Semis, Block narrowly missed advancing to the Final with a 4th overall finish in Semi Final 1. Bakkeurd put down an absolutely blistering Semi Final 2, winning it and advancing to the front row of the starting grid in the Final in P2.
For the Final, Bakkerud was in 2nd overall the entirety of the race, deftly fighting off attacks from the rest of the field throughout all six laps.
“I’m really, really happy to be back on the podium here in Sweden again,” said Bakkerud. “To do so five times here is a major accomplishment, and I’m glad we were able to do it, especially since so many of my Bakkerud Blue fans made the trip to this race! A big thank you to the entire team for their effort this weekend, I’m glad we were able to bring home another trophy for the third round in a row. Hopefully we can keep this momentum going in Canada next month!”
With the 2nd overall finish, Bakkerud moves up in the overall Driver Championship points standings, sitting 5th overall just 1 point behind Sebastien Loeb with 5 events to go.
The next round of the 2017 FIA World Rallycross Championship takes place in Canada, August 5th and 6th.