Since the start of the 2016 championship, the two Peugeot 208 WRX drivers have clocked up eight podium finishes between them. Their recent performances in Spain suggest they are likely to play front-running roles again in Latvia where their aim will be to take that score to nine podiums, or even claim the team’s second outright victory of the year.
With three rounds of the 2016 FIA WRX remaining, Team Peugeot Hansen is still in the hunt for the Teams’ title. It is only 20 points short of the championship’s provisional leader, so it has no intention of leaving anything to chance in Latvia.
Meanwhile, Peugeot Hansen Academy will be in Latvia with PEUGEOT 208 WRXs for Davy Jeanney and Kevin Hansen. The latter sewed up the European title* in Barcelona and will be looking to maintain his 100 percent winning record this season!
A new episode of our WorldRX Inside web series is now on-line. Click here to watch Davy Jeanney explain the importance of a good technique over jumps https://youtu.be/NGjkCYRhDEA
QUOTE
Kenneth Hansen (Team Principal)
“Latvia is a new destination for the championship and I’m pretty sure we will get a very warm welcome there. Our team is already familiar with the circuit because we were invited to test there relatively recently. Surprisingly, not many of the other teams took up that opportunity. It looks like our set-up for Barcelona will suit Riga, so that’s good news because our drivers were pleased with their cars in Spain.”
Sébastien Loeb (PEUGEOT 208 WRX #9, Team Peugeot Hansen)
“There is much about all the rounds of this year’s World Rallycross Championship that has been new to me, and that will be the case again in Riga. Perhaps even more so. To be honest, until this year I would probably have been pushed to pinpoint Latvia on a map. However, as my involvement in cross-country rallying this season proves, I am always ready for new adventures and I am delighted to be able to discover another new country! Hopefully I will be able to celebrate with a good result in my PEUGEOT 208 WRX.”
Timmy Hansen (PEUGEOT 208 WRX #21, Team Peugeot Hansen)
“I got to visit beautiful Riga when we came here testing during the summer. The track is situated in one of the city’s parks and it’s all very green to either side. It’s a superb location! The rallycross track is based on a circuit that has existed for some time. Its profile is quite flowing and you can get into a nice rhythm. The track is lined by walls, there are three jumps and there appears to be good grip. I can’t wait to get started, especially given the speed the PEUGEOT 208 WRX showed in Barcelona recently.”
TIMETABLE (local times)
Friday 30th September
16:00: draw
Saturday 1st October
09:00: Free Practice
12:00: qualification 1
14:30: qualification 2
Sunday 2nd October
08:30: warm up
09:30: qualification 3
11:45: qualification 4
15:00: Semi-finales & Finale
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS AFTER 9 ROUNDS
FIA World Rallycross Championship - Drivers
1. Mattias Ekström (EKS, Audi S1), 204 pts
2. Petter Solberg (Peter Solberg World RX Team, Citroën DS3), 194 pts
3. Johan Kristoffersson (Volkswagen RX Sweden, Volkswagen Polo), 182 pts
4. Andreas Bakkerud (Hoonigan Racing Division, Ford Focus RS), 173 points
5. Sebastien Loeb (Team Peugeot Hansen, PEUGEOT 208 WRX), 154 pts
6. Timmy Hansen (Team Peugeot Hansen, PEUGEOT 208 WRX), 143 pts
7. Toomas Heikkinen (EKS, Audi S1), 113 pts
8. Robin Larsson (Robin Larsson, Audi A1), 84 pts
9. Timur Timerzyanov (World RX Team Austria, Ford Fiesta), 83 pts
10. Janis Baumanis (World RX Team Austria, Ford Fiesta), 74 pts
11. Davy Jeanney (Peugeot-Hansen Academy, PEUGEOT 208 WRX), 67 pts
FIA World Rallycross Championship - Teams
1. EKS, 317 pts
2. Team Peugeot Hansen, 297 pts
3. Volkswagen RX Sweden, 245 pts
TV COVERAGE
Broadcast in 120 countries à http://www.fiaworldrallycross.com/article/tvlisting. The semi-finals and final will be broadcast live in France on L’Equipe 21 and in Sweden on SVT.