Rallycross – 3 Rivieres – Canada – 6th August 2017
Team Peugeot Hansen consolidated its second place in the 2017 World Rallycross Championship standings at Round 8 in Trois Rivières, Canada, where Sébastien Loeb claimed his third top-three finish in a row.
- A polished performance saw Sébastien Loeb steer his PEUGEOT208 WRX 2017 to third place in Canada. Despite making unavoidable contact with AndreasBakkerud’s stricken car in Q2, he succeededin qualifying on row three for Sunday afternoon’s final and went on to secure TeamPeugeot Hansen’s sixth podium result of the season.
- It turned out to be a more complex weekend for Timmy Hansen who was haltedby a transmission problem in Q2. He bounced back into the Top 12, though, thanks to an assertive run in Q4 which earned him a footing in the final phase.The Swede continued on his momentum totake second place in his semi-final before a strong performance in the finalsaw him appear in the lead. Unfortunately, his run was then stopped by anengine problem which prevented him from taking the flag. Sixth place sufficed, however, to climb to fifth in the provisional Drivers’ standings.
- Kevin Hansen was on form again in his 2016-spec PEUGEOT 208 WRX. He qualified once more for the semi-finals, finishing just shy of a slot in the final.
Quote, unquote…
Kenneth Hansen (Team Principal):
“Saturday proved a little laborious for us due to a number of technicalproblems, while Sébastien was unable to avoid hitting Bakkerud’s car which wasstationery in the middle of the track during Q2. Happily, the tables turned onSunday and our three cars all reached the final phase. Perhaps we could have optedfor a different strategy for Sébastien in his semi-final but at least he and Timmymade it through to the final. Unfortunately, Timmy suffered an engine problembut Sébastien clinched another podium finish, so there was every reason to bepleased with the outcome.”
Sébastien Loeb (PEUGEOT 208 WRX #9), 3rd
“It wasn’t an easy weekend for me. We were down on luck in Q1 and Q2, butthe third and fourth qualifying sessions went better. I think second placemight have been possible in my semi-final, but no matter because the final wentwell for me. I honestly don’t think I could have hoped for any better thanthird after starting from row three.”
Timmy Hansen (PEUGEOT 208 WRX #21), 6th
“It’s so frustrating. I was leading the final when an engine problemprevented me from reaching the finish. It was a huge shame. I really feel weclosed the gap to Volkswagen a little this weekend. We also made some very goodstarts and we had good top speed down the straight, so that is allencouraging.”
Kevin Hansen (PEUGEOT 208 WRX #71)
“I’m really pleased to have qualified for the semi-finals again. That wasmy objective, even though my 2016-specification car is clearly less competitivethan most of the 2017 cars. My semi-final went well. I pushed as hard as Icould and was running fourth when I thought I might gain a place because Timmy andBaumanis were locked in a battle just ahead of me. Fourth in my semi-final wasn’t a bad result, though, after the speed I managed toshow in qualifying.”
FINALPOSITIONS – TROIS RIVIERES (August 6, 2017)
- Johan Kristoffersson (Volkswagen Polo GTI)
- Petter Solberg (Volkswagen Polo GTI)
3.Sébastien Loeb (PEUGEOT 208 WRX)
- Kevin Eriksson (Ford Fiesta)
- Toomas Heikkinen (Audi S1
- TimmyHansen (PEUGEOT 208 WRX)
PROVISIONAL STANDINGS AFTER EIGHTROUNDS
Drivers’ standings
- Johan Kristoffersson(Volkswagen Polo GTI), 211 points
- Petter Solberg(Volkswagen Polo GTI), 176 points
- Mattias Ekström (Audi S1), 158points
- Sébastien Loeb (PEUGEOT 208 WRX), 144 points
- Timmy Hansen (PEUGEOT 208 WRX), 135 points
- Andreas Bakkerud (Ford Focus RS), 128 points
- Ken Block (Ford Focus), 89 points
- Kevin Eriksson (Ford Fiesta), 83 points
- Toomas Heikkinen (Audi S1), 78 points
- Timo Scheider (Ford Fiesta), 74 points
Teams’standings
- Volkswagen PSRX, 387 points
- TeamPeugeot Hansen, 279 points
- EKS Audi, 236 points
- Hoonigan Racing Division, 217 points
- MJP Racing Team Austria, 168points
- STARD, 124 points
