| For the second event in a row, and despite much less ice racing experience than any of his rivals, Jamaican star Fraser McConnell saw off all-comers in the Battle Brackets section of the event in Calgary. In the penultimate weekend for the first-ever season of the Group E Nitro RX category, McConnell claimed the Top Qualifier position, his third of the season, in front of a packed sell-out crowd.
However, with higher than expected temperatures and the ice surface suffering, Nitro RX organisers changed the format for the final day of the event, with further Battle Brackets leading to a pair of finals. In the ‘Super Five’ final for five of the FC1-X machines, McConnell qualified on pole position and led from the front to secure victory. However, due to the format changes, no championship points were awarded for the Calgary weekend.
| Racing the Monster Energy RX Cartel DRR JC FC1-X machines, Nitro RX Championship leader Robin Larsson and fellow former European Rallycross Champion Andreas Bakkerud were, as ever, right in the mix throughout the weekend, and like stablemate McConnell, qualified for the Super Five final on Sunday afternoon.
Starting from the front row of the grid, Larsson took his joker lap at the first opportunity, followed by Bakkerud, but with the ice melting in the long extra-route, the studs were torn from the pair’s tyres, and the grip lost meant they struggled to climb back to the top three positions. But, with no points awarded for the weekend, the pair remain first and second in the standings with just a double-header at Glen Helen to round out the season next month.
Joel Christoffersson, JC Raceteknik Team Principal:
“We came here looking to build on our performance from Trois-Rivieres and I think overall we did that, but the conditions were very difficult for everybody here. It was not an easy decision for the organisers to not award points and change the format for Sunday, but it was important to put on a show for the fans and we did that. Fraser has really impressed me with his drives in these winter races, and Robin and Andreas are so good at delivering when the conditions are tough. Now we look to the final weekend, where we will do every single thing we can to bring home these championships!” |
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