Petter Solberg’s PSRX Volkswagen World RX Team Sweden won the recent FIA World Rallycross Teams’ championship and Johan Kristoffersson became a world champion for the first time after another stunning victory at World RX of Latvia … but with glory came pain.
The title double came following a record-breaking fifth win in succession for Johan and seventh PSRX Volkswagen Sweden victory of the season in Riga.
The only damper on the team’s world-beating weekend was a first-corner crash for Petter in his semi-final. Solberg was taken to hospital after reporting pain in his back. The triple FIA world champion suffered a broken collarbone.
However, the injury could not dampen the celebrations. Nine months is all it has taken to turn a dream into reality for the squad. The Torsby-based team has delivered ‘above and beyond expectations’, clinching the two titles with two World RX rounds remaining - Germany on Friday and November 10 in South Africa - with extraordinary dedication and dominance.
Team principal Pernilla Solberg said: “This year has been an adventure in every way. We created this team in January by bringing together two of the best teams in world motorsport. I am extremely proud of the team’s performance throughout the season and that we are crowned teams’ champions in the third race from the end.
“I am equally proud of Johan’s performance in the drivers’ championship, achieving his maiden FIA World Championship title at the same weekend … it’s just unreal. It’s a dream come true.
“At the same time, I am devastated that our driver and my husband, Petter, was in hospital when our big dream came true. It’s all together a very emotional feeling, I’m crying both happy tears and sad tears at the same time.”
Kristoffersson’s latest win was enough for him to seal his first world title and realise a lifelong dream. Predictably, the 28-year-old was on top of the world as well as being on top of his Polo GTI Supercar. Coming down off the roof of the No.3 car, the Swede beamed and then hugged each and every member of the PSRX Volkswagen Sweden Team.
A special gentle hug was reserved for his team-mate and wingman Solberg. “World. Champion,” said Kristoffersson. “I can’t believe this. It’s just an incredible result. It doesn’t seem right, for sure it doesn’t make so much sense now – world champion!
“It didn’t sink in at all. I have been so focused on the race, just taking one corner at a time, breaking everything down and just doing my job – like every World RX weekend, this one has been tough with some crazy conditions and tough calls on the set-up.
“When you are going off the line, everything else disappears from the mind – you are just staring at that starting light and thinking of nothing else except looking after the car and staying out of trouble.
“After three laps in the final, I had a small lead and I started to think about what might happen. I was thinking: ‘I could be world champion…’ So I said to myself: ‘Stop it now!’ I had to concentrate and I did. When I came from the last corner, I was yelling to the team: ‘Am I world champion? Did I do it? Am I world champion?’
“The voice came to the radio and said: ‘Johan, you are world champion’. They were the most incredible words. As always, we had a plan for this race and today’s plan was a special one: today’s plan was to be a world champion!”
The news got even better and the cheers got even louder when PSRX Volkswagen Sweden confirmed it had taken its first ever World RX Teams’ Championship. Solberg’s dream had come true too.
Pernilla added: “I know that Petter wanted so badly for Johan to win this year. We have worked so well as a team, everything has been open, we shared everything and you know I feel we made a team of… maybe you would say a team of gentlemen. They made an agreement when this thing started and they have both been completely straight, honest and true all year. Petter and I all love that, he loves racing with Johan and we love sharing the team with our new world champion.”
Kristoffersson echoed those sentiments, adding: “We have worked together. We talked about this for the whole year and I’m sure some people are tired of hearing me say this, but I don’t care – this is the best team in the world.”
For the number crunchers out there, Kristoffersson’s fifth straight win of the season is a record and so is his total number of wins in a year: six.
Editor’s note: This coming Friday’s race … the ALL-INKL.COM World RX of Germany will take place just south-west of Hamburg in the country’s far north. The Buxtehude circuit really is all about the racing, with RX part of the town’s tale since 1972. And the track’s a classic as well, we’re talking a 36-second lap when you’re on a flier, but there’s a bit of everything in there to keep motor sport fans entertained from a tight hairpin right to a full-beans, knife-edge flat right.
