Istanbul RX 2014 Takes the Breath Away

The Intercity Istanbul Park circuit hosted the 11th round of the season in the FIA World Rallycross Championship on 11-12 October. The Turkish round in Istanbul, part of a 12-round series that has been run with FIA World Championship status for the first time this year, produced breathtaking and colourful scenes.

In the Supercar class, Andreas Bakkerud took victory at an event that Petter Solberg arrived at as the newly crowned world champion. After four heats and the semi-finals, six drivers made it through to the final, and after a fierce battle Andreas Bakkerud, who celebrated his birthday this weekend, claimed his second win of the season. Young Peugeot driver Timmy Hansen finished second, while Topi Heikkinen, who had been fighting for second place in the Supercar class, completed the podium in third.

In the RXLites class, which is open to Control4 race cars produced in Turkey by Avitaş Motorsport, Sebastien Eriksson took the win, while Kevin Hansen and Janis Baumanis finished second and third respectively. The two Turkish drivers representing the country in this class, Yiğit Timur and Fatih Kara, delivered a strong performance over the two days in front of enthusiastic and supportive crowds. Timur, competing with the backing of Tok Sport and Avitaş, won his semi-final to earn a place in the final, while team-mate Fatih Kara dropped back to fourth after contact with rivals in the semi-final and lost his place in the final. In the final, Yiğit Timur's car sustained heavy damage in contact with rivals, and the driver was forced to slow on the last lap and missed out on the podium.

TOSFED President Metin Çeker, in a statement about the event, said that Turkey was delighted to have come through its first-ever hosting of a World Rallycross Championship round with success. Çeker, who said that both the organisation and the circuit had earned great admiration and praise from spectators, competitors and the authorities, thanked everyone who had worked on the event. President Metin Çeker also congratulated Yiğit Timur and Fatih Kara, who flew the Turkish flag with the support of TokSport and Avitaş, and sent his best wishes for a speedy recovery to marshal Onursal Tuncel, who was injured following a minor accident on the first day of the event.

The FIA World Rallycross Championship will conclude with races in Argentina on 28-29 November.