Rosberg X Racing fastest out of the blocks once more
Rosberg X Racing (RXR) picked up where they left off in 2021 at the opening round of Season 2 in NEOM, Saudi Arabia, by winning the Desert X Prix.
The reigning champions have won four races from six Extreme E events so far, including both season openers, with Johan Kristoffersson now partnered by new team-mate Mikaela Åhlin-Kottulinsky at former Formula One world champion Nico Rosberg’s outfit.
The thrilling action on the sands of Saudi Arabia finished with RXR on top of the podium and at the top of the Championship standings with a maximum score of 30 points after Johan Kristoffersson took the Continental Traction Challenge away from rivals X44 with his final lap of the weekend.
Commenting on her first Extreme E victory, Åhlin-Kottulinsky said: “Firstly it was an epic weekend with RXR and Johan, who was an absolute machine. I am just so proud to be a part of this team. I was trying to do my best and come as close as possible, which was difficult due to the dust and heavy sand. Obviously, the Dakar guys have a lot more experience in these conditions, but we did amazingly well and worked very hard, so I couldn’t be happier about this victory.”
Despite a perfect score the first event of the season was far from perfect. The inaugural Extreme E Champions proved they hadn’t lost their touch as they finished fastest in Q1 and took the win right on the finish line in Heat 2 of Q2, but a time penalty dropped Kristoffersson and Åhlin-Kottulinsky to fourth in the Heat and fifth overall.
Trouble struck the Swedish duo once again in Semi Final 1, as Åhlin-Kottulinsky got caught out across the dunes and dropped from first to third. A premature end to their Desert X Prix was prevented by a 10-second penalty for XITE Energy Racing, allowing the German squad to move up to P2 and a place in the Final.
The Final was one of two halves, as a red flag was brought out at the end of the first lap following a big accident for McLaren XE's Tanner Foust, who in a bid for third place clipped the back of Åhlin-Kottulinsky.
The race resumed for a one-lap shootout, with Kristoffersson setting off in third place and soon passing X44’s Cristina Gutiérrez on the inside, setting his sights on Sanz. As the Desert X Prix entered its closing stages, the Swede took a wide line into the second to last corner for an aggressive overtake on Sanz that secured a dramatic win and momentum that RXR will look to build on heading into the rest of the season.
Kristoffersson concluded: “That was incredible. Very rarely do I get a rush from driving a racing car, but this was the biggest adrenaline rush that I’ve had for many years. I wasn’t sure how much I could push due to the dust and damage, but I came closer and closer and found some new lines that I didn’t think were driveable. Then I did a really risky move, driving up blind and breaking more speed than I could have imagined, but came out first. I am just super happy that it all went well and very proud of the result.”
All eyes will be on the reigning champions as we see how they perform for the remainder of the season on whether they can retain their place in the championship.
