Veiby and Kristoffersson hit KMS' rivals with a one-two in Finland.

A win in heat three helped Veiby to climb from fourth to third in the intermediate classification, behind weekend pace-setter Kristoffersson and Grönholm, with Kevin and Timmy Hansen as well as Juha Rytkönen – the Suonenjoki native driving the only combustion-engined entry in the field at the KymiRing, in his sustainably-fuelled, PGRX-run Hyundai i20 – completing the line-up for the all-important final.

Intermittent rain resulted in a mixture of tyre choices, and from the outside of the front row, it was Grönholm who got away best in his electric CE Dealer Team car – the fans’ favourite eager to close the gap separating him from Kristoffersson at the summit of the championship standings. His advantage, however, would prove to be cruelly short-lived, with contact into Turn Two putting him out on the opening lap.

One Finn’s pain was another Finn’s gain, as Rytkönen miraculously emerged in the lead – from the very back of the grid – with Veiby in hot pursuit and Kristoffersson down to fifth behind the Hansens. 

It soon became apparent, however, that Timmy Hansen was struggling with issues of his own as his Peugeot 208 RX1e crabbed around the 1.163km circuit, with Veiby and Kevin Hansen’s early jokers elevating Kristoffersson to third. On lap two, the seven-time world champion then fought his way past his ailing countryman before rapidly closing down Rytkönen in a repeat of the pair’s epic Turkish duel from the end of last year.

It was Veiby, however, who was truly in the box seat, having already jokered and sitting just two-and-a-half seconds shy of the lead. Rytkönen dived into the joker himself on lap three to successfully cover off the Hansen brothers, releasing Kristoffersson to try to extend his margin over his KMS team-mate – but the Norwegian was not for giving this one up.

Impressively matching his illustrious Swedish stablemate for speed, even a stellar last lap for Kristoffersson was not quite enough to turn the tables, as Veiby took the chequered flag a whisker under three tenths-of-a-second clear to cement his second career triumph in the FIA World Rallycross Championship.

Both KMS drivers picked up punctures late on, but such was their superiority, that did nothing to deflate their charge to a second consecutive one-two finish. Rytkönen thrilled the partisan crowd as he joined them on the bottom step of the podium following his headline-grabbing heroics – but the flying Finn’s celebrations would prove to be short-lived, as he was subsequently given a two-second penalty for the lap one contact that had curtailed compatriot Grönholm’s challenge.

That promoted Kevin Hansen to third and Timmy Hansen to fourth, concluding a rollercoaster week for the latter in particular. Having not expected to compete at the KymiRing until CE Dealer Team came to the rescue at the 11th hour. 

After heat three, the 33-year-old looked to be facing an early bath as he brought up the rear of the order, only for a strong run in heat four – yielding the second-fastest time behind Kristoffersson – to secure his place in the final at the expense of Klara Andersson, whose lightning-fast launch in her own heat four race came to nothing when contact sent her bouncing into the tyre barriers at Turn Two.

Despite failing to add to his win count this season, the runner-up spoils enabled Kristoffersson to more than double his championship lead from seven points to 15 over the luckless Grönholm heading into the double-header Istanbul Park finale on 20-21 September, with Veiby’s victory vaulting the Kongsvinger native past Timmy Hansen into third.

Ole Christian Veiby, Kristoffersson Motorsport, added: “It feels fantastic to get another win! The final was crazy – I had a good launch but got stuck on the outside line for a moment and dropped back, so I had to fight my way through on the inside to get up to P2. From there, I took the joker to get clear air and stayed close to the others.

In the end, only Johan was ahead, who hadn’t jokered yet. I followed him well and came out in front when he took his joker. Another 1-2 for the team and some very important points for both me and Johan. I’m only four points behind P2 in the championship, so everything’s still to play for in Türkiye!”

Johan Kristoffersson, Kristoffersson Motorsport, added: “I struggled at the start of the final, I got too much wheel spin which was costly. Then Rytkönen came on the inside, and Timmy Hansen too, which forced Niclas and I out. I’m impressed with how Ole drove in the final. And it’s great for the team with a 1-2 again. We chose the right strategy with the tyres, and the cars have been running like clockwork all weekend.”

Kevin Hansen, Hansen Motorsport, said: “Finally, some silverware for me this season. A shame that it came about from a penalty for Juha [Rytkönen], but after what we’ve been through, we can’t help but feel great about a podium. The team really deserves it after such a rollercoaster of a week. A massive thank you to the CE Dealer Team and Volvo Construction Equipment. Without them, we wouldn’t have been here fighting for a podium in the first place, and we really appreciate their support.”

Click here to view the final classification from the World RX of Finland.

Click here to view the provisional championship standings.