RX2e trio dominate ice racing curtain-raiser

Past and present FIA RX2e Championship drivers monopolised the podium in the opening round of the GSERIES 2023 season in Andorra last weekend, as Guillaume De Ridder, Raül Ferré and Viktor Vranckx showcased their rallycross-honed skills on the frozen track surface.

Ice racing has been a winter tradition in Andorra – a principality with a great passion for motorsport – since 1996, with the GSERIES routinely attracting in excess of 250 entrants. This year, the headlining class – GSERIES E – is all-electric for the first time, with the entire grid using cars from RX2e, designed and manufactured by Spanish electro-mobility specialist QEV Technologies.

The 2023 curtain-raising contest was held at the Circuit Andorra – Pas de la Casa, with the field additionally including Christine GZ, who competed in RX2e at Spa-Francorchamps in 2021.

In the end, however, the action culminated in a showdown between former World RX racer De Ridder – the inaugural RX2e champion – home hero Ferré and last season’s RX2e title-winner, Vranckx. For added spice, De Ridder spent the 2022 campaign coaching and spotting for his young countryman, making it something of a battle of master vs. apprentices – in which experience ultimately prevailed.

“What an amazing weekend!” enthused De Ridder, whose breakthrough ice racing victory marked an early 30^th birthday present. “I drove too cautiously in free practice, but I attacked a bit more and managed to pull out a fast lap in qualifying to take pole position – although with the top four drivers covered by just two tenths-of-a-second, the racing was always going to be tight.

“The final was certainly intense, with Raül and Viktor wedged in my rear bumper throughout, and it was a fun and fair race between three rallycross drivers. Congratulations to both of those guys and a big shout-out to Viktor for a great performance on his ice racing debut!”

Round two of the four-event calendar will take place at the same circuit on 28 January.