“We went into the season knowing very well that our RX1e car was overweight, with René [Münnich – team owner] telling me not to expect to reach the final.” In only the second round in Norway, Timo Scheider did rather better than reach the final – he reached the rostrum, setting the tone for a career-best campaign during which the German consistently defied predictions.
The Montalegre curtain-raiser did not deliver much, but then, it was never realistically going to. Expectations were for a similar outcome in Hell. Expectations be damned. It was a genuine podium finish, too, as Scheider climbed to third place at the start of the final and thereafter never looked back. But better still was to come.
Another final appearance followed at Höljes, before the FIA World Rallycross Championship switched to the ZEROID X1 for the remaining four rounds in South Africa and Hong Kong. Conventional wisdom said that Scheider – as one of just two drivers in the field with no prior experience of the car – would struggle. Conventional wisdom can also be damned.
Immediately on the pace in Cape Town, the ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport ace won heat two on the first day at Killarney International Raceway, going on to take the chequered flag third in the final. Twenty-four hours later, he improved upon that to claim his breakthrough World RX victory courtesy of a superb drive.
Another podium visit in the season finale in Hong Kong secured fourth in the title standings – four places higher than his previous best. He might have turned 45 in November, but the double DTM champion shows no signs of slowing down. If anything, he is speeding up.
From start to finish, 2023 was stellar Scheider.
2023
Stats
World
RX Starts: 7
Wins:
1
Podiums:
4
Finals
Reached: 5
Best
Result: 1st
Points:
89
Championship
Position: 4th
Finland
Italy
Hungary