Sebastian Eriksson Brings Home First Global Rallycross Win for Honda
Sebastian Eriksson and his No. 93 Honda Red Bull Olsbergs MSE (OMSE) Civic hung tough with the entire Red Bull Global Rallycross field on Sunday afternoon. With commanding skills and a little luck, he scored Honda’s first-ever Global Rallycross victory in one of the closest finishes in series history.
“This was a great result. It was one of the hardest fought finals I’ve ever been a part of. We’ve worked over a year and a half for this moment, to be standing on the top step of the podium. Now, we need to work even harder to stay on top.”
Round 2 of the 2017 Red Bull Global Rallycross championship series competed at the Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville. The track was a quick .699 mile, 10-turn course with a mix of dirt and pavement. Built into the course was a joker lap along with the signature 70-foot jump for the qualifying heat, semi-final and final races.
Before the 10-car final began, a rain shower soaked the mixed-surface course, making conditions optimal for Eriksson and the Honda-powered team. The third-year Supercar driver had excelled in similar conditions in his last podium finish in Seattle last season. It was a little chaotic for Sebastian Eriksson. He leads for a few laps, went door-to-door with Tanner Foust, then slipped back to fourth place. But everything favored Eriksson. In a wet and wild final lap, the Olsbergs MSE driver nipped Steve Arpin at the finish line by .071 seconds.
Honda is now tied for the lead in the season-long manufacturers’ championship, and the team will look to build on its early-season success as the series heads to the East Coast for the first doubleheader event of the year. Rounds 3 and 4 will be contested at the historic Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park in Thompson, CT. Coverage can be seen live on NBC beginning on Saturday, June 3rd, at 5:00 p.m. EDT.
If you missed Round 1, read about the results HERE.
