Jansson reflects on ‘great battles’ in crowd-pleasing Open 2WD category

Mathias Jansson remains the closest challenger to Simon Tiger in the Open 2WD category as the RallyX Nordic presented by Cooper Tires fraternity prepares for the highly-anticipated final round of the championship at Arvika next month (August 13-15).

The Swede began the year with just one event in mind – the season-opener at Nysum – but following two third-place finishes at the Danish double-header he reconsidered and committed to the full season, going on to cement himself as one of the top talents in the crowd-pleasing, new-for-2021 category.

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Jansson’s approach to motorsport is different to much of the paddock, with few resources and mechanics to work with, but while his outfit is quite literally ‘racing on a shoestring’ he has still managed to compete in both RallyX Nordic’s Open 2WD and the Swedish National Championship at Höljes, Sweden simultaneously.

The Volvo S40 driver went on to score podiums in each of the six rounds so far this season, highlighted by a pair of second-place finishes at the aforementioned Höljes rounds (3 & 4).

Despite a power deficit of over 250bhp, the #46 ace has all but secured the runner-up spot in the championship holding a seemingly insurmountable points gap over third-placed Marcus Norman.

Simon Tiger, meanwhile, tops the table as he has done all season, leaving Jansson with a mammoth 29 points gap to overhaul. He is realistic about his chances but remains optimistic for a strong result to finish the season.

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Jansson said: “The racing has been fun, and I have had some great battles with [Simon] Tiger. The engine in my Volvo S40 is only a 2.4l with about 292 bhp, so of course, it’s a bit frustrating seeing him disappear on the straights with over 550 bhp, but I was not really planning on driving every event, so I went down to Denmark for the season-opener just to have fun and get some driving in after a long winter.

“Getting a good result there made me reassess my options and looking back I’m really happy I opted to compete for a full season. There have been a lot of tough times between the races, particularly with a lack of mechanics and many times when I have just been sat in the workshop and stared at the wall because of all the challenges!

Mathias Jansson OuluZone

“In the rain at Höljes we were very successful, finding a better setup with the suspension than Tiger. He could not get the power down, meaning we could beat him off the line and win all but one of the qualification races. Too bad the weather dried up for the final, but we were still second over the finish line – just 0.9ses behind – which must be seen as a fantastic result. Comparing my time to the Swedish National Championship that took place on the same weekend, I was 2.5secs faster than the cars I usually compete against in the final.

“The final round of the season in Arvika will be a lot of fun. I drove the Swedish national championship there last year and it’s a very technical track. I was in the top three in the final but my steering broke over the jump, so I want revenge this year.

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“I was thinking about renting a 3.2l engine so that I can have the same basis as the other cars in the class, but then I will not be able to do a double race weekend as I did in Höljes with the Swedish Championship. I was the only one of all the drivers in Höljes that did both races, so I drove twice as much as anyone else that weekend. Even though it is amazing to drive a rallycross car like this, I can’t recommend that to anyone. It was just too much!

“I think the season has been great. The RallyX Nordic organisers have done a great job, especially keeping us safe and racing during the current climate.

Mathias Jansson OuluZone

“I hope all the fans at home are happy with the show that we have put on together, while I want to say what a great job the commentators have done – in Swedish with the magnificent Holmudd brothers and the fantastic performance of Andrew Coley and Hal Ridge for the international viewers!

“We will see what happens in the future, regarding my racing. First I need to catch up on my work since this season has made me fall behind! I will focus on work for a couple of weeks, and then I am sure my racing plans will follow. As for 2021, I have enjoyed the season 200% – as long as I am on the track and not in the workshop!”

The RallyX Nordic presented by Cooper Tires Championship culminates with Round 7 at Arvika, Sweden (August 13-15). Don’t forget you can catch all the action live and for free on the RallyX TV YouTube Channel.