While the Swedish national team driver is about to embark on a second consecutive campaign in the Senior CrossCar category, Noël Eliasson doesn’t regret for a second having focused on the RallyX championship since last season.
His 13th place in last year’s championship doesn’t really reflect his potential. At just 20 years of age, the three-time Swedish CrossCar champion and two-time Northern European champion is still a long way from showing his top speed at the wheel of an EDGE chassis, which he discovered at the same time as learning the ins and outs of the RallyX championship.
“To be honest, the level in this championship is extremely high. There are a lot of drivers who have the speed to win races. For my part, I really had to adapt to a completely new context. I was used to competing in championships where everything depended on your position at the end of the race, whereas now I have to bear in mind that I also have to fight against the clock in rallycross,” says Noël.
“The smallest mistake in qualifying can cost you a dozen positions. Up to now I’ve been competing in very tough championships, but in RallyX everything is much more intense. From championships where there were five or six drivers at the top, I am now competing against about twenty drivers who can qualify for a final as well as a podium place every weekend.”
While Noël Eliasson admits that the RallyX championship is pushing him out of his comfort zone, the Swedish driver is convinced that he has made the right choice.
“It was at the end of the 2022 season that the desire to compete in the RallyX championship became clearer. I had just won the Swedish championship twice, as well as the NEZ championship, and we felt that it was time to try something else. I felt I had done everything in the Swedish championship and I don’t regret my decision at all, because the RallyX series is so incredible.”
This year, Noël Eliasson will be the only driver relying on the famous EDGE chassis that Oscar Andersson used to win the title in 2022. A detail that doesn’t seem to bother the young Swede.
“Some brands like Speedcar have clearly proven their worth in RallyX, but we’ve also seen in the recent past with Patrik Hallberg and Oscar Andersson that the EDGE chassis is very competitive. We know that the car has a lot of potential, but I just need to gain more experience behind the wheel. We bought the chassis in the summer of 2022 and Patrik’s and Oscar’s performances have only confirmed our choice. Even if it’s very difficult to fight for the top places in RallyX, Hallberg and Andersson have shown us that this chassis is capable of doing so, and that can only be positive for the future”.
After a learning process last season, Noël Eliasson is ready to step up a gear this year.
“I don’t think there’s one particular area where we need to make progress. From my point of view, it’s more a combination of details that we need to keep fine-tuning. As for me, I need to get a better feel and understanding of this chassis. I still need some experience behind the wheel. In terms of set-up, the area where we still have the most room for improvement is definitely our suspension when track conditions are dry.”
“I think we’ve learned from the mistakes we made last year. We’re going to make sure that we continue to work on my driving and on our car, trying to correct any small points that might have caused us problems in 2023, so that we can start the 2024 season in the best possible conditions. With a little bit of success, we might be able to fight for victory.”
