2016 World Rallycross champion Mattias Ekström has become the new sporting director of Rallycross Promoter – the subsidiary of WRC Promoter which owns the rights to World RX.
Ekström, a two-time DTM champion and current Audi rally-raid driver, has 60 World RX starts to his name and 12 wins – a tally only surpassed by Timmy Hansen and Johan Kristoffersson.
He was a forerunner of World RX’s early years, forging a fierce rivalry with Petter Solberg before winning the title in his own EKS-run Audi S1 in 2016.
Ekström’s last full rallycross season was in 2020 where he fought fellow Swede Kristoffersson hard for the title.
But now in a surprise announcement, he steps into a management role effective immediately.
He will work closely with Rallycross Promoter executive director Arne Dicks “to develop and grow World RX in every area”.
Ekström said: “Even though I didn’t start competing in rallycross myself until 2013, it is in some respects where everything began for me – certainly it is what inspired me to follow in my father’s footsteps and pursue a career in motorsport.
“In its short nine-year history, World RX has already shown its potential to capture fans’ imagination in a way that few other disciplines are capable of doing.
“There’s no denying that for various reasons, it has been a tough few years, but everything I have seen since Rallycross Promoter took over and the start of the electric era convinces me that the best is yet to come.
“All the ingredients are there to attract new generations of fans and make this championship a real blockbuster success.”
The 2023 World RX season begins in Hungary on May 20-21.
