The World Rallycross (RX) Championship has gone electric and since the first round of the 2022 championship in August, teams have been running cars which have been modified with electric powertrains. As in the WRC, the top tiers will run the new RX1e rallycross cars with twin motors, pushing out 500 kW (equivalent to 680 bhp) and 880 Nm of instant torque.
GCK Motorsport, which is entering its first event next weekend, is only starting as it did not make it in time for the first 9 races. However, its entry in the coming World RX of Germany is much anticipated by enthusiasts because Guerlain Chicherit’s GCK Motorsport will be running a car which was first launched in 1987 – the Lancia Delta.
With 6 consecutive titles from 1987 to 1992, the Delta remains the most successful car in the history of the World Rally Championship. Although the car went out of production 30 years ago, Giorgetto Giugiaro’s compact, angular design still commands admiration.
Chicherit was born in 1978 and is one of a generation inspired by Didier Auriol’s exploits while growing up. It was only natural, therefore, that the French entrepreneur turned to this emblematic model when he launched his car retrofit business in 2020. The Lancia Delta Evo-e ‘road version’ is currently in the final homologation phase in France and will soon go into production.
Underneath its true-to-original bodywork, the Delta Evo-e RX houses a tubular structure compliant with the safety standards in the FIA 2022 regulations. The chassis was designed and put together with special tooling was required, and took over 1,200 hours to build.
With twice the power of a Formula E (electric single-seater) racing car and, even more impressive, it accelerates from 0 – 100 km/h in just 1.8 seconds. That’s seven-tenths faster than an F1 car by the same measure!
The secret? 4-wheel drive and the combination of two electric motors delivering 250 kW each (the electric drivetrain kit is the same one used by all the cars competing in the championship). The powertrain kits are provided by Austria’s Kreisel Electric, the official supplier of the electrification kits for the championship. The kits are priced at 300,000 euros (about RM1.37 million).
GCK Motorsport has not its sights too high for this first outing against its more experienced rivals. The team is instead approaching the event as a full-scale test session to prepare for 2023 when they will be able to do a complete rallycross season.
“One thing is sure, our Lancia Delta Evo-e will stand out from the crowd of more modern cars that make up this spectacular championship. I know that it’ll impress plenty of people out there. We’ll now need a bit of time to get to grips with the car and make it competitive. I’m just eager to be on track!” said Chicherit.
After 9 races, Kristoffersson Motorsport leads in the championship with 274 points, followed by Hansen World RX Team with 235 points and Construction Equipment Dealer Team with 206 points, In the Drivers category, Johan Kristoffersson is leading with 162 points, 39 points ahead of Timmy Hansen. The round in Germany this coming weekend will see the finale of the season.
