Nitro Rallycross Race Preview: Calgary
The penultimate round of the 2022-23 Nitro Rallycross season keeps the series in Canada, but the setting and the entry lists will be a little different. After the Group E FC1-X made its NRX debut on ice in Trois-Rivieres two weekends ago, the series heads west to Calgary for another oval-based round at Stampede Park, and welcomes back the NRX Next development class as its primary support act.
Unlike the GP3R track, the Calgary layout returns the over-under element to NRX in a whole new way. This weekend’s Joker Lap pulls drivers off the main line before the sweeping oval lefthander, pulling them into a hard right turn, through a tunnel under the start straightaway, and into the infield before depositing them right at the finish line. It’s a layout unlike any other in NRX history, much less rallycross as a whole, and a fresh twist on the usual mix of tabletop jumps and banked turns.
The combination of his sixth podium in seven races and an incident for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing/RX Cartel teammate Andreas Bakkerud have Robin Larsson firmly in control of the championship. His 58-point lead matches the highest point total anyone can score in an NRX event, and Bakkerud also has to deal with the pressure of Fraser McConnell 10 points behind him in third and Oliver Eriksson just another 11 points back in fourth. Eriksson became the fifth different winner this season at GP3R, completing an Olsbergs MSE 1-2 with brother Kevin ahead of Larsson in third.
The last time we saw NRX Next, meanwhile, George Megennis and Casper Jansson split the race wins for the second time in as many events. The key difference so far as that Megennis has finished second to Jansson in the two races he’s lost, while Jansson has missed the podium in both; as a result, Megennis has a 26-point lead, and Jansson is tied with Jimmy Henderson and his four podiums for second.
Live Nitro Rallycross coverage from Stampede Park in Calgary kicks off at 5PM ET on Saturday and 1PM ET on Sunday on Peacock. The series then returns to American soil on March 17-19 for another doubleheader event, with Glen Helen Raceway chosen for a return engagement; Fraser McConnell became the fourth different winner in four races to start the year in the previous Glen Helen round this season.
Image via Nitro Rallycross