Johan Kristoffersson was named the winner of the 2018 FIA World Rallycross Championship's season opener at the World RX of Catalunya-Barcelona in Montmelo, Spain, on Sunday following the disqualification of Mattias Ekstrom.

Ekstrom, who placed first in the final at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, was involved in a first-lap incident with Petter Solberg that sent Solberg into the barriers along the run to turn one. After a review from the stewards, Ekstrom was stripped of his victory due to what was deemed to be a "dangerous maneuver... liable to hinder car No. 11."

Post-Race reaction from Mattias Ekstrom and Petter Solberg.#WorldRX #CatalunyaRX pic.twitter.com/5zvjzoI3qv

— FIA World Rallycross (@FIAWorldRX) April 15, 2018

The decision resulted in a win for Kristoffersson—his 10th World RX victory.

"This is definitely the best way to start my title defense," he commented. "I squeezed everything I could out of my VW Polo R. I knew it was going to be tight at the exit of the joker but it was an enjoyable fight; Mattias is a very switched-on guy, and he knows exactly how to position his car to make it difficult to overtake. I was happy with second place but while winning like this clearly isn’t the nicest way, I will grab it with both hands."

Relive the unbelievable season opener in Barcelona!#WorldRX #CatalunyaRX pic.twitter.com/nLAj4zkA1d

— FIA World Rallycross (@FIAWorldRX) April 15, 2018

Ekstrom will keep the Monster Energy Super Charge Award for the quickest reaction off the start line.

The FIA World Rallycross Championship presented by Monster Energy will resume with the World RX of Portugal at Montalegre in two weeks. We'll bring you the action LIVE on FloRacing.

Results

Full results from the World RX of Catalunya-Barcelona can be found at the following link: www.fiaworldrallycross.com/results

Standings

Full Championship standings can be found at the following link:
www.fiaworldrallycross.com/standings