Following the FIA World Rallycross Championship’s first transatlantic trip of the season, the circuit returns to Europe this weekend for the Bretagne World RX of France.

Upwards of 70,000 spectators will witness a capacity entry of 25 Supercars compete to be crowned the series champ.

Johan Kristofferson, the race’s reigning champion, enters the weekend with confidence.

A native of Sweden, Kristofferson picked up his fourth consecutive victory of the season the last time the cars were out on the track, in Canada. 

Kristofferson, who is leading the points standings after Round 7, won last season’s race in France, holding off Sebastien Loeb and Mattias Ekström, who finished second and third, respectively. 

While Kristofferson is vying to retain his crown, Peugeot 208 drivers Loeb and Timmy Hansen head into the weekend second in the championship standings with 140 points, 55 points back from Kristofferson.

“As a French driver in a French team, (the race in) Loheac is a very important event for me, and our goal is to fight for victory,” Loeb said. “It’s a track that I really enjoy, and there are no great secrets to mastering it. You need to have clean runs, be quick everywhere and above all make good starts. Tire management and preservation is also a key factor at Loheac since punctures are one of the major risks over the large curbs.”

Loeb, a native of France, ran the fastest lap at the World RX of France in 2017 but managed to fall to Kristofferson in the final.

Norweigans Andreas Bakkerud and Petter Solberg are in a tie for fourth place in the championship standings after the series’ race in Canada and are both still searching for their first win of the season. 

Ekström, who is seventh in the championship standings, has strung together a series of top-six finishes and is looking to notch his second podium of the year. 

Other entries for this weekend’s race include Davy Jeanney, who became the first Frenchman to win an event at the pinnacle of international rallycross three years ago, and two-time French Rallycross champion Gaetan Serazin. 

--By Colton Wood