The debut of the all-new Americas Rallycross Championship (ARX) series was a thrilling success, run alongside the British round of the World Rallycross series this weekend at Silverstone Circuit in the UK. Subaru Rally Team USA driver Patrik Sandell earned a hard-fought fourth overall finish after being spun early in the chaotic first lap of the hotly contested final. Sandell’s Subaru teammates David Higgins and Chris Atkinson finished sixth and eighth respectively. All three Subaru team drivers piloted 600hp 2018 Subaru WRX STI rallycross supercars.

ARX is a new North American-based rallycross championship created by IMG, the global sports and entertainment agency. IMG is the promoter and commercial rights holder for the World Rallycross Championship which ran alongside the ARX debut at Silverstone. The races, part of the Speedmachine music and motorsports festival together attracted over 27,000 fans over the course of the weekend. The ARX will hold a further three rounds in 2018 with stops at Trois-Rivieres Canada and two stops at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas.

“It was fantastic to be here at the first ARX event,” said Patrik Sandell. “We are excited for a new era of rallycross in the USA and this was a great way to get the word out and launch the series, there truly was a buzz among the fans and I think we showed that rallycross in America is at a very high level and amazing to watch.”

The Subaru team showed impressive pace throughout the weekend but were stymied by several setbacks including jumpstart penalties for Higgins and Atkinson and in Sandell’s case a tire puncture from a race incident. The most spectacular moment came when Chris Atkinson rolled his #55 Subaru WRX STI during Saturday’s action after being pinched into the wall. But to the delight of the crowd Atkinson was able to land on his wheels and continue, finishing the race. The team bounced back however with Atkinson and Sandell each winning a heat as well as earning top three classification among the four qualifying rounds.

In the Final Sandell was accidentally spun by his teammate Higgins in the opening lap as they jockeyed for position behind the leaders. Sandell collected himself and the car and charged on, moving up to fourth position. Sandell began to reel in third position ahead but ran out of laps in the six lap race.

The series will visit the Circuit of the Americas, in Austin Texas in July and September as well as Trois-Rivières in Canada in August.

Fans can watch the action all season LIVE and for free via livestream at the ARX Facebook page followed by a highlights show on CBS Sports airing on the Wednesday following each race. The Silverstone ARX round will air on CBS Sports Wednesday May 30, 2018 at 10pm ET.

The 2018 ARX series schedule:
1.   May 26-27 – Silverstone, UK
2.   TBA – USA
3.   August 4-5 – Trois Rivieres, Canada
4.   Sept 29-30 – Circuit of the Americas, Austin, Texas

Full coverage of Subaru Rally Team USA is available on the Subaru Motorsports App. To download from the iTunes App store, click here, for Android App on Google Play store, click here. Follow the team on Instagram @srtusa, on Twitter @srtusa, and on facebook.