Ford manufacturer partner OlsbergsMSE announce field of four drivers to run Fiesta ST SuperCars in Global RallyCross Championship.

With back-to-back Global RallyCross Championship driver’s and manufacturer’s titles, the OlsbergsMSE team has announced a new multi-year contract as Ford’s official Manufacturer Partner in GRC. OlsbergsMSE will continue to develop the championship Fiesta race cars, improving the technical aspects to increase performance on-track and deliver on its established winning tradition in the Global RallyCross Championship. “Ford Racing and OlsbergsMSE have been pioneers in helping grow the sport of RallyCross beyond Europe and establish it as one of the most exciting and anticipated new series in the United States. Working with Andréas Eriksson and the OlsbergMSE team, Ford Fiesta has earned success winning the Global RallyCross Championship in the past 2 seasons”, said Jamie Allison, director Ford Racing. “The team has pushed the limits in developing our latest Fiesta ST GRC RallyCross cars and we look to continue to build on that success beginning in X Games Brazil.”

The OlsbergsMSE team will build and run four brand new Fiesta ST Rallycross cars to compete in the Global RallyCross Championship, including all four Global X Games events in Brazil, Spain, Germany and the United States. The field of drivers will include two-time GRC Champion Tanner Foust, 2012 runner up Brian Deegan, returning team driver Toomas Heikkinen and GRC rookie Patrik Sandell. Look for each driver’s program release in the upcoming weeks.

“I am really satisfied with our driver line up for this year. OMSE has a good mix of different drivers, from different backgrounds and ages that will help us to improve our cars forward,” commented OlsbergsMSE CEO, Andréas Eriksson. “I am also looking forward to the start of 2013 season in GRC; the global expansion is starting to be a reality and this Motorsport is what I really see as the future. OMSE and I will do our best to continue produce good results and winning cars and most of all we will deliver great entertainment for the fans!”

Along with running the full GRC series, a testing and development program, the OlsbergsMSE is excited to have the opportunity to run the Fiesta ST in select FIA European Rallycross Championship (ERC) events, with some of the team’s full-time GRC drivers. OlsbergsMSE will support Tanner Foust in the first round at Lydden Hill on March 31. “I’m excited to get back into the Rockstar Energy Ford Fiesta ST Rallycross car this weekend in England! Lydden Hill is a great track and OlsbergsMSE has worked hard over the off season to improve an already great car”, said Foust. “I’ve always enjoyed the FIA European Rallycross Championship races, the competition and the European fans. I’m looking forward to stacking the OMSE car up against the competition before heading to Brazil for the X-Games!”

OlsbergsMSE’s Andréas Eriksson has run Ford Fiesta racecars since the RallyCross event was introduced to the U.S. in 2009 by X Games. With Eriksson’s passion to develop Fiesta and grow interest in the U.S. series OlsbergsMSE will launch a satellite team running two Fiestas in GRC, including X Games events, as a customer program. “Being able to work with such a skilled and supportive team like OlsbergsMSE is a great fit for the Global RallyCross Championship”, said Colin Dyne, GRC CEO. “Andréas [Eriksson] is such an integral part of the series and his depth of knowledge, as it pertains to the Fords and Rallycross as a whole, is an indescribable asset to GRC. We are thankful for the leadership and support he and the OlsbergsMSE team provide with their continuous efforts to grow the sport in the US and globally.”

In addition to running a field of supercars, Eriksson developed a line of SuperCar Lites that will run in conjunction with GRC this season as a second class. Designed to be a development class, these cars are “proper race cars” and boast over 300 bhp and have a normally aspirated engine. The GRC Lites are expected to be a great addition to the competition, not only as added value for the fans in the stands – but also as a way in to the highly-sought-after SuperCar seats. The series will be a great way to showcase driver talent and discover the next superstars in Rallycross. OlsbergsMSE will field all four Fiesta ST Rallycross cars in the first round of GRC at X Games in Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil on April 21, 2013.

Photo: The four OMSE drivers: (from left) Tanner Foust, Brian Deegan, Toomas Heikkinen and Patrik Sandell. © OMSE/ERC24