While French Rally superhero Sébastien Loeb is going to race the 2012 ERC leading Citroën DS3 of Timur Timerzyanov in the X Games 18 the Russian is set to drive an all-new DS3 SuperCar in Hell and Höljes.

Yesterday’s press release by Citroën Racing may read for the non-insider as if the French factory team has produced an “X(tra) L(arge)” version of a Citroën DS3 based on a Rallycross SuperCar made by Hansen Motorsport in Sweden. But as a matter of fact the 8-times Rally World Champion Sébastien Loeb is going to race the very car that Russian Timur Timerzyanov has used in three of the four 2012 ERC rounds so far. On request of Citroën the DS3 has been brought to France where Alsatian Loeb was able to test the car at the Rallycross track at Dreux. Before the almost 550bhp strong Rallycross SuperCar will be shipped to the US it will be improved and changed to the needs of its one-off driver as well as to X Games specs.

Asked by ERC24 for a first comment about the situation Susann Hansen yesterday evening cheered “Oooo… what can we say… We are very proud, honoured, happy, delighted, excited, thrilled and any superlative you can think of!” This morning she confirmed that Timerzyanov’s ERC leading Citroën is the car going to America while for the man from Kazan in Tatarstan “a new DS3 is being built”.

As this year’s X Games are clashing with the Swedish ERC round at Höljes, 14 times European Rallycross Champion Kenneth Hansen will travel to Los Angeles to oversee Loeb’s assault. The project has been initiated by sponsor Red Bull in cooperation with Citroën Racing, after an impetus given by Red Bull sponsored American Jack of all trades action superstar Travis Pastrana. While “His Kennyness” is spending his time in California Susann Hansen is going to replace her husband as the team principal of Hansen Motorsport during the home ERC round at the Höljesbanan.

Photo: The 545bhp Citroën DS3 SuperCar of Timur Timerzyanov will be used by Sébastien Loeb for his X Games assault. © JKR/ERC24