It’s only Monday, it’s too early to receive bad news. Unfortunately that’s what we have to share today from the world of World Rallycross, as Special One Racing – the team lobbied a pair Lancia Delta Evo-e all-electric machineone of which is motivated by Sebastien Loeb – announced that both of its chassis went up in smoke during a fire at the Lydden Hill track in the UK on Friday.
First of all, no one was injured in the fire that engulfed not only both vehicles but also Special Person’s truck and the entire service area. It’s a relief, especially when you get to grips with the field conditions:
The special person posted the following statement on his website website. In it, the team says the fire started after Loeb’s car was recharged for a few minutes, and fortunately not while it was being actively repaired:
On Friday, July 21, just before 8:45 a.m., a fire broke out in car number 9 normally driven by Sébastien Loeb. The fire quickly spread to Guerlain Chicherit’s car number 36 and then to one of the team’s two workshop trucks. None of the three cars were able to be saved from the blaze despite the intervention of the fire brigade. The scene was quickly evacuated and no one was injured.
An investigation was conducted by the FIA to determine the source of the fire, which broke out while no one was working on the vehicle, but rather during the recharging of the engine system which had been underway for several minutes. At this stage, we can confirm that there were no handling errors either by the staff of the Special ONE Racing team nor by their partners.
Needless to say, The Special will not compete for the rest of the World RX season, the next season will go to Benelux, Germany, South Africa and Hong Kong, in that order. The group thanked fans for their support, especially during this time. “We are proud of the response to our two amazing Delta Evo-e RXs, of which all that remain to this day are photos and videos,” the final sentence reads. It’s really sad. Loeb, a nine-time world racing champion, added the following:
After a fire broke out beneath our two-car structure, the first important piece of information was that no crew members were injured. I think of all the men and women who have been or are working on this project with such determination and passion, and who have watched it all go up in smoke in an instant.
Like its competitors, the Delta Evo-e is equipped with a World RX-spec dual-motor powertrain that produces 680 hp and 647 lb-ft of torque and is powered by Kreisel Electric. GCK Motorsport is responsible for the assembly of the vehicle. Following Friday’s incident, officials canceled the rest of the weekend’s action on the RX1e portfolio, of which Deltas were a part.
