Race of Champions 2023 line-up

The Race of Champions is set to take place once again this weekend, continuing its tradition of being held on the snowy and icy terrain of Pite Havsbad in Sweden for the second year in a row.

The Race of Champions, which has been held at renowned locations worldwide, made its debut on snow and ice in 2022. This weekend, the competition is back for a repeat performance, taking place in the chilly Arctic climate of northeastern Sweden.

On January 28th, the drivers will participate in two competitions. The first event will see the drivers form teams and compete to become the fastest nation in the world. However, the teamwork will come to an end the following day, January 29th, as the drivers compete individually to become the Champion of Champions in the ROC event.

The competition will take place on a special track built on the coast of the frozen Baltic Sea, where the drivers will compete against each other using identical equipment. This year’s machines include the off-road Polaris RZR PRO XP, the Rallycross SuperCar Lite powered by 100% fossil-free biofuel, the electric Zeroid X1 rallycross car and the Cupra UrbanRebel Concept. All the action is head-to-head.

The individual ROC is divided into two groups: one consisting of international racing drivers, the other made up of drivers with more off-road racing experience. The winners from each group will compete in the Grand Final.

Sebastian Loeb, a legendary rally driver, will be defending his Champion of Champions title in 2023 in the icy conditions of Pite Havsbad, instead of the heat of the Dakar Rally. In 2022, he competed in the ROC Grand Final against Sebastian Vettel, and this year he is pairing up with Adrien Tambay, the eTouring car (ETCR) Champion, for the Nations Cup. On Sunday, Loeb will begin his individual defense, starting with a match against Thierry Neuville.

Keeping with rally, Petter Solberg, a World Rally and World Rallycross Champion, will again be joining forces with his son Oliver Solberg for Team Norway. They were victorious in the Nations Cup in 2022 and will be competing against Team France in the first round on Saturday. On Sunday, the Norwegian father and son will face off against each other in the first round as they were drawn to race against each other, “We’re always a competitive family, but this might be something a bit extra,” Oliver Solberg Jr. jokingly commented on Twitter.

Recently retired from Formula 1, Vettel will be participating in his 11th ROC event. The 4-time F1 champion has a strong track record in ROC, winning the Nations Cup for Team Germany a record 7 times. Vettel will be joining forces once again with F1 driver Mick Schumacher for the Nations Cup on Saturday.

David Coulthard, a 13-time Formula 1 race winner, and Jamie Chadwick, a recently signed Andretti Autosport Indy NXT driver, will be representing Team GB. The two will be competing against Team Germany in the first round of the Nations Cup.

Valtteri Bottas, a 10-time Formula 1 race winner, is making his debut at the Race of Champions (ROC) on the ice of the Baltic Sea. He will be teaming up with two-time F1 world champion Mika Hakkinen for Team Finland and will be competing against the winners of the eROC final in the first round of the Nations Cup.

Indycar driver Felix Rosenqvist and 2022 Formula 2 Champion Felipe Drugovich will also make their first appearances at the Race of Champions (ROC) this weekend. Rosenqvist will race in front of his home crowd as he teams up with Danish Le Mans legend Tom Kristensen for Team Nordic. Drugovich will be racing on snow for the first time as he joins Neuville to complete Team All Stars.

Team All Stars will be competing against Team USA in the quarter-finals of the Nations Cup. Team USA is composed of McLaren Extreme E driver Tanner Foust and NRX Nitro Rallycross Champion Travis Pastrana.

The 2023 ROC World Final will not use the traditional group stage format as the track conditions in the snow and ice can change quickly. This often results in ties that require a countback of fastest laps. Instead, the events will use a straight knockout system.

Race of Champions 2023 Race of Champions 2023

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