The 2018 FIA World Rallycross Championship returns for its fourth round this weekend, with not only a new track debuting on the series but also a couple of fresh faces making their first trips to the starting line in 2018.

The Silverstone Circuit, the “home of British motorsport,” will host the World RX of Great Britain as part of the Speedmachine Festival for the first time, presenting an added challenge to the series regulars who may be unfamiliar with the 0.972 km track. Last year’s British round was held at the Lydden Hill Race Circuit and saw Petter Solberg emerge as the victor.

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Sebastien Loeb, who is coming off a win in Belgium two weeks ago, is the only driver in the field who owns a previous victory at Silverstone. In mid-March, the Team Peugeot Total driver won the Formula 1 British Grand Prix venue’s first foray into rallycross at the season opener of the British Rallycross Championship.

Two weeks ago, Loeb was once again on the top of the podium at Mettet in Belgium for his first win of the 2018 World RX season, snapping a two-race win streak by series leader and defending World RX champion Johan Kristoffersson. 

Loeb currently sits second overall in the standings, nine points behind Kristoffersson, who won the World RX’s controversial opener at Barcelona-Catalunya in Spain on April 16 and second round at Montalegre in Portugal two weeks later to begin the season

Q1 GRID REVEALED // Check out the starting grids ahead of Qualifying 1 tomorrow!#SilverstoneRX #WorldRX pic.twitter.com/pezNMSl4Yt

— FIA World Rallycross (@FIAWorldRX) May 25, 2018

Joining the series favorites in the field at Silverstone are a pair of newcomers: Great Britain’s Andrew Jordan and China’s Ma Qinghua.

Jordan previously finished on the podium at his home round of World RX in 2014 and made the semifinals last year in an MJP Racing Team Austria Ford Fiesta. The 2013 British Touring Car champion is set to make his first appearance for the Austrian team after signing a three-race deal to appear in the World RX series.

“My aim is to get into the semifinals,” Jordan said. “That will probably be tougher than previous years with going to a circuit I’ve not driven at before, but on the flip side, I’ve now driven the car, which I hadn’t last year before I raced it. This year World RX is so wide open, there’s so many more people up there, even from the independents. It will be tough but I’m really looking forward to getting stuck in and hopefully putting on some good shows for the home crowd.”

Meanwhile, Qinghua is set to make history as the first-ever Chinese driver to compete in the World Rallycross Championship when he makes his debut with Team STARD this weekend.

Qinghua will race a Ford Fiesta Supercar alongside STARD teammate and permanent World RX entrant Janis Baumanis, who is currently eighth in the championship standings.

“For me, Speedmachine will just be the first in hopefully as many races as possible in 2018, where I also have to align with my Formula E activity, to get as much experience as possible for a potential full season participation with STARD from 2019 onwards,” Qinghua said. “By any means, I am very excited to finally join the races.”

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