Johan Kristoffersson’s absence from atop the FIA World Rallycross Championship podium proved to be short-lived Sunday.

Two weeks after a season-low fifth-place result in Belgium, the defending champion roared back in round four at the World RX of Great Britain with a dominant performance, sweeping the final two qualifiers, the first semifinal, and the final in the series’ first-ever visit to Silverstone Circuit.

However, that’s not to stay the last day of racing at the Speedmachine Festival was missing drama.

WATCH FULL REPLAY

With the field wary of slick track conditions, the opening semifinal got off to a carnage-filled start when Kristoffersson collided with PSRX Volkswagen Sweden teammate Petter Solberg as they made the first turn on lap one, causing a massive pileup and major damage Solberg’s right rear wheel well. 

CARNAGE RIGHT FROM THE JUMP! pic.twitter.com/tIm7AGPZqx

— FloRacing (@FloRacing) May 27, 2018

Under a red flag, the team scrambled to repair both cars but Solberg would ultimately have to pull out following the restart, forcing him to miss his first final of the season.

“The semifinal was really tough in the first corner, to be honest,” Kristoffersson said. “Everything happened so quickly. So after that, the car was great—big thanks to the mechanics who fixed it.

“[I spoke with Solberg] briefly just between the semifinal and final, and we will see afterwards, but he just said, ‘Go on and win it.’”

"Solberg is retired from semifinal number 1 after contact with his teammate!" pic.twitter.com/Mn6WKYfryC

— FloRacing (@FloRacing) May 27, 2018

Kristoffersson did just that in the final, leading from flag to flag and building a 5.580-second lead before taking his Joker on the last lap. EKS Audi Sport's Andreas Bakkerud followed closely behind in second place, while round three winner Sebastien Loeb rounded out the podium in third.

Bakkerud's teammate, Mattias Ekstrom, finished fourth; Niclas Gronholm took fifth; and Kevin Hansen crossed the line in sixth place.

The runner-up result is a season best for Bakkerud, who has reached the finals in all four rounds this season.

“I was going all in there, and at many points, I felt that was quicker than Johan but I went a bit hot into the Joker, a bit wide, but all honor to Johan winning his third event this year,” Bakkerud said. “I'm just stoked that I'm on the podium and get to spray some champagne.”

Meanwhile, Loeb finished in the top three for the fourth straight time. The Team Peugeot Total driver got off to a slow start in the final and went into the first corner in sixth place after saying he was too aggressive with the clutch. However, he made a huge move following his Joker on lap three to get back into contention.

The fastest lap of the day! pic.twitter.com/S5MORzb9j7

— FloRacing (@FloRacing) May 27, 2018

“I pushed really hard. I had a good strategy for the Joker. I had nearly a clean race after that,” he said.

“It's my fourth podium in a row, so I will not complain. I'm a bit frustrated because with a good startup I could have done much better here but. It's like this, we are still in the fight. That's the most important thing.”

In the overall standings, Kristoffersson continues to sit first overall with 105 points—extending his lead to 14 points over Loeb heading into the World RX of Norway on June 10 (LIVE on FloRacing). Bakkerud moves up to third place at 83 points, replacing Solberg (80 points).

Despite Solberg missing the final, PSRX Volkswagen Sweden holds a 22-point lead in the team standings at 185 points over the hard-charging EKS Audi Sport duo of Bakkerud and Ekstrom, who is tied for fourth place individually with 80 points. Team Peugeot Total (162 points) follows one point behind EKS Audi Sport in third.

VIEW FULL RESULTS HERE

2018 Supercar WRX Top 5
PLACE, DRIVER		TEAM	POINTS
1.    Johan Kristoffersson		PSRX Volkswagen Sweden	105
2.    Sebastien Loeb		Team Peugeot Total	91
3.   Andreas Bakkerrud		EKS Audi Sport	83
4.    Petter Solberg		PSRX Volkswagen Sweden	80
5.    Mattias Ekstrom		EKS Audi Sport	80