Sports don’t build character, they reveal it –
a philosophy epitomised by Andreas Bakkerud from Monster Energy’s RX Cartel world rallycross team. The 28-yearold Norweigan has been hellbent on a Supercar rallycross championship his entire life, and last season proved to be the most divisive of his career yet.
In 2018, World RX as a sport was under threat, hounded by discussions of electricpower replacing petrolpower, alongside dwindling manufacturer involvement and the departure of a lot of big names. Despite a third place in the standings, Bakkerud was more than frustrated – and his prospects for a drive the following year looked in worse shape than the championship itself. After a series of grinding halts, everything finally slipped into gear for the 2019 season, and Bakkerud was able to strike a last-minute deal with Liam Doran and Monster Energy. After more than three seasons as a secondary driver in various teams, the pairing became an equal-driver match made in heaven.
“My first Supercar drive with Liam Doran was back in 2013 in the European Championship; we took four wins together, so I knew working with him again was going to be good for both of us,” explains Bakkerud. “The deal also meant I’d work with Monster Energy again, who I was with when I first started my rallycross Supercar career. But Liam and I both knew we wanted to do things differently this year. That’s where the RX Cartel came from. We want to race and win, but we wanted to do it with style.
Over the next seven months, Bakkerud and Doran scored six podiums, filmed feature movies, and hooked a brand new fan base to rallycross, and it wasn’t just because of the racing.
“The RX Cartel has been a game-changer,” continues Bakkerud. “After the first race in Abu Dhabi we produced a mini-movie for the weekend – Liam got a podium but was pretty beaten up, and I had a smashed up my car. The reception online to the film was crazy – but then I got called into the race officials office at round two in Barcelona because of it. [The organisers] didn’t understand it, but the audience online did. Now, it’s not all about just wearing a team shirt and saying the scripted stuff outside the car on race day - nobody cares about that anymore. You have to be fast as f**k on-track, but entertain off-track too.”
“Even though it’s a difficult time at the moment - Rallycross has still stayed at full power like Group-b racing on steroids! Flames, contact, and 600bhp! There’s never going to be a dull, predictable race in rallycross,” says Bakkerud. “And it’s the same for the RX Cartel.”
monsterenergy.com The WRX Championship battle rages on!
Head to Gq.co.za to catch more of the action