PAASONEN RETURNS TO WORLD RX WITH OWN TEAM

Jani Paasonen will race an EX-MJP Racing Ford Fiesta Supercar in World Rallycross Championship events as he eyes a programme in the category’s forthcoming electric era.

The Finn participated in select rounds of World RX last year with Team STARD but will race for his own team this term. He will again complete a partial programme in 2020 before a full campaign in 2021.

Paasonen told Motorsport News:

“If Holjes is the first race of the season, we plan to enter there, then probably Riga and I hope to [go to] Barcelona. Also maybe some other races, but that’s not decided yet. It will depend a little bit how the first one is going.”

Paasonen is working on the development of a new engine with an unnamed partner in Finland. He recently conducted two days of testing at the Kouvola circuit in Finland, and is now making changes to the turbo, engine and dampers before testing at different circuits.

“[There’s a] turbo specialist company that’s building the engine,” he said. “My friend has talked to me for three or four [years] that he has an idea how the rallycross engine needs to be, and he’s been working with turbos for 25 years. That’s why we needed our own car, so we can test as much as we want and need.”