Cooper Tires will be present at the third round of the FIA World Rallycross Championship with their brand ambassador, ex-Formula One race winner and BBC F1 commentator, David Coulthard.
Coulthard, who won 13 Grands Prix in an F1 career spanning 15 years, is now an ambassador for Cooper Tires’ acclaimed ultra-high performance (UHP) product range, spearheaded by the dynamic Cooper Zeon CS Sport.
While the Scot will not compete in the Norwegian round of the revived FIA World Rallycross series in Hell, near Trondheim on June 14/15, Coulthard will add yet another touch of motorsport glamour to a championship which has already attracted some big names, including ex-FIA World Rally Champion Petter Solberg, reigning British Touring Car Champion Andrew Jordan and Top Gear USA presenter and X Games star, Tanner Foust.
Every competitor in the fiercely-contested World Rallycross Championship runs on Cooper’s bespoke rallycross tires; the company has been dominant in the unique motorsport discipline of rallycross for two decades through its Avon tires brand and was selected as sole supplier in a multi-year deal.
“Rallycross is one of motorsport’s hidden jewels that really deserves the additional investment and support it is now getting,” said Coulthard. “It’s a truly spectacular form of the sport and, because of its gladiatorial nature, it’s one of the most entertaining forms of racing there is, so I’m keen to go along and get some proper insight into what it’s all about.
“I might not be getting behind the wheel on this occasion but I’m certainly not ruling that out for the future and I’d like to get stuck into the weekend in Norway in some fashion, so we’ll see what happens. Maybe this is the perfect opportunity for me to scout it all out.”
Marketing Communications Manager for Cooper Tire Europe, Sarah McRoberts, said: “David was a consultant for us during the development of our flagship Cooper Zeon CS Sport road tire, which was launched last year. While the rallycross tire is obviously a bespoke product because of the unique demands of the sport, it’s great to have DC with us to see how the Cooper brand operates in a very different, but equally competitive, arena.”
The Norwegian round of the championship will also feature the first appearance in the series of American Gymkhana legend and X Games medallist, Ken Block. Block will be racing his Hoonigan Racing Division Ford Fiesta in the first of three outings in the RX championship.
In the premier Supercar class, championship leader Andreas Bakkerud will be racing on home soil, having won the final last time out at the UK’s Lydden Hill. He sits just three points clear of Solberg in the overall standings and five points ahead of Swede, Toomas Heikkinen in third.
For more information about the FIA World Rallycross Championship, please visit www.rallycrossrx.com/. For more information about Cooper Tires, visit www.coopertire.co.uk.
