Race of Champions 2023 line-up complete as Ekstrom joins Team Sweden
Mattias Ekstrom has completed the 2023 Race of Champions driver line-up as he joins Team Sweden at his home event.
The two-time DTM champion, one-time World Rallycross champion and FIA eTouring World Cup winner has recently competed at the Dakar Rally for Audi, taking 14th place as the German manufacturer’s leading finisher, and will now swap sand for snow and ice at this year’s Race of Champions held at Pite Havsbad on 28-29 January.
Ekstrom, a three-time Race of Champions winner, will compete for outright honours and aim to equal the all-time wins record currently shared by Sebastien Loeb and Didier Auriol. The 44-year-old will also team up with Johan Kristoffersson to form Team Sweden in the nations’ event.
“The Race of Champions has meant a lot to me over the years – especially being able to win it in Paris, London and Beijing. It was also great to be able to show my Audi A4 DTM with some demo laps down the years,” Ekstrom said.
“Now I’m really looking forward to lapping in the classic Audi S1, especially as we are in Sweden. It’s fantastic that Stephane Peterhansel will lap in our Audi RS Q e-tron Dakar car too.
“The car has only rarely been seen in Europe as we usually run in the desert in Saudi Arabia and Morocco. So it will be great for the fans to come close and realise what it's all about.
“Other than that I’m looking forward to Pite Havsbad, a proper Swedish winter, and a lot of fans. Now it will be great to go there, join forces with Johan Kristoffersson for Team Sweden and try to claim another big trophy.”
Mattias Ekström, RX Supercar Lites
Photo by: Race of Champions
Ekstrom is the final name added to this year’s Race of Champion driver line-up which is headlined by four-time F1 world champion Sebastian Vettel who will compete in his first event since retiring from grand prix racing.
Loeb is reigning champion in the individual event, while Team Norway Petter and Oliver Solberg partner up to defend their teams’ title.
Full 2023 Race of Champions line-up:
Team Sweden: Mattias Ekstrom and Johan Kristoffersson
Team France: Sebastien Loeb and Adrien Tambay
Team Great Britain: David Coulthard and Jamie Chadwick
Team Germany: Sebastian Vettel and Mick Schumacher
Team USA: Travis Pastrana and Tanner Foust
Team Finland: Valtteri Bottas and Mika Hakkinen
Team Nordic: Tom Kristensen and Felix Rosenqvist
Team All Stars: Felipe Drugovich and Thierry Neuville
Team Norway: Petter and Oliver Solberg
Loeb to defend Race of Champions crown
Magazine: F1 2023 tech battlegrounds revealed, Daytona 24 preview
Daytona 24, Hour 3: Cadillac leads Acura and Porsche
The #01 Chip Ganassi Racing Cadillac leads the Acuras of Meyer Shank Racing and Wayne Taylor Racing after three hours of action in the 61st Daytona 24 Hours.
Hughes "happy to feel a nudge" over the line from Evans after Diriyah FE energy shortage
McLaren Formula E driver Jake Hughes says he was "happy to feel a nudge" from Mitch Evans in the Diriyah E-Prix, which pushed him over the finish line for fifth.
Daytona 24, Hour 1: Acura leads, BMW in trouble early
Tom Blomqvist lead the opening hour of the Daytona 24 Hours aboard the Meyer Shank Racing Acura, as BMW became the first of the GTP manufacturers to hit trouble.
F1 champion Button "definitely interested" in NASCAR road course outings
The 2009 Formula 1 World Champion Jenson Button says competing in NASCAR Cup races on road courses is something he is "definitely interested in".
The 2022 Autosport Awards winner using Esports as a launchpad
A trail blazed in Esports has inspired a revamp of the annual prize that aims to discover the best young engineering talent. Autosport met Autosport Williams Engineer of the Future winner Michael Preston
The plug in and play stand-ins who got their timing just right
Nyck de Vries’s Italian GP exploits weren’t the first post-eleventh-hour call-up in motorsport history, and won’t be the last either. Here are some offbeat tales from the past
Porsche’s hopeful Le Mans future meets its illustrious past
Rising sportscar star Adam Smalley had to pinch himself when offered the chance to drive the car that won the world’s most famous enduro in 1987
Why romanticism isn't the key factor in Lola’s racing return
The iconic Lola name is being relaunched after it was taken over by new ownership. Part of that reboot is a planned return to racing, though the exact details of this are still to be finalised - though its new owner does have a desire to bring the brand back to the Le Mans 24 Hours. But romanticism doesn't appear to be the driving force behind this renewed project...
Rating the best drivers of the century so far
Autosport's Top 50 feature has been a staple of the magazine for the past two decades since its first appearance in 2002. Here are the drivers that have featured most prevalently during that time
The best motorsport moments of 2021
Motorsport produced one of its greatest years of all-time in 2021 despite a backdrop of ongoing COVID-19 challenges and an ever-changing racing landscape. Through the non-stop action Autosport has collected the finest moments from the past 12 months to highlight the incredible drama and joy motorsport generates
The racing comeback artists who resurrected long-dormant careers
Making it in motorsport can be tough, and sometimes drivers move elsewhere before their best chance arrives. Here are some of those who made it back
The hidden racing gem attracting ex-F1 heroes
It’s rarely mentioned when it comes to assessing the best national contests, but the Brazilian Stock Car series that reaches its climax this weekend has an ever-growing appeal. Its expanding roster of ex-Formula 1 names has helped to draw in new fans, but it's the closeness of competition that keeps them watching
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.