Norway wins Race of Champions Nations Cup 2023

Two eighth-finals

The day kicks off with two eighth finals between Finland and Team eROC and Britain against Germany. The Finns with Valtteri Bottas and Mika Häkkinen were no match for Dutchman Jarno Opmeer and Lucas Blakeley. The sim racers won 3-1 against the Alfa Romeo Racing driver and two-time world champion.

Britain had to take on Germany. Sebastian Vettel and Mick Schumacher took an immediate 2-0 lead after winning heats against David Coulthard and Jamie Chadwick respectively. Because Schumacher also won his second heat against Coulthard, the fourth duel no longer mattered. Chadwick did win this match and put the final score at 3-1 for the Germans.

ROC quarter-finals

Then it was time for the quarter-finals, as six teams had already qualified for the last eight. Norway took on France. The Norwegians, who won the competition last year, won convincingly against multiple rally champion Sebastien Loeb and debutant Patrick Tambay 4-0. Sweden also won convincingly against Denmark 4-0.

The United States was up against Team AllStars, with Felipe Drugovich (Brazil) and Thierry Neuville (Belgium) at the wheel. After the first two heats it was 1-1, but when Travis Pastrana went into action for the third time, he stalled just before the finish. Neuville then lifted the score to 3-1, eliminating the United States.

Team eROC had to deal with Germany, but Opmeer and Blakeley failed to do so. They were no faster, allowing the Germans to get ready for the semi-final against Team AllStars.

Semifinals in Sweden

Sweden and Norway were in the balance (1-1) after both drivers from the two countries came into action once. Petter Solberg lost his first heat and in the second heat too he had to suffer a defeat (with a difference of only one thousandth), leaving Norway facing a 1-2 deficit. Oliver Solberg, however, made it 2-2, so total race time had to be looked at, which was in favour of defending champion Norway.

Germany starts with a loss by Vettel. The four-time world champion came up a few tenths short in the duel with Neuville. Schumacher managed to win against Felipe Drugovich, making it a tie at the halfway point in the second semi-final as well. Vettel then beat Drugovich, but the win went to Team AllStars because of a false start. Schumacher then lost as well, leaving AllStars to face Norway in the final.

Race of Champions final

In the final, Petter Solberg kicked off against Neuville. The latter won and brought the AllStars into the lead. However, Solberg jr. soon evened the score by trouncing Drugovich. In the third heat, Petter Solberg won from Drugovich, forcing Neuville to pull out all the stops to equalise the score. The Belgian did not succeed, however, as Oliver Solberg won to make it 3-1.