Photo: STCC

Robert Dahlgren crowned STCC champion as Fredrik Ekblom wins opening race at Mantorp

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Robert Dahlgren claimed his maiden Scandinavian Touring Car Championship title, after finishing sixth in a restarted opening race at Mantorp Park, won by Fredrik Ekblom.

Dahlgren managed to keep his PWR Racing SEAT León clear of a frenetic mid-field points battle to score enough points to claim his first championship after 13 attempts.

Pole-sitter Ekblom, driving for Kristoffersson Motorsport won the race comfortably after snatching the lead from Mattias Andersson’s Honda Civic at the restart, after a multi-car pile-up brought out the red flags.

Series returnee Andreas Wernersson, who finished runner-up to Ekblom, was right behind the first-corner incident when Brink Motorsport’s Micke Ohlsson lost control coming into Turn One.

Wernersson’s Lestrup/Experion team-mate Albin Wärnelöv was spun and subsequently hit hard by the on-coming PWR Junior car of debutant John Bryant-Meisner. Both were out on the spot and the clear-up required the race to be stopped.

Upon resumption, Andersson led the way after getting the better getaway at the original start.

It didn’t last long and Ekblom, knowing he had to win, pounced at the end of the long back-straight to take the lead.

Behind, Dahlgren’s PWR team-mate Daniel Haglöf also tried to wrestle the position away from Andersson, but had to settle for third.

Then the carnage ensued: first with Ekblom’s KMS team-mate Fredrik Blomstedt crashing out as he missed his braking point for Turn Five, and then as Haglöf attempted to force his way past Andersson into the last corner.

Haglöf was pushed wide onto the grass, which allowed Wernersson and Ahlberg to gain spots on the podium, while Dahlgren moved onto the back of his team owner in sixth. The leading trio remained as such until the flag, with Ekblom heading Wernersson to the line by little over one second.

Ahlberg was made to work hard by Haglöf – who had managed to find a way past Andersson – on the final lap as the SEAT came into its own. The Micke Kågered Racing driver impressivley held firm and staved off Haglöf’s attack to claim his first series podium in third.

But for Dahlgren, sixth behind Andersson was more than enough to secure his first championship triumph.

Behind the new champion, Olli Kangas claimed a superb seventh for LMS Racing, while Nicklas Oscarsson brought his Kia Cee’d home eighth ahead of the two Brink Motorsport Audi RS 3 LMS cars of Tobias Brink and Micke Ohlsson.

Race two at Mantorp begins at 13:45 CET.