Photo: STCC/Anders Helgesson

Andreas Bäckman breaks qualifying lap record to Mantorp pole position

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Andreas Bäckman broke the Mantorp Park STCC TCR Scandinavia qualifying lap record in the Q2 session, breaking points leader Robert Dahlgren’s run of nine consecutive poles.

Cupra driver Dahlgren meanwhile secured pole for the first race, his ninth straight, in the Q1 session.

Dahlgren was 0.360 seconds faster than Brink Motorsport driver Tobias Brink in Q1, with Oliver Söderström of Lestrup Racing Team in third position.

Bäckman was fourth fastest ahead of Volkswagen driver Mikael Karlsson and Lynk & Co driver Mattias Andersson.

Volkswagen drivers Robin Knutsson, who won the previous race at Anderstorp, and Hugo Nerman rounded off the top eight and were the final drivers making it onto Q2.

Disaster struck Mikaela Åhlin-Kottulinsky, who is placed second overall, as she missed the Q2 cut by 52 thousands of a second in ninth place.

The Q2 session saw Bäckman going below the qualifying lap record with 1:19.039, beating Dahlgren by just 66 thousands of a second.

Brink was a distant third, half a second behind, with Söderström in fourth and MA:GP driver Andersson in fifth.

The first race of the weekend at Mantorp Park starts at 10:45 CEST.