The FIA World Rallycross Championship has announced that Latvia is to be added to the World RX calendar from 2016. The event will be held at the Bikernieki National Sports Base circuit, and is part of a new multi-year partnership with World RX.
Bikernieki, which was constructed in 1966, has accommodated various motorsport events over the years including drag racing, drift, karting and speedway. In preparation for the new Latvian RX round, a new state-of-the-art rallycross track will be built. The total length of the track is 1,295 metres (780 metres asphalt; 515 metres gravel). The Joker Lap is situated at the end of the circuit and the layout also includes three jumps.
“We are delighted to include the Bikernieki circuit to our calendar of events for 2016 onwards,” said Martin Anayi, World RX Managing Director for series promoter, IMG. . RA Events, the Latvian Government and CSDD have worked incredibly hard to make this happen and the plans for next year’s Latvian World RX round are looking extremely promising. Reinis [Nitiss] is a household name in Latvia having won last year’s Norwegian RX race and Janis [Baumanis] is currently leading the Super1600 standings, so there’s certainly an appetite for our sport in the Baltic region. It’s also very fitting that next year will mark the 50th anniversary of the birth of the Bikernieki track – and what better way to celebrate the occasion than by bringing World RX to Riga.”
