Photo: Nika Racing

Rickard Rydell looking forward to Shanghai challenge

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Rickard Rydell is looking forward to his one-off return this weekend with Nika Racing at the Shanghai International Circuit, a track where neither he nor the team has raced before.

The 2011 STCC champion will take part in his first World Touring Car Championship race since Monza in March 2012, and his first since the season finale of the 2012 Scandinavian Touring Car Championship at Solvalla last September.

”I’m really looking forward to this weekend – it will be great fun,” said Rydell. “There’s very limited running ahead of qualifying and I haven’t raced at all for over one year, but I’ll simply have to do the best I can and enjoy the ride.

“I’ve done everything I can to prepare. I’ve gone through various set-ups with my engineer, studied the circuit, and even began turning the hours around back home in Sweden to acclimatise to the Shanghai time zone. It’s difficult to know what to expect, but I’m aiming for points in both races and it’s going to be great to be back on track.”

Nika Racing will feature new sponsorship from Shanghai-based, Swedish sweet company Fillidutt this weekend, with the team still working hard on plans to continue in the WTCC next season, with team principal Nicklas Karlsson hoping that Rydell could be a part of their next year’s line-up.

“We very much look forward to having Rickard back behind the wheel of a Nika Racing car,” said Karlsson.

“He is one of a handful of drivers we’re talking to for the future, and I’m convinced that he will do a strong job. I’d also like to welcome Fillidutt to our treasured group of partners. The FIA WTCC offers a fantastic platform, and this new agreement is yet another example of that. We continue to work flat-out for 2014, and I’m thrilled to say that we’ll have some exciting news coming up shortly.”