Tommy Kristoffersson rues post-qualifying penalties ahead of Solvalla opener
Kristoffersson Motorsport team boss Tommy Kristoffersson remains confident that his son Johan Kristoffersson can still achieve a podium finish in the first Scandinavian Touring Car Championship race at Solvalla, after being stripped of pole.
Johan Kristoffersson set his best time under yellow flags during Friday’s first segment of qualifying, after both Nicklas Oscarsson and Mattias Andersson spun at the final corner.
Boss Tommy was philisophical about the incident, but believed a “simple” mistake could be easily rectified come race one.
“It’s one of those things,” Tommy Kristoffersson told TouringCarTimes. “Johan didn’t see the yellow flag, he saw the first car in the gravel (Oscarsson) and when that moved away he didn’t see the second.
“He’s done many races but this is the first time that it has happened. It’s not good but he can make progress from fourth in the race.”
Pole for race two and three for the leading KMS Volkswagen Golf GTI still keeps Johan Kristoffersson the favourite for victories, but championship leader Fredrik Ekblom will need to fight through from fifth in race three after failing a ride height check after qualifying late last night.
“It was pretty close with the ride height. It took some time for us to get the car on the scale because we are in a stadium so we didn’t find out until quite late. But P5 is okay for him as it only applies to his Q3 time,” Tommy Kristoffersson said to TouringCarTimes.
