EKS Press Release
As most of you know, my father Bengt Ekström was a rallycross driver when I grew up. Spending time in the paddock as a child was really my first contact with motorsport. Back then I certainly didn't know how all these weekends at different race tracks around Europe would affect my life later on.
Many years went by, but in 2013 I found myself in Munich, invited by my partner Red Bull, as a wild card driver for the X Games. The car, a VW Polo, was built by Marklund Motorsport. Right there and then I was hooked. I wasn't happy about the result in Munich, but the “RX-bug” got stuck in my system. Two weeks later in Swedish Höljes, backed by the same team, we were able to reach the podium. In front of a euphoric audience I finished runner-up. The rest is, as you know (ongoing), EKS history.
During this intensive period I discovered many things I liked about the Marklund family. Jan, the father, was incredibly generous sharing all his experience in order to give me the best possible conditions. Jan's son Anton, who won the RX European Championship in TouringCars in 2012 also shared his experience, despite the fact that we were, to some extent, competitors. This laid the foundation for the very good friendship that now will have great impact on EKS.
In 2015, Anton Marklund and myself will be the drivers for EKS. It is a fact that makes me really happy. We share the same attitude and we are both ready to put our back into it. Anton really knows what it takes to make it, that’s special. He is also a guy that will go very well with our team and he’s a drivers talent that will help us to be winners.
This solution is a joint effort based on exciting discussions. The team and myself will be responsible for Anton's development as a racing driver. In addition to the World RX Anton will also compete in the Audi TT Sport Cup, as one of two Swedish drivers. This brand new Audi one-make cup is part of the DTM so I have every opportunity to pilot Anton also in circuit racing.
With Anton Marklund on board of the EKS team, we’ve come a long way in our preparations for the 2015 FIA World RX Championships. We work intensively hard with our Audi S1 EKS RX quattro to be ready in time before the season begins in late April in Portugal. The next few weeks we hope to get the remaining pieces in place.
Talk to you soon
Mattias
Photo credit: EKS
