Marklund leads first day of World Rallycross at Mettet

Anton Marklund heads the order at the end of day one at Mettet in Belgium, round six of the 2014 World Rallycross Championship.

The Volkswagen Polo driver was fastest in heat one, before setting the second-fastest time in heat two and winning the last race of the heat against team mate Toomas Heikkinen. Marklund took his final corner joker lap on the last tour, and beat Heikkinen in a dash for the finish line, the pair separated by less than a tenth of a second.

Former Swedish Touring Car driver Johan Kristoffersson is making his second appearance of the season, driving a Kristoffersson Motorsport version of the VW Polo, and was fastest in heat two. He is second overnight while Robin Larsson makes it a Swedish one-two-three in third, having his best event since finishing second on his debut at Lydden Hill in May.

Reigning European Champion Timur Timerzyanov is currently 12th after the Russian got turned around in the first corner in heat two but recovered to set 15th-fastest time.

Jacques Villeneuve is 14th overnight. The former Formula 1 and IndyCar champion was involved in first-corner contact in heat two but is well within reach of his first semi-final position if he can increase his position into the top 12 in heats three and four on Sunday morning.

Francois Duval retired from his heat one race after contact in his Marklund Motorsport Polo, but ran on his own in the first race of heat two and set the seventh fastest time, one place behind Petter Solberg. The Belgian driver is 19th heading into day two.

It was a bad day for the OlsbergsMSE team, which has yet to be off the podium in 2014. Andreas Bakkerud retired from heat one with an engine problem and failed to reappear for heat two, while championship leader Reinis Nitiss clashed with Henning Solberg in heat two, the pair colliding as Solberg exited the joker lap, both retiring from the race as a result.