Volkswagen Team Sweden

Johan had a plan, wastes no energy and is looking for a new concept.

"When I arrived in Hell I took a walk on the track and thought it looked quite fun, technically challenging. In the beginning of the practice I managed well, but later on we couldn't find any more pace. It didn't get better during the weekend. Despite that, it all went well and the starts were good. I got off to a really good start from fourth lane in the first heat. To summarize, it was a quite special weekend. In the races before we have had the pace, but have been in the wrong position at the wrong time. Now we didn't have the pace, but still went into the semifinal in the second row. My plan was to follow Petter and keep as tight to his bumper as possible to secure my place in the final."

But that wasn't to be. You were punished for having been too late for pre-grid, after discovering an empty battery too late, and you weren't allowed to start. That must have felt terrible.

"Of course it was disappointing, but it seems like everybody else have been more upset than me. This was a nonsense thing that I could do nothing about. In that situation it is unnecessary to waste your energy on that. When I saw PG arriving at the start I realized I was not going to be part of it."

There were other problems to focus on as well, Ole Christian having to park his car with a broken engine.

"Of course we were sad for Ole Christian's sake, having to give up his home contest, but opposite to Canada and the problems with Tord's car, this was a problem that didn't affect my driving. Then we had a problem that I had to adjust to in my own driving. Now, there was a tensioner that broke on Ole Christian's car, a problem that I didn't have to adjust to as for my own driving.

You have said earlier that the circuits waiting after Hell don't suit you at all.

"Our aim is to finish top-three at the end of the season, but I don't think we stand a chance of doing that if we can't find another concept during the coming weeks. To be able to do that we need to do some testing with the car. It remains to be seen if we can find enough time for that and if the budget allows us to do it. For my own being I think I will need to take more risks henceforth. I have been driving a bit on the safe side so far to gain my points but I think it will take more in the coming races."

During the week there have been talks about a challenger to Höljes for the Swedish round of the World Championship, Tierp.

"Right now I can't see anyone challenging Höljes, not in the whole series to be honest. So far, they have been the single organizer to manage the gravel parts in a good way and they present a fantastic event, for the drivers, for the audience, for everyone."

The weekend off now. Any plans?

"Not that much off. Friday-Saturday I do a job for Bauhaus in Stockholm. But then I'm going to at 50 years party. It's the birthday of my mother-in-law's sister. Apart from that I hope to find space for some physical exercise again. I caught a cold right before Hell, and it's not until now, in the middle of the week, that I've been starting to feel well again."