The championship began at the Rajd Świdnicki, where Nivette faced a stern challenge early on. But he soon found his groove and eight fastest times in the final nine special stages saw him ease to a comfortable victory by a margin of 38.9 seconds.
It was a perfect start, and he managed to carry the winning form into the second round at the Rajd Gdańsk too. This is the only gravel round of the Polish championship so offers a very different test, but Nivette dominated again. He led from start to finish, winning eight of the nine stages driven to finish a sizable 52.3 seconds ahead of the field. It was his second successive win at this event.
Next up was the Rajd Rzeszowski which - as well as being the third round of the Polish Rally Championship - was also on the FIA European Rally Championship calendar. In a fiercely competed rally, an early puncture cost them valuable time and while they kept pace with the leaders, they were not able to close that gap. They ended up eleventh overall, but sixth in the Polish standings and that was enough to retain their championship lead.
Round 4 was the Rajd Dolnoślaski, which saw Nivette quickly back to winning ways. It was another dominant display, especially after his main rival and fellow FABIA R5 driver Dominykas Butvilas was forced to retire. In the end, Nivette won eight of the nine stages to cruise to victory by a huge margin of 1 minute 21 seconds. It was a crucial win, as well as a repeat of his victory here in 2016, and left him with a 39 point lead at the top of the championship.
Filip Nivette at the Polish Rally Championship 2017
That meant he could clinch the title with a good performance at the penultimate round, the Rajd Nadwiślański. But he didn’t have everything his own way at this event. A stiff challenge from Bryan Bouffier pushed Nivette all the way, but after the Frenchman crashed out on stage 7, the path was left clear for Nivette. To his credit, he continued to push, winning all the remaining stages to win the rally by 1 minute and 29 seconds.
And that result meant that - regardless of the outcome of the Rajd Śląska, which Nivette didn’t drive - he would be crowned Polish rally champion for 2017.
Nivette ended the season with four wins from the five rounds of the Polish championship he drove. He impressed with the consistently high levels of performance he delivered throughout the season and looks to be well placed to dominate the Polish Rally scene for many years to come.
The championship began at the Rajd Świdnicki, where Nivette faced a stern challenge early on. But he soon found his groove and eight fastest times in the final nine special stages saw him ease to a comfortable victory by a margin of 38.9 seconds.
It was a perfect start, and he managed to carry the winning form into the second round at the Rajd Gdańsk too. This is the only gravel round of the Polish championship so offers a very different test, but Nivette dominated again. He led from start to finish, winning eight of the nine stages driven to finish a sizable 52.3 seconds ahead of the field. It was his second successive win at this event.
Next up was the Rajd Rzeszowski which - as well as being the third round of the Polish Rally Championship - was also on the FIA European Rally Championship calendar. In a fiercely competed rally, an early puncture cost them valuable time and while they kept pace with the leaders, they were not able to close that gap. They ended up eleventh overall, but sixth in the Polish standings and that was enough to retain their championship lead.
Round 4 was the Rajd Dolnoślaski, which saw Nivette quickly back to winning ways. It was another dominant display, especially after his main rival and fellow FABIA R5 driver Dominykas Butvilas was forced to retire. In the end, Nivette won eight of the nine stages to cruise to victory by a huge margin of 1 minute 21 seconds. It was a crucial win, as well as a repeat of his victory here in 2016, and left him with a 39 point lead at the top of the championship.
Filip Nivette at the Polish Rally Championship 2017
That meant he could clinch the title with a good performance at the penultimate round, the Rajd Nadwiślański. But he didn’t have everything his own way at this event. A stiff challenge from Bryan Bouffier pushed Nivette all the way, but after the Frenchman crashed out on stage 7, the path was left clear for Nivette. To his credit, he continued to push, winning all the remaining stages to win the rally by 1 minute and 29 seconds.
And that result meant that - regardless of the outcome of the Rajd Śląska, which Nivette didn’t drive - he would be crowned Polish rally champion for 2017.
Nivette ended the season with four wins from the five rounds of the Polish championship he drove. He impressed with the consistently high levels of performance he delivered throughout the season and looks to be well placed to dominate the Polish Rally scene for many years to come.
