About 16,000 motorsport fans came to see the GP Ice Race event in Zell am See, Austria. ŠKODA drivers entertained visitors in the Ice Race of Champions, where four top rally drivers battled for victory in their ŠKODA FABIA R5 evos. In the end, German champion Fabian Kreim became the master of the snow arena, followed by Austrian vice-champion Julian Wagner. The third place in the final ranking went to the Slovak champion Martin Koči and the fourth to the European junior champion Filip Mareš, from the Czech Republic.
The unique GP Ice Race event took place during the first weekend of February and brought together about 150 drivers in both historical and modern racing and rally cars. ŠKODA Motorsport organized a special competition in which the four successful drivers measured their strength in a series of duels. They had a pair of identical ŠKODA FABIA R5 evo cars (one in red and one in green), as well as all the facilities and support of the factory team.
To win the Ice Race of Champions, it was necessary to achieve the highest total of points from the Saturday and Sunday rides. Fabian Kreim became the Champion among Champions after winning on Saturday and finishing second on Sunday. Kreim, by the way, also won the kart race of champions in December, where the competition was even tougher. Julian Wagner was behind him, taking third place on Saturday and first on Sunday. The third man on the podium was Martin Koči, who was second on the first day and fourth on Sunday. For the fourth, Filip Mareš, the event was a great opportunity to prepare for the upcoming Swedish Rally.
Jan Kopecký, 2018 WRC 2 world champion and seven-time Czech champion, won his category at last year's GP Ice Race with ŠKODA FABIA R5. He enjoyed this year's race as a coach for young drivers, and at the same time, entertained the crowd with demonstration runs in a ŠKODA FABIA R5 evo.
