Scott Speed and the VW Beetle are the First Ever Amercas Rallycross Champions

Scott Speed today earned his fourth straight rallycross driver’s championship title, taking the inaugural season of the Americas Rallycross series.

The series, which takes over from the now-defunct Red Bull Global Rallycross, had a four-event season, which Speed led coming into the final race weekend at Austin, Texas’s Circuit of the Americas.

Scott’s main competition came from his Volkswagen Andretti Rallycross teammate, Tanner Foust, who was in second place. And although Foust won the event this weekend’s final race, Speed had earned enough points over the course of this weekend to be guaranteed the title if he started the weekend’s final heat.

The Beetles finished first and second ahead of Loenbro Hoonigan’s Steve Arpin in a Ford and two Subarus.

The one-two finish in the race and, indeed, the driver’s championship will be familiar to anyone who has kept up with American rallycross racing in the last couple of years. Having won the final three seasons of Red Bull Global Rallycross, Speed has lived up to his name, despite a less than speedy mantra.

“Our mantra for the weekend will be to stay consistent and out of trouble,” said Foust ahead of the weekend. “This is the first chance my family’s had to come to a race this year, so I’m looking forward to enjoying it with them.”

With no official word on the series fate next year, this weekend may have been a finale as well a final for Americas Rallycross. For its part, though, Volkswagen has indicated that it would be interested in racing again next year if the series returns.

[lead image by ARX Rallycross]

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