The 2022 Race of Champions comes to an end with Sebastian Vettel losing to rallying legend Sebastien Loeb in the finals.
The 2022 edition of RoC was a hugely anticipated one. It was the first time since 2019, that this event took place and it featured some big names from the world of racing.
In the team event, Germany were not able to do much after Vettel lost three out his four heats on Saturday. He even lost to e-sports driver Lucas Blakely in the opening round. This came as a shock to everyone, who had Vettel chosen as a clear favorite.
Blakely and 2021 F1 e-sports Champion Jarno Opmeer were a part of the eROC all-stars team. They earned a drive in the real world after qualifying for the finals in their virtual event.
Oh Seb…! 😂😂😂#ROCSweden pic.twitter.com/MPF8EoZqJe
— #ROCSweden (@RaceOfChampions) February 6, 2022
Vettel eventually made up for his mistakes and along with his partner Mick Schumacher, defeated the e-sports drivers. However, they couldn’t make further strides in the team event, losing their bout against the American team of Colton Herta and Jimmie Johnson.
Sebastian Vettel’s fortunes turned around on Sunday. The second day of the RoC was for individual events and Vettel fought his way into the finals. In the finale, he came up against the most successful driver in World Rallying Championship history, Sebastien Loeb.
Loeb beats Sebastian Vettel 3-1 in the Champion of Champions Final
On his way to the final, Vettel defeated Emma Kimilainen, Colton Herta and Tom Kristensen. Meanwhile, his teammate Schumacher lost to two-time W-Series Champion Jamie Chadwick in his race.
Loeb on the other hand had to work harder to reach the Champion of Champions Final. He had to beat the Norwegian duo of Peter and Oliver Solberg, who won the team event on Saturday. His victory over them was followed by a win over Mattias Ekstrom.
It’s @SebastienLoeb who becomes the 2022 ROC Champion of Champions!
Loeb equals Didier Auriol with a record four wins after holding off a hard-charging Sebastian Vettel at #ROCSweden. 🔥🔥🔥
Hats off to both legends! 👏 pic.twitter.com/hXvQ5zrx3F
— #ROCSweden (@RaceOfChampions) February 6, 2022
In the final event, Loeb went up 2-0 fairly comfortably. A mistake made by the Frenchman in the third round gave the four-time F1 Champion some hope, but in the end Loeb prevailed.
This was Sebastien Loeb’s fourth Champion of Champions victory. He is now tied with Didier Auriol as the most successful driver in this event, of all time.
