Oliver Roy Bennett (born 7 November 1992) is a rallycross driver from Bristol, United Kingdom. He is the co-founder of the Xite Energy drink company, and competes in the FIA World Rallycross Championship and Extreme E for the Xite Energy Racing team.[1][2]
| Oliver Bennett | |
|---|---|
| Nationality |  British |
| Born | 7 November 1992 Bristol, United Kingdom |
| FIA World Rallycross Championship career | |
| Debut season | 2017 |
| Current team | XITE Racing |
| Car number | 42 |
| Starts | 23 |
| Wins | 0 |
| Podiums | 0 |
| British Rallycross Championship | |
| Years active | 2016–2017 |
| Car number | 42 |
| Best finish | 3rd in 2017 (Supercar) |
Early career
editBennett started his racing career competing in motocross from the age of 8, through to 18 when he competed in the European MX championship.
An accident left him unable to continue competition on two wheels so he made the move to four wheels competing in Rallycross.
Rallycross
editIn 2016 he made his debut in British Rallycross Championship racing an ex-OSME Ford Fiesta.[3]
In 2017 he finished on the podium 7 out of 9 races[4] and despite scoring the most points that season, he narrowly miss out on the overall title due to dropped point scores; he also got his first taste of World Rallycross action at Lydden Hill in a one-off race.[5]
Towards the end of the 2017 season, Bennett's team XITE Racing built a rallycross spec BMW MINI Cooper Supercar to compete in the FIA World Rallycross Championship, debuting it in the first round of the British Rallycross season at Silverstone.[6]
His 2018 World RX season started at the first round in Barcelona where he finished with a 15th position in a tough line up and wet conditions.[7]
The team continued their development of the car throughout the year, before Bennett made his Americas Rallycross debut, narrowly missing on semi-finals in his three appearances.[8]
Following the end of the 2018 World RX season, Bennett made his Gymkhana GRiD debut in Cape Town, South Africa.[9]
In 2019 Bennett will be entering the FIA World Rallycross Championship once again, backed by XITE Energy and automotive social media site Drive Tribe.
Dirt Rally 2.0
editBennett's Ford Fiesta rallycross car along with the XITE Racing Mini SX1 is available as a playable car in the Dirt Rally 2.0 game from Codemasters.
Racing record
editComplete FIA World Rallycross Championship results
editSupercar/RX1
edit| Year | Entrant | Car | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | WRX | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Oliver Bennett | Ford Fiesta | BAR | POR | HOC | BEL | GBR 23 |
NOR | SWE | CAN | FRA | LAT | GER | RSA | 39th | 0 |
| 2018 | Oliver Bennett | BMW MINI Cooper | BAR 15 |
POR 16 |
BEL | GBR 21 |
NOR 20 |
SWE 15 |
CAN | FRA 18 |
LAT 20 |
USA | GER 15 |
RSA 18a |
39th | -3 |
| 2019 | Xite Racing | Mini Cooper | ABU 17 |
BAR 17 |
BEL 14 |
GBR 12 |
NOR 14 |
SWE 22 |
CAN 15 |
FRA 19 |
LAT 16 |
RSA 12 |
20th | 12b | ||
| 2020 | Oliver Bennett | Mini Cooper SX1 | SWE | SWE | FIN | FIN | LAT | LAT | BAR 11 |
BAR 14 |
21st | 11 | ||||
| 2021 | Oliver Bennett | Mini Cooper | BAR 12 |
SWE | FRA | LAT | LAT | BEL | PRT | GER | GER | 22nd | 8 |
a Loss of 10 championship points – stewards' decision
b Loss of 10 championship points – stewards' decision
Complete Extreme E results
edit(key)
| Year | Team | Car | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | Pos. | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Hispano-Suiza Xite Energy Team | Spark ODYSSEY 21 | DES Q 5 |
DES R 5 |
9th | 55 | ||||||||
| Xite Energy Racing | OCE Q 6 |
OCE R 6 |
ARC Q 9 |
ARC R 8 |
ISL Q 9 |
ISL R 9 |
JUR Q 9 |
JUR R 9 | ||||||
| 2022 | Xite Energy Racing | Spark ODYSSEY 21 | DES 6 |
ISL1 | ISL2 | COP | ENE | 11th* | 8* |
* Season still in progress.
References
edit- ^ "ENTRY LIST FOR WORLD RX OF PORTUGAL REVEALED". FIA World Rallycross. Retrieved 6 December 2018.
- ^ Prydderch, Hannah Jane (28 May 2021). "Extreme E: Meet Oliver Bennett, Britain's electrifying entrepreneur taking on game-changing championship". The Independent. Retrieved 16 February 2022.
- ^ "Oliver Bennett to race OMSE Fiesta in British RX 2017 | MSA British Rallycross". www.rallycrossbrx.com. Retrieved 6 December 2018.
- ^ "British Rallycross Points | MSA British Rallycross". www.rallycrossbrx.com. Retrieved 6 December 2018.
- ^ Zurli, Tommaso (4 May 2017). "Oliver Bennett to compete in World Rallycross at Lydden". The Checkered Flag. Retrieved 6 December 2018.
- ^ "Bennett to debut Mini Cooper Supercar in British RX at Silverstone | MSA British Rallycross". www.rallycrossbrx.com. Retrieved 6 December 2018.
- ^ "FIA World Rallycross Championship". www.fiaworldrallycross.com. Retrieved 7 December 2018.
- ^ "ARX Austin - Official results" (PDF). www.chronomoto.hu. Retrieved 6 December 2018.
- ^ "Gymkhana Grid". www.gymkhanagrid.com. Retrieved 6 December 2018.