Sebastien Loeb's Lancia Delta EV Racer Destroyed in Paddock Fire During Charging

This report has been updated with the most recent details on the cause of the fire as of July 24th, 2023.

Last month, Special ONE Racing debuted two spectacular electric rallycross cars styled to look like vintage Lancias. Unfortunately, those Lancia Delta Evo-e RX racers were destroyed in a paddock fire on Friday, along with one of the team's two workshop trucks.

The fire occurred in the paddock area at Lydden Hill, the venue hosting the fourth round of this season's World Rallycross Championship. Special ONE, the team that fields the Lancias for both Guerlain Chicherit and all-time rallying great Sebastien Loeb, says that nobody was hurt in the inferno. They also note that an investigation is underway to determine what caused the fire, adding that "[the team] can already state that no handling errors were made by the staff of the Special ONE Racing team, nor by those of its partners."

While the results of that final investigation have not yet been announced, a release from the FIA World Rallycross Championship sheds some light on the situation. That official document says that video evidence shows the fire starting in the battery area of one car as it was charging, although it adds that the reason this led to a fire is still unclear. The report also notes that "only extreme quick thinking from team members" prevented major injuries here.

A video shared to Instagram by user _Rallycross_ shows the massive fire engulfing both cars. The blaze was eventually controlled, but not before engulfing both rallycross cars and one of the team's two shop trucks.

While it is still unclear what actually caused the fire in that first battery, it is worth noting that both Lancias are electric cars with sizable batteries. That not only potentially makes a fire a bigger hazard, but creates a unique problem for race tracks that typically deal with very different kinds of fire. The area was fully evacuated and nobody was injured, but, even with an on-site fire crew, the fire was not stopped quickly enough to preserve the cars themselves.

In a release put out after the fire, Special ONE thanked its supporters for their interest in the now-burned cars: "For the moment, the team would like to thank all those who have sent messages of encouragement since Friday, and more generally since the start of the adventure in April. We're proud of the response to our two magnificent Delta Evo-e RXs, of which all that remains today are photos and videos."

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