Updated 21.28 | Published 19.54
Three Swedish drivers have won the WC rally in Monte Carlo.
Oliver Solberg can become the fourth – the first since 1971. The 24-year-old leads before Sunday’s decider.
– We have a really good location, he says.
Solberg and his map reader Elliott Edmondson from Great Britain have impressed on the difficult roads in Monte Carlo. Saturday started with studded tyres, on snow and ice, but even that couldn’t stop Solberg who kept command in his Toyota and was praised for his driving.
– I did not expect this from Oliver, says the former world champion and Toyota team manager Jari Matti Latvala.
– If it had been in Sweden, then I could have imagined it, but not in Monte Carlo. He has handled the situation impressively.
The Swede has, despite a run-off and luck into a field, now won six of the thirteen special stages run in the year’s first WC rally. The last one was decided inside the central parts of Monte Carlo, on parts of the track where F1 is decided every year. It is the first time since 2008 that the WRC has run inside the city and it rained heavily throughout the finish. Solberg lost time on the thirteenth and final stage, but retains the lead for Sunday’s finish.
– The first lap was terrible, not good at all, but the second was okay, says Solberg.
– It rained so much and there was so much water on the course that it was terribly difficult. I didn’t want to ruin what had been such a weekend. It’s been a fantastic day and a fantastic weekend so far, although it’s difficult for everyone. I think everyone is slipping around a little bit, but I think I’m in a good position.
He leads by 59.3 seconds over Elfyn Evans before Sunday’s finish. Multiple world champion Sebastien Ogier, who has ten victories in Monte Carlo, is third. He is almost a minute and a half behind the Swede.
– We’ll see tomorrow, but I expect it to be another crazy day.
Four special stages remain in the year’s first WC rally and Oliver Solberg can become the fourth Swedish driver to win the classic rally that has been held since 1911. The last time a Swedish driver won was Ove “Påven” Andersson in 1971.
