Surprise, surprise. At 19, Oliver Solberg makes the jump to the first division of rallying. The son of the former world champion in 2003, Petter Solberg, will debut in the top category of the World Cup at the next scoring event in Finland. He will race a Hyundai i20 WRC and at 19 he will make a dream come true.
Solberg has become the greatest promise of the specialty, and Hyundai was quick to sign him to race an i20 R5 in WRC2, the prelude to the Champions League of the specialty. After racing in Monte Carlo with this vehicle, the Korean brand’s team has decided that in the Arctic Rally Finland, the second round of the year to be held in Rovaniemi on the last weekend of February, it will compete with a ‘black leg’ car. a WRC. The young man already competed in that same test in January with the R5, finishing third overall and ahead of Valtteri Bottas, competing with a WRC.
“The first thing is to thank Hyundai for giving me this opportunity to gain experience and for trusting me for this rally with the i20 Coupe WRC,” said an excited Solberg. “I am counting down the minutes until I can sit in this fantastic car for the first time. It really is a dream to make my debut in a world rally car with the reigning champions of brands! I’ve driven quite a bit on snow and I know these kinds of conditions well, but the car is completely new to me. The only goal for me in Lapland is to learn and take advantage of the experience. I want to get out of each stage understanding the car more than when I started it. “
The director of the team, Andrea Adamo, for his part has acknowledged that “we are very happy that Oliver has this opportunity. We want to see his level of performance, of course, but there is no pressure on his shoulders in his first time. He has to enjoy. rally and add as much experience as possible. It will be his first performance at the highest level of the world rally, but it is more of a test than anything else. You have to acclimatize and familiarize yourself with the high speed of the car in these winter conditions. We hope to see you at the finish line with much enjoyment and happiness. That is the main objective. “
