Solberg’s campaign ends on a high with WRC2 victory in Chile

The Swede, while already out of contention for the championship title, secured victory at his seventh and final nominated point-scoring round by 25.8sec over fellow Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 driver Gus Greensmith as well as finishing an impressive sixth in the overall rally standings.

Solberg trailed rival Sami Pajari after Friday’s opening leg but overcame two spins and the loss of his driving spectacles to storm past the Finn, who eventually finished third, on Saturday by managing his tyres to perfection in gruelling and abrasive conditions.

“It’s amazing,” smiled Solberg, now a two-time event winner in WRC2. “Finally win again! It's been a long year and, okay, my championship is over now, but it’s still fantastic to race. To finally get a win again is an amazing feeling."

Greensmith dropped time on Friday as he struggled with the balance of his car but kept his title hopes alive by finishing ahead of fourth-placed Yohan Rossel, driving a Citroën C3 Rally2.

Rossel recovered from an engine issue on Friday to finish 1min 35.4sec back from the top spot. He remains second in the championship, having reduced absent leader Andreas Mikkelsen’s advantage to just four points.

Nikolay Gryazin brought his Škoda home in fifth despite rolling on Friday while Emilio Rosselot was the highest-place Chilean driver with sixth in the category.