Solberg reflects on Finland win: "Even better than last year"

Registering for WRC2 points brought further intensity to the 22-year-old’s Finland entry for this season, but he stepped up and delivered a commanding start-to-finish victory in Jyväskylä. And this time he finished fifth overall.

“When we finished sixth last year, I was so happy,” said Solberg. “I couldn’t imagine a better result with this car – but we did it. I’m so happy for the whole team and for Elliott [Edmondson, co-driver] and me.

“We worked really hard for this one. Like everybody talked about the conditions on the first day were not easy with the grip changing all of the time – and it was tough because Jari [-Matti Latvala, competition in Toyota GR Yaris Rally2] was quite a few cars behind us on the road and we didn’t know what conditions he was getting. When it rained for us, was it raining for him?

“We stayed sensible, kept the car in the middle of the road and didn’t take any big risks. Like I said, last year was a really good result – but this one was even better. Winning in Finland is something very, very special.”