WRC
President Peña hopes to bring Solberg his winning touch
One time was simply not enough for Paraguay's President Santiago Peña, who returned to ueno Rally del Paraguay shakedown for a second year running – this time taking a ride alongside Oliver Solberg.
After sitting alongside Sébastien Ogier at shakedown one year ago, Peña watched as the Frenchman went on to win the rally. Now, Solberg will be hoping the President’s good fortune can rub off on him in the same way in 2026.
“Last year I jumped into a car with Sébastien here, who was hoping to reach the top…and I asked him one thing. I said, ‘Séb, you cannot slow down with me, because if you slow down, people are going to think, okay, the President's not ready for this. So you need to speed up.’
“He sped up, he beat his own time, and at the end he won the Rally of Paraguay, and at the end he won the championship.
President Santiago Peña was all smiles following his co-drive
© Jaanus Ree
“So this year, when I was thinking about who I'm going to jump [in with], they said: ‘No, no, too much of an advantage if you go again with Ogier here.’ So I asked, can I jump with Oliver Solberg?”
Following their run through the 5.60km Carmen del Paraná shakedown stage, President Peña was all smiles, joking that he would be ready to step in and co-drive for Solberg should regular co-driver Elliott Edmondson be unavailable.
“I feel blessed because this is a life experience, to be next to such a wonderful guy like Oliver. Not only a great driver, but here in Paraguay he made such a great impact from last year, from the moment that he stepped [off the plane]. So everybody is cheering for him, and I'm also cheering for him.
President Santiago Peña and Vice President Pedro Alliana at shakedown
© Jaanus Ree
“Maybe I'm going to be raising my glass to cheer with him on Sunday afternoon.”
Asked about his thoughts on Sunday, Solberg smiled: “He’s my lucky charm, so we will try our best.”
Looking ahead to the weekend as a whole, President Peña stressed the importance of fan behaviour and respect for marshals and officials.
National hero Diego Dominguez with President Santiago Peña
© Jaanus Ree
“All the crowd, [we are] always asking them to behave, to be really mindful about the security. This is the most important thing.
“I arrived this morning. I heard that yesterday there was a beautiful classic car parade and a lot of people in the service park, so very happy.”
Also joining President Peña at shakedown was Vice-President Pedro Alliana, who got his first taste aboard a Rally1 car alongside Ogier.
