WRC
Solberg weathers the Monte snow to retain control on Saturday morning
Oliver Solberg negotiated a demanding Saturday morning at Rallye Monte-Carlo to remain in control of the event.,
The longest stage of the rally, La Bréole / Bellaffaire, lived up to its reputation on its first pass. Entirely covered by snow and ice, the 29.93km test demanded restraint as much as speed.
Nine-time world champion Sébastien Ogier mastered the conditions to take the stage win and more than halve Elfyn Evans’ advantage in their fight for second overall. Solberg, meanwhile, opted for a measured approach, setting the fourth-fastest time and seeing his overnight buffer trimmed to 51.4sec.
The Swede’s patience paid off on the following Vaumeilh / Claret test. With conditions evolving quickly and visibility poor in places, Solberg delivered a decisive response, winning SS11 by 11.4sec to stretch his lead back out to 1min 02.8sec heading into mid-leg service in Gap.
“The studs are working now, it’s a bit more easy,” Solberg explained. “I felt a little more comfortable in there.”
Evans also regained momentum in the fight for second, outpacing Ogier by 7.3sec on SS11 to open a 10.3sec gap between the pair. Both Toyota drivers cited rapidly changing grip and unreliable ice notes as the road cleaned faster than expected.
© Toyota
Adrien Fourmaux continued a consistent run for Hyundai in fourth overall, while Thierry Neuville remained fifth as he focused on rebuilding confidence following his off-road moment late on Friday.
After tyre issues on the opening stage of the morning, Jon Armstrong’s form improved following set-up changes, allowing the M-Sport Ford driver to consolidate sixth overall. Hayden Paddon maintained a cautious but controlled approach in seventh.
In WRC2, Léo Rossel retained the class lead but saw his advantage trimmed to just 15.7sec over Nikolay Gryazin, who continues to impress on his Lancia Rally2 debut. Takamoto Katsuta, meanwhile, fought his way back up to 10th overall after being slowed by power steering problems on Friday.
Crews now return to Gap for service before tackling a second pass of La Bréole / Bellaffaire this afternoon, followed by the Monaco Circuit street stage to round off Saturday’s itinerary.
