Petter Solberg was disappointed not to be on the podium of Rally Finland but could still be really proud of his performance on the popular event.
The Norwegian driver started the final leg of the rally in 2nd place and was expected to challenge Latvala for victory. He struggled however to maintain his good pace on the first loop of stages and quickly lost 2nd place to Ogier. He then faced the assaults of World Champion Sébastien Loeb and conceded 3rd place to the Frenchman after SS16.
There was nothing he could do to regain his position on the podium, on the last three stages, and he ended up with only a four-second gap to Loeb. This was obviously a disappointment for Petter who was so keen on finishing on the podium but he could take a lot of positives out of this weekend, having been able to challenge the factory teams throughout the rally.
“It has been a good rally, and though I am disappointed that I lost my podium, it has been good fun to drive this weekend and to fight with the big teams”, said Petter Solberg. “I really tried to keep Loeb behind me, but I lost too much time on the stages that I didn’t drive last year. You need to experience them to be able to drive them fast. It has been a good close fight both days, the car was perfect and the stages and the atmosphere here fantastic, so – yes, it really has been a good weekend!"
The 4th place this weekend adds another 12 points for Petter in the Championship, and he is now 4th in the overall classification.
Next event is Rally Germany, 20 – 22 August 2010.