Petter Solberg took a creditable fourth place in Rally Mexico, scoring valuable points for the championship.
It was more than the Norwegian expected after losing several minutes on Friday’s leg. He was 13th overall on Saturday morning but climbed up the order and was promoted to 4th when Ogier went off the road on SS20 while leading.
Solberg took a gamble on Sunday morning in deciding to carry only one spare tyre on the final loop – with the intention of keeping his car light. He hoped to score the three extra points awarded to the fastest driver in the Power Stage but was pipped to it by Mikko Hirvonen and Sébastien Loeb.
“It’s been a good weekend”, commented Petter. “Considering the time lost after the problems on Friday, being fourth today is really good! We have definitely proved we have the speed, and bringing home 13 points is good. There have been a few minor issues with the new car but we managed to solve them and know what caused it. Now we are preparing for Portugal.”
As of Rally Mexico, Petter Solberg World Rally Team is entered as a manufacturer team and thus eligible to score points in the manufacturers’ championship.