World RX – Solberg regained confidence in Barcelona

Petter Solberg responded to the pilots Peugeot Timmy Hansen and Davy Jeanney returning to victory in Barcelona (Spain) which hosted the tenth round of the World RX season on September 19 and 20. The reigning world champion won ahead of the Volkswagen Polo of Johan Kristoffersson and the 208 of the Swede and the Frenchman to regain a 35-point advantage over the Scandinavian with three rounds remaining in the season.

“We fought hard to win this event”, admits the 2003 world champion of WRC. “We tested different settings on the car and we had to really we rack our brains to get back in touch with the Peugeots. The 208s kept gaining tenths, but the brilliant engineers at PSRX did an incredible job. »

Timmy Hansen, Petter Solberg's direct rival, had to settle for third place in the final despite starting from pole. “Since the track had been watered just before, I then made a small mistake: I touched the pile of tires”, explained the Swede. “I still managed to stay second. There was then a small gap on Petter. I tried to fill it but I made two or three mistakes which only increased it. I tried everything on the last laps but it wasn't enough. »

Discover the report of the Barcelona World RX event, in issue 2030 of AUTOhebdo, available this evening in digital version, and on newsstands this Wednesday.