Petter Solberg is self-critical

Petter Solberg thought he had finally put himself back on the path to success. With a Citroën C4 WRC, world champion car, the Norwegian had a great weapon to compete with the best. But, during the Rally from Sweden, the 2003 world champion experienced a “nightmare”, finishing ninth in the general classification, more than ten minutes behind the winner, Mikko Hirvonen. But he can't explain it yet.

« We haven't found the answer yet ", Solberg tells wrc.com. “ I had good feelings during practice and I didn't find that feeling again during the rally. I had participated in two minor events and two test sessions on different roads. We had the same conditions but I couldn't find the rhythm. I still lost seven seconds in the super-special! »

« We will find out what happened but, for the moment, I don't want to blame anything or anyone, continues the Norwegian. There are many leads, including myself. Who knows ? Maybe I did too much, too much work, too much stress to find sponsors and put the team on the right track. Maybe I didn't prepare enough. After the rally, I stayed in bed for three days. I was completely flat. »

To perfect his preparation, Petter Solberg will participate in two days of testing at the end of the week. The next rally will take place in Mexico, from March 3 to 7.