Royal Scandinavia: Oliver Solberg in the lead after the first stage, Mathieu Franceschi 4th

At the end of a day during which the ranking among the top 10 continued to evolve, Oliver Solberg occupies the first place. Constantly battling with Hayden Paddon, the Swede managed to gain a narrow margin of 3”3. Getting off to a bad start and handicapped by his position on the road, Mathieu Franceschi put in a superb performance.

Published 14/06/2024 à 17:55

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Royal Scandinavia: Oliver Solberg in the lead at the end of the first stage, Mathieu Franceschi 4th

Oliver Solberg leads the Scandinavia Rally, but he didn't get through the proceedings (Photo: Red Bull)

The first stage of the Royal Rally of Scandinavia began on Thursday evening with a superspecial stage in Karlstad, the host city. On a very slippery course, Hayden Paddon took control of the race. The gaps, however, remained very close with 12 competitors grouped in 3''. During Friday, the rest of the celebrations consisted of 8 special stages to the northwest of the service park, i.e. a little over 80 timed km.

If the debates took place under the sun, the Nordic summer remained true to its reputation with a nice downpour which added extra suspense. The fight for the leadership chair essentially pitted Hayden Paddon against Oliver Solberg. Contrary to what was expected, the Swede did not crash the race. After two best times (SS2 and 3), Oliver finally took the lead, but he had great difficulty getting rid of the New Zealander. Also aiming for victory, Paddon was able to respond with scratches in SS4 and 5 which allowed him to remain just 1”4 behind Solberg at the midday break.

During SS8, Hayden and Oliver made the longest jumps at Colin's Crest, both reaching 44 meters 🚀#FIAERC | #ERCRoyalRally 🇸🇪 pic.twitter.com/6jqpULoUKT

— European Rally Championship (@FIAERC) June 14, 2024

The battle resumed during the 2^e loop. Solberg first gave himself a little air (SS6) then he had the misfortune to find himself in a storm while his rival remained dry (SS7). Attacking hard in the last two sections, Solberg managed to build a lead of 3”3. He will try to defend it and he will have to be wary of Paddon who has warned that the Saturday sectors would suit him better.

At the wheel of his AMD team Skoda Fabia RS Rally2, Mathieu Franceschi did not get off to a perfect start to his weekend. Ranked only 10^e of the qualification, he could not choose a good starting order and he was forced to settle for 10^{th rank.}Having stalled in Thursday evening's superspecial, he set off in the forest specials in 17^e position 4''9 from the leader. Although undergoing the sweep, he quickly managed to move up the hierarchy. 11^e after SS2, he gained 4 places before returning to the service park. Starting 2^e part of the day with the desire to attack very hard, he achieved a superb 2^e time in SS6 allowing him to pass 6^e. Spared by the rain in SS7, he made further progress (5^e) then signed the best time of SS8 becoming 4^e. Author of another great performance in the last special (2^e), Franceschi finished his Friday just 4”2 from 3^e step of the podium.