Oliver Solberg after the Rally Sweden: "We are in a very good position"

Far from the idyllic image of Rally In Monte Carlo, Oliver Solberg experienced his first difficulties behind the wheel of the Toyota Rally1. Opening car on the first day of this Rally Sweden, the local driver nevertheless did not want to be alarmist at the end of this weekend which was somewhat disappointing in terms of the raw result.

"There are still some positive things to take away from this weekend, he tempered his remarks on the AUTOhebdo microphoneOn Friday, the goal was to finish fourth. That was the best result I could achieve here. Gaining one or two more points would have been better, of course, but we still gained valuable points for the championship. We're in a very good position.

Forced to acknowledge the superiority of his teammate Elfyn Evans despite his four stage wins, Oliver Solberg is not ruling out any Toyota driver in the title race. The Welshman, already well-placed after the Monte Carlo Rally (second overall), finds himself this Sunday, February 15th, in the role of championship leader. WRC from now on.

"Elfyn did an extremely good job this weekend," added the SwedeHe's very consistent, he hasn't made any mistakes. It's the first time I've opened the road in this car. It's not easy, but it's a big gain in terms of experience. On Friday, for example, I didn't have the best feeling behind the wheel.

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Focused on the next round of the World Championship, Oliver Solberg will therefore not be opening the road in Kenya. In conditions far removed from the snow of this early season, he is more optimistic. "I love Kenya. The atmosphere there is incredible," he commented with a smile. It's a very complicated race. There's no question of pushing to the limit there, and since we don't have much experience with the car, it might be a bit easier in those conditions. The most important thing is that our championship position is good today. Now, we need to be consistent throughout the year.

So, mark your calendars for March 12-15 to follow the third round of the WRC.

Interview by Pierre Barré, in Umeå, Sweden.