Oliver Solberg and co-driver Elliott Edmondson dominated WRC2 at Rally Finland, leading from start to finish in a Škoda Fabia RS Rally2. After round nine of the FIA World Championship Solberg extends his WRC2 lead to 28 points.
Solberg/Edmondson set five fastest WRC2 stage times on Friday and increased their margin across Saturday, securing their third class win of the season by 39 seconds.
Solberg and Edmondson posted the fastest WRC2 times on five of nine stages during the rain-affected Friday, building an early lead that they extended on Saturday.
Lauri Joona and Janni Hussi moved up to third in WRC2, giving Škoda a second car on the class podium.
Despite mixed weather across the weekend, the Toksport WRT entries and TGS Worldwide crews delivered strong results, including a fifth place on overall Rally Finland lap times for Toksport.
Jyväskylä (Finland), 4 August 2024 – Oliver Solberg has taken a big step towards the championship with his WRC2 victory at Rally Finland. The 22-year-old Swede and his British teammate Elliott Edmondson led from start to finish. After the ninth round of the FIA World Championship, Solberg, in a Škoda Fabia RS Rally2, leads the WRC2 standings by 28 points.
Little affected by the ever-changing track conditions during Friday’s rain-soaked race, Solberg/Edmondson posted the fastest WRC2 times on five of the day’s nine stages. The Škoda duo finished the first day 24.1 seconds ahead of their nearest rivals.
Solberg/Edmondson continued their lead in Saturday's race, with two more stage wins taking their lead to 47.6 seconds.
Meanwhile, another team in the TGS Worldwide Škoda Fabia RS Rally2, Lauri Joona and Janni Hussi, moved up to third place in WRC2, meaning a second Škoda on the podium.
With rain also affecting Sunday’s session, Oliver Solberg/Elliott Edmondson focused on maintaining their lead. Although they didn’t record another fastest WRC2 time, they were still able to celebrate their third class win of the season by 39 seconds. “It was a great weekend, thanks a lot to the team, the Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 was perfect as always. It’s great to get another win.”
With this result, Solberg extended his overall WRC2 lead over runner-up Sami Pajari (Toyota) to 28 points. The Toksport WRT team even finished fifth in the Rally Finland overall standings based on lap times.
The top three of the WRC Masters Cup was an all-Škoda affair. Mexican Ricardo Triviño and teammate Diego Fuentes from Spain won the over-50s category. Turkey's Uğur Soylu/Sener Guray finished second. The third Škoda team on the podium was Italian duo Maurizio Chiarani/Flavio Zanella.
WRC2 Rally Finland results, 1-4/8/2024:
WRC2/Driver Standings (after 9 of 13 events):