Oliver Solberg heads into the second-half of the 2018 RallyX Nordic season as the driver to beat following his tremendous race-winning start to his title campaign.
Only 16-years old but already well into his second season of rallycross competition, Solberg appeared every inch the experienced competitor during his victorious turns in Arvika and Grenland, results that have earned him a four-point advantage heading into the summer break.
Though a difficult start to the season in Holjes ended with a crash in the final as main rival and defending champion Thomas Bryntesson swept to the top of the podium, Solberg would subsequently haul himself to the top of the leaderboard with two exemplary efforts in the ensuring events.
At the wheel of his trusty OSRX Citroen DS3 – the machine steered to World RX title glory in the hands of his father Petter – Solberg has given the proven package a new lease of life with a fighting performance in Arvika, where he turned around an initial deficit to Bryntesson to snatch victory from his grasp and give his title challenge a significant boost.
Proceeding to follow this up with a perfect weekend in Grenland by winning all three qualifying races, his semi-final and dominating the final, the momentum is with Solberg with three races remaining.
“The season so far has been really good for me with two wins, and it’s hard to pick out just one highlight,” he said. “Obviously the clean sweep in Grenland was fantastic, but I think maybe the battle with Thomas in the final in Arvika stood out for me – it was a really close fight and was a special feeling to win, especially in my home event.”
Ahead of round four in Nysum, Denmark followed by the series’ first visit to Kouvola in Finland and Tierp Arena in Sweden, Solberg is relishing the upcoming challenges as he keeps one eye on the RallyX Nordic title.
“I don’t plan to change my approach for the second half of the season,” he continues. “I will continue to go for the maximum points without taking too many risks. Of course if there’s an opportunity for a win I’ll go for it, but consistency is key as well.
“The next 3 events should be quite exciting with some new tracks in the championship, but me and my team will be prepared and will work hard against some really strong competition to stay at the top of the Championship!”
Round 4 of the 2018 RallyX Nordic season takes place on 10-11 August at Nysum – Purchase your tickets HERE.
