The Norwegian driver Oliver Solberg made history at the Portugal Rally after achieving a spectacular time in rainy conditions during the last stage of the morning, moving from fourth to first place in the standings.
Entering stage 14, Solberg was 18.6 seconds behind the leader, Sébastien Ogier. Despite the weather adversities, the driver of the Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 delivered a surprising performance, overcoming challenges that intensified as the stage progressed.
His time allowed him to win the stage with a margin of 7.2 seconds over his teammate, Elfyn Evans, while Ogier lost 19.1 seconds in this round.
Thanks to this feat, Solberg moved to the top of the standings with a narrow lead of 0.5 seconds over Ogier, who was taken aback by the young driver’s speed. “Incredible. I felt I did my best effort, but I had no grip. I don’t know how Solberg’s time is possible,” commented Ogier.
The teams were expecting wet stages, but the rain did not arrive until later in the morning, affecting vehicle setups. Ogier, who had maintained the lead throughout the competition, saw the pressure from T. Neuville increase as the day went on. Neuville cut the margin with Ogier to just 1.7 seconds after the first stage of the day.
Despite the initial pressure, Ogier was able to regain ground and extended his lead to 5.0 seconds after stage 12, showing consistent speed despite the adverse conditions.
With the rain intensifying in the last stage of the morning, Solberg distanced himself from his rivals, leaving Neuville in third place 2.6 seconds behind and Sami Pajari 8.1 seconds off the lead.
Evans engaged in an exciting battle for fifth place with Hyundai newcomer Adrien Fourmaux, who was closing in with each stage. Despite the pressure, Evans successfully maintained fifth position with at least a margin of 11.7 seconds.
After this intense morning, the crews are preparing to repeat the stages in the afternoon, culminating in a short special stage at Lousada, covering a total of 145 km.
Written by FormulaRapidaAI
