PSRX Volkswagen Sweden driver Petter Solberg was not afraid to express his disappointment after his early exit during the semi-finals at the 2018 World RX of Great Britain.
The Norwegian had looked strong heading into the weekend and was leading the way on the opening day after securing victory in Q1 before finishing second in Q2.
However, a collision with team-mate Johan Kristoffersson in the first semi-final heat proved costly, as the 43-year-old was forced to retire the car due to technical reasons.
“It’s so tough to stop like this in the semi-final,” said Solberg, “We had a good car for the weekend, we were leading overnight and everything was looking good for the final.
“What happened with Johan was really one of those things, but it always hurts a little bit more when it’s a collision with one of your team-mates.”
The Volkswagen pair started side-by-side in semi-final one but on the entry to the first corner, Kristoffersson’s Polo made contact with the left-right wheel of Solberg’s sister car.
Whilst the incident proved to be costly for Solberg, his team-mate Kristoffersson managed to display an impressive recovery drive to chalk up his third victory of the season.
And Solberg was well-aware that it was an opportunity missed on his behalf.
Credit: PSRX Volkswagen Sweden Media Office
“What we can say is that the team has done a fantastic job, the car was so quick here all weekend.
“Even when the grip was harder to find on Sunday, we still made the Polo work,” claimed the two-time FIA World Rallycross champion, “it’s a shame as it would have been fantastic to keep the run going and to make another final, but it didn’t happen.”
Solberg refused to be too downbeat on the weekend’s outcome, and the former WRC champion was excited about the prospect of returning home as the 2018 FIA World Rallycross season heads to Norway in two weeks time.
“Hey, this was a tough Sunday for us, but still the team is extending its lead.
“OK, I have dropped back a little bit, but now we move on and we look forward to Norway,” expressed Solberg, “I’m going home.”
