Oliver Solberg won the one-off Rally Sweden Lockdown last weekend after defeating Pontus Tidemand in the final of the event.
Solberg, co-driven by his mum Pernilla for the single-stage shootout using the Torsby Sprint test, beat a field of drivers including Tidemand and former World Rallycross champion Mattias Ekström to claim the victory.
The competition was created with social distancing in place at all times, ensuring the safety of every competitor and team personnel, with the event also being shown on Swedish TV channel SVT.
A delighted Solberg said on his win: “It was a really tight fight at the end, but to win is something special for me and my mum. It’s been a long time out of the car and I want to say a very big thanks to everybody who made this happen – the organisers and, of course, SVT for the television coverage. They have done an amazing job.”
“It’s easy to sit at home and think: “I wish we could go rallying again…” but these guys stood up and made it happen. Thank you.”
“Now we want to look forward to the second half of the season and hope we can have some more events to come. Rally Sweden Lockdown has been fantastic – but I hope this is the only time we need to run an event like this!”
The final of the 2.6km stage saw Solberg win by 2.6 seconds ahead of fellow world competitor Tidemand and the victory also ensured Pernilla continued her strong rallying record having won four of the last five Rally Sweden Historics.
She added on co-driving for her son for the first time: “I have to say, I was very impressed with how he listened and committed to the notes. Fantastic. Like Oliver said, we have to thank so many people for their efforts.”
“Of course SVT and the organisers, but also all the marshals and the Torsby community for making this happen and pulling this amazing Sunday afternoon off! I’m so proud to be Oliver’s mum today, he was fantastic and driving really, really well.”
Highlights of the Rally Sweden Lockdown event will also be available on WRC+ on Monday evening.
