When Kalle Rovanperä announced last October that he would be leaving the World Rally Championship and pursuing his Formula dream, many were understandably worried about the future of the series.
If the brightest star of the sport feels that switching disciplines at the peak of his career is a more appealing option, it does not reflect well on the sport.
However, those concerns quickly faded. Oliver Solberg, promoted by Toyota to fill Rovanperä’s boots, came, saw and conquered. Solberg won the WRC season-opening event in Monte Carlo in completely dominant fashion.
It was reasonable to expect a fairly good performance from Solberg in Monte, but how many truly believed – hand on heart – that he would immediately take a jaw-dropping victory? Probably not very many.
Despite his young age, Solberg is already a fairly experienced driver. He gave a strong indication of his ability last summer, when he won Rally Estonia in commanding style in Toyota’s Rally1 car.
Still, winning Monte – and especially the near outright humiliation of Sébastien Ogier – was something that left many gasping.
Solberg has taken a long and difficult road to the top. He was promoted to Hyundai’s Rally1 car as early as 2021, and in the 2022 season he contested more events with the team’s Rally1 car, but the results were modest. Solberg showed his speed, but tended not to stay on the road.
Hyundai must, however, take a fair share of the blame for this. Under Andrea Adamo’s leadership, the whole team expected him to be the next Kalle Rovanperä, but the expectations were set far too high. Rovanperä was able to deliver results immediately, and the Finn is an exceptionally rare talent.
Solberg worked his way through the WRC2 category in the meantime and matured calmly towards the top. Whereas pressure destroyed him in 2021 and 2022, he is now Rovanperä-like in his iron nerves. The young driver now seems completely immune to pressure.
The comment continues after the image.
Solberg was calm and composed throughout the Monte Carlo weekend – just as he was last summer in Estonia. Small mistakes occurred here and there, but the Swede quickly moved on from them. And now he has also learned the noble skill that not every stage needs a fastest time. Sometimes you can lift off the throttle a little when less is enough. That is a masterful skill.
During the weekend, I spoke with many experienced rally journalists and experts, and the conclusion of our discussions was the same: Solberg could win the world championship as early as this year – and in fact, it can be considered somewhat likely.
The World Rally Championship has gained a new bright star. In Finland, Kalle Rovanperä is of course missed, but in the bigger picture the longing is no longer quite so painful.
And now that Solberg and Rovanperä are being compared to each other, it is worth highlighting that Solberg’s credentials from the always demanding Monte Carlo Rally are already better than those of the Finn. In his first Monte Carlo Rally in 2020, Rovanperä finished fifth overall and, at best, reached second place. Solberg has already taken one victory in the top category in his first two attempts.
Article edited at 19.06: The section comparing Rovanperä’s and Solberg’s performances at the Monte Carlo Rally has been clarified.
