Solberg blasted an emphatic fastest time on the 24-kilometre-long Peipsiääre stage. The Swede was 5.3 seconds quicker on the stage than his team-mate Kalle Rovanperä.
Solberg returned to the wheel of a Rally1 car for the first time since the 2022 season. The stunning start brought him to the brink of tears at the stage finish.
“I´m getting emotional. I didn’t come here to win, but this is a dream come true,” Solberg said, holding back tears.
Solberg moved into the rally lead with a 3.8-second gap over Hyundai’s Thierry Neuville. Neuville trails Solberg by 3.8 seconds. Rovanperä, in third place, is 4.5 seconds off the leader.
“It wasn’t my best stage. We need to work and try to improve. It’s still not easy,” said Rovanperä.
Estonia’s own Ott Tänak holds fourth place in the rally. He lost as much as 7.6 seconds to the fastest time on the Peipsiääre stage.
“Grip levels vary a lot, which makes it challenging,” Tänak explained.
World Rally Championship leader Elfyn Evans reported issues with loose gravel. Opening the road, the Welshman dropped a full 11.9 seconds to the stage winner.
“It wasn’t a good stage. There was a lot more loose gravel than I expected,” Evans remarked.
Toyota’s Sami Pajari had some sort of issue with his car. He dropped 21.5 seconds to the fastest time — a significant loss in an ultra-fast gravel rally.
“Something’s not right. We need to go and check it,” Pajari said briefly.
Rally Estonia continues on Friday with six more special stages. The event concludes on Sunday.
Rally Estonia standings after SS2/20:
| POS. | Driver | Car | Time |
| 1. | Oliver Solberg | Toyota | 14:53.7 |
| 2. | Thierry Neuville | Hyundai | +3.8 |
| 3. | Kalle Rovanperä | Toyota | +4.5 |
| 4. | Ott Tänak | Hyundai | +6.4 |
| 5. | Takamoto Katsuta | Toyota | +8.4 |
| 6. | Elfyn Evans | Toyota | +10.6 |
| 7. | Adrien Fourmaux | Hyundai | +18.2 |
| 8. | Sami Pajari | Toyota | +22.2 |
| 9. | Martins Sesks | Ford | +22,3 |
| 10. | Josh McErlean | Ford | +23.8 |
| 11. | Gregoire Munster | Ford | +28.9 |
Rally Estonia Itinerary (CET):
Thursday, 17 July
08.01 Shakedown: Kastre (4.08 km)
19.05 SS1: Tartu vald 1 (1.76 km)
Friday, 18 July
08.16 SS2: Peipsiääre 1 (24.35 km)
09.09 SS3: Mustvee 1 (11.37 km)
10.53 SS4: Peipsiääre 2 (24.35 km)
11.46 SS5: Mustvee 2 (11.37 km)
13.01 Service (40 min)
14.44 SS6: Kambja 1 (23.74 km)
17.04 SS7: Kambja 2 (23.74 km)
18.15 SS8: Elva Linn (1.72 km)
Saturday, 19 July
07.23 SS9: Raanitsa 1 (21.45 km)
08.16 SS10: Kanepi 1 (17.43 km)
09.54 SS11: Raanitsa 2 (21.45 km)
10.47 SS12: Kanepi 2 (17.43 km)
12.22 Service (40 min)
14.05 SS13: Otepää 1 (11.15 km)
15.00 SS14: Karaski 1 (11.97 km)
16.35 SS15: Otepää 2 (11.15 km)
17.30 SS16: Karaski 2 (11.97 km)
18.51 SS17: Tartu vald 2 (1.76 km)
Sunday, 20 July
08.39 SS18: Hellenurme (11.79 km)
09.35 SS19: Kääriku 1 (24.20 km)
12.15 SS20: Kääriku 2 (24.20 km) *Power Stage
