| Petter Solberg |
| After meeting Petter Solberg at the New Zealand Rally in 2000 he has been my favorite WRC driver ever since and will continue to be as well. So far this season he has done very well and his latest result in Acropolus has ended with a great 2nd following Colin over the line. |
| Date of birth:- 18 November 1974 Place of birth:- Askim, Norway Lives:- Spydeburg, Norway Marital Status:- Lives together with Pernilla Walfridsson First Rally:- 1996 First World Rally:- 1998 Hobbies:- Cycling, squash, Films Website:- www.pettercolberg.com Career Highlights:- 1998 Group A Hillclimbing Champion 1997 Norwegion Hillclimbing Champion 1996 Norwegion Hillclimbing and Rallycross Champion 1995 Norwegion Hillclimbing and Rallycross Champion |
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| At just 2 years of age, Norway's Petter Solberg is regarded as one of the world rallying's ascendant stars. Recently signed to the Subaru World Rally Team, Petter looks set to follow in the footsteps of previous talented newcomers like Richard Burns and Colin McRae, whose careers took off with the team. Like team-mate Burns, Solberg started his driving careeer very early on. From eight years old he was encouraged to drive different kinds of cars on the fields around his parents farm in Spydeburg, 50km east of Oslo. Petter's parents were both keen rallycross drivers, and Petter and his older brother Henning inherited their facination with cars. By the time he was 11, he was already helping his parents build and maintain their autocross cars. Although still too young to get behind the wheel of a competition car himself, Petter started racing radio-controlled cars instead and showed some of his competitive petential by becoming Norwegion Champion at the age of 13. His first 'life-sized event' came the day after he passed his driving test in 1992, aged 18. He took part in in a round of the Norwegion Autocross Championship and in 1993 contested his second race, which he won. He quickly progressed from autocross to rallycross and then to hillclimbing, using a Ford Escort Mk2 which his brother given him. In 1995, Petter aquired a Volvo 240, also from Henning, and became the Norwegion Champion in both rallycross and hillclimbing, a feat he was to repeat in 1996, winning 19 of the 21 events he started. In September 1996, Petter made his rally debut using another car from his brother, this time a Toyota Celica ST165. Unfortunatly his first rally was cut short when he went off the road and damaged the car badly. By 1997, however, he acquired another car, an ex-Thomas Radstrom Toyota Celica ST185, which he used once again to win the Norwegion Hillclimbing Championship, and to finish 5th in the Norwegion Rally Championship. In 1998, Petter moved on to a Toyota Celica ST205. With the celica he won the Group A Norwegion Rally Championship and made his World Rally Debut in the Swedish Rally where he finished 14th overall. He also took part in the ally of Great Britain but retired after a accident. In 1999, Petter was signed to drive for Ford World Rally Team and made his works debut in Sweden driving a Escort WRC with Phil Mills as his new co-driver. Later that year the misfortune of one of Petter's team-mates was to give the affable Norwegion a massive career boost. When Thomas Radstrom was injured just before the Safari Rally, Petter flew out as a last minute replacement and despite no real experience of the event, or the new Focus WRC car, he drove to a excellent fifth place overall. As his Kenya result, which established his as one of the top new generation drivers, Petter went on to score 11th place in Portugal and a ninth in the Rally of Great Britain. Petter stayed on with Ford for the first half of the 2000 season where he again displayed his maturity in Kenya to secure fifth place, quickly followed by a sixth place in Argentina and on his first visit to New Zealand, he narrowly missed a podium finish with his career-best fourth place. In August 2000, Petter moved to join the Subaru World Rally Team, working alongside young World Championship Contender, Richard Burns. The rest of 2000 season was largely a testing and familiarisation exercise for Petter to let him get used to the Subaru Impreza WRC2000 before commencing a full season with the team in 2001. With his contract with Subaru rumoured to be increased to 2004 many expect great things to come from this talented individual. |