With Rally Finland still some time off, former WRC champion has been offered a chance to pilot a Citroen C4 that is set up with 2008 specifications. This car would be nearly identical to those used by the Citroen Junior’s team but issues have come to light.
At this moment, the ride would be rented for Finland and the price is a little stiff for the Norweigian to pay. While he has recieved sponsorship from Shell, it is really only enough to keep him around for this year and next with the supplies he has. While many options have been put on the table, at this time, it is only realistic for him to drive the 06 dated Xsara he currently uses. These talks come after Solberg had been testing a number of cars to potentially race over the Xsara. Solberg tested a Peugeot 307 and an Abarth Super 2000. There were also talks of Petter entering the Abarth into the WRC Super 2000 Cup next season provided the manufacturer was able to supply the equipment. Citroen has countered with a possibility to run the C4 in the remaining three rallies of the year.
Solberg currently suffers badly on fast rallies as the Citroen does not have enough power. However, the Xsara has proven more than capable on the smaller rallies where the former champ has placed solidly in the top five all year. Given solid equipment, there is no question in my mind Petter would challenge for victories. The 2008 C4 has been great for the Juniors, more specifically Sebastian Ogier who has really come on strong the last couple events. Either way, Solberg is looking to make a splash at the end of the year and set himself up for next season’s championship.
