Points more important than Finland win, says Solberg

30th July 2010

By Charlie Contadeli

Petter Solberg says securing a top three finish in the final world championship standings would mean more to him than victory on Rally Finland, which concludes with eight stages tomorrow (Saturday).

Citroen privateer Solberg trails Ford’s Jari-Matti Latvala by 9.1 seconds heading into the final day of the high-speed gravel event.

A second place finish for the Norwegian would put him within touching distance of third place in the drivers’ table and would mean he would achieve his pre-season target of a top three overall finish.

“It’s looking good for the championship if I finish where I am,” said Solberg. “Okay a win in Finland would be special but I will not fight like I did in New Zealand just to get something. I will be smart.”

Latvala, meanwhile, said leading in Finland was “like a dream” but said he was fully aware of the challenge ahead.

“It’s a dream for me to be in this position,” said Latvala. “I have always been hoping to win Rally Finland. Okay there are many stages to go still but to win Rally Finland everything needs to be perfect. But I am working for that. The first two stages tomorrow are going to be very difficult and the third stage will have a lot of loose gravel so it’s not going to be easy.”