Oliver Solberg – son of 2003 World Rally champion Petter – has announced details of his tie-up with Škoda Motorsport for the 2020 season.
Škoda has stepped away from running a full factory program in the WRC’s support classes this year, but indicated that it will continue to support young drivers.
Solberg, 18, was soon tipped to be one of those young stars Škoda hooked up with, and on Monday his full plan for 2020 was revealed.
He will enter the WRC3 class on selected WRC rounds in a Škoda Fabia Rally2 evo run in cooperation with Škoda Motorsport.
“Škoda has such an amazing history in the sport of rallying. Look back all the time and you see them there,” said Solberg.
It’s not so difficult to see how this car is so successfulOliver Solberg
“From before I was born Škoda has been building World Rally Cars and more recently the Fabia R5 has been right at the front and winning in the WRC and all around the world for so many years.
“It’s a fantastic honor and a really huge honor for me to drive with the support of Škoda.
“I went to the Škoda Motorsport headquarters in Mladá Boleslav already and, wow, what a cool place that is. It was so impressive.”
Solberg and co-driver Aaron Johnston have already tested the car ahead of their competitive debut in it on Rally Sweden next month.
“It’s not so difficult to see how this car is so successful,” said Solberg.
“I heard they sold already 330 Fabia rally cars around the world and I can say I agree with the decision those customers made!
“It’s a great car with really nice balance, grip and power.”
Last weekend Solberg used his usual Volkswagen Polo for an exploratory Monte Carlo Rally entry.
He finished 26th overall, having set competitive times in R5 but lost 22 minutes to an incident that damaged the car on Saturday morning.
Solberg will continue to contest events in the VW around his Škoda program, as he aims to build maximum experience this season.
