PSSC visit – Finland

Norwegian members of PSSC travelling to Rally Finland 2009.

The weekend started with a Superspecial, and after 3 hrs of waiting at Killeri, we finally got to see Petter racing his brother Henning. A brilliant start!

Being on a rally means early mornings, as you don’t want to miss any of the action. Dressed in our new t-shirts and with Norgwegian flags we had a lot of fun out in the Finish forests. We visited Petter Solberg World Rally Team every evening, as invited dinner guests. Both Petter and Pernilla had time to chat with us, as well as the rest of the team, and we also had a photoshoot. And, of course, Petter signed everything we had with us.

It’s a shame that Petter had to retire from the rally, but I can assure you all – we never retired from anything! This year’s trip to Finland was the best ever, can’t wait for next year!

Regards from Karoline!

Overall classification Rally Finland 2009

Rally Finland is completed, with Finn Mikko Hirvonen as the winner. Hirvonen is also leading the championship. Sebastien Loeb ended second and Jari Matti Latvala third. Henning Solberg was the only Norwegian competing today and ended 11th. Petter, Mads Østberg and Sveinung Bieltvedt all had to retire from the rally yesterday.

Next event is Rally Australia, 4 – 6 September in Brisbane.

Overall classification Rally Finland 2009

1. Mikko Hirvonen, Ford
2. Sebastien Loeb, Citroen +25,1
3. Jari Matti Latvala, Ford +49,9
4. Dani Sordo, Citroen +1.06,1
5. Matti Rantanen, Ford +4.18,2
6. Sebastien Ogier, Citroen +4.18,5
7. Jari Ketomaa, Subaru +5.07,5
8. Matthew Wilson, Ford +6.36,6

Day 2 Rally Finland

Overall classification day 2 Rally Finland

1. Mikko Hirvonen, Ford
2. Sebastien Loeb, Citroen +32,0
3. Jari Matti Latvala, Ford + 1.08,3
4. Dani Sordo, Citroen +1.18,8
5. Matti Rantanen, Ford +4.10,6
6. Sebastien Ogier, Citroen +4.28,1
7. Jari Ketomaa, Subaru +4.59,1
8. Matthew Wilson, Ford +6.01,7

Petter retires from Rally Finland

Petter Solberg has decided to retire from Rally Finland. – Yesterday morning the engine was perfect, but today it’s not working properly. There’s no power, we cannot make a proper attack, so it’s better to stop now to avoid more damage, says Petter Solberg.

Day 2 Finland – times

Day 2 coming up. 9 more stages to go, Petter and Phil will be car number 14 on the road today. And rain is pouring down this morning.

Saturday 1 August
0713 SS11 Leustu 1 21,35km
0802 SS12 Himos 1 20,94km
0925 SS13 Surkee 1 14,95km
Service Paviljonki 30 min
1137 SS14 Leustu 2 21,35km
1226 SS15 Himos 2 20,94km
1349 SS16 Surkee 2 14,95km
Service Paviljonki 30 min
1611 SS17 Urria 12,75km
1719 SS18 Kavala 10,35km
1752 SS19 Väärinmaja 29,29km
Flexi Service Paviljonki 45 min

Overall classifications day 1 Finland

10 stages and the first day in Finland are completed. Mikko Hirvonen is leading overall. Petter, who had to retire from the day after SS4, is 37 minutes behind. He will restart again tomorrow under SuperRally regulations. Petter got permission from the organiser to do the super special stage Killeri tonight, together with Novikov, without any timing.

Overall classification day 1
1. Hirvonen
2. Loeb +3,3
3. Sordo +20,0
4. Latvala +30,1
5. Rantanen +1.14,1
6. Henning +1.16,7
7. Østberg +1.36,5
8. Ketomaa +1.38,4

Will do SuperRally Saturday

Petter will do a run at Killeri tonight, but he will not be competing. He is paired with Novikov and will start at 2121. Tomorrow he will restart the rally under SuperRally regulations.

Repair has started

The car is back, and the guys are on the job.

SuperRally tomorrow?

Suffering from two punctures after a landing 4kms into to SS4, Petter and Phil were forced to retire from the day. Petter was second before it happened, and managed to bring the car across the finish line. The car is now on its way back to the servicepark for a further investigation, but we plan to be ready for SuperRally tomorrow, and possibly the Super Special at Killeri tonight.

Itinerary day 1 Rally Finland