Father and son Petter and Oliver Solberg have stormed to the ROC Nations Cup title for Team Norway for a second straight year on the snow and ice at Sweden’s Pite Havsbad
The pair defeated Team All Stars’ Thierry Neuville and Felipe Drugovich by three heats to one in a thrilling final to wrap up a busy afternoon of icy action
To the dismay of the home fans, Team Sweden’s Mattias Ekström and Johan Kristoffersson went out to Team Norway in the semi-finals, despite Ekström winning his heat against Petter Solberg by a single thousandth of a second
Team Germany’s Sebastian Vettel and Mick Schumacher also went out in the semi-finals, beaten by Team All Stars
Team Finland’s F1 greats Mika Hakkinen and Valtteri Bottas were among the early casualties, suffering a shock defeat by Team eROC’s simracers Lucas Blakeley and Jarno Opmeer
All the action continues tomorrow with the individual Race Of Champions from 12.00-15.00 CET on the frozen Baltic Sea just 60 miles from the Arctic Circle
The event will be broadcast LIVE on TV all over the world. Details here…
Team Norway’s father and son pairing of Petter and Oliver Solberg are celebrating after they took a stunning victory in the ROC Nations Cup on the snow and ice of Sweden’s Pite Havsbad, to retain the title they first won last year.
On a sunny afternoon on the frozen Baltic Sea just 60 miles from the Arctic Circle, legends from the world’s biggest motor sport series – including Formula 1, Formula 2, IndyCar, Le Mans, W Series, World Rally, World Rallycross, Nitro Rallycross and X-Games – teamed up in pairs to battle for national and regional pride.
They raced head-to-head on a parallel track featuring ROC’s iconic crossover bridge in a stunning mix of cars. This year’s range of mighty machinery included the electric Cupra UrbanRebel Concept, Zeroid X1 rallycross car powered by QEV and the FC1-X Nitro Rallycross car. The off-road Polaris RZR PRO XP made a welcome return to ROC as did the SuperCar Lites, now powered by 100% fossil-free biofuel.
And what a festival of icy action it was – as FIA World Rally and World Rallycross Champion Petter Solberg and his rising WRC star son Oliver Solberg prevailed in the final against the might of Team All Stars: winner of 17 WRC rallies Thierry Neuville and reigning FIA F2 Champion Felipe Drugovich.
In the first heat Neuville saw off the challenge of Petter Solberg before both Oliver and Petter beat Felipe Drugovich, who started the week in the thirty degree heat of his home country Brazil. Oliver then defeated Neuville to take the decisive win, which means Team Norway retain the ROC Nations Cup trophy.
Afterwards a delighted Petter Solberg said:
“Everyone loves the Race Of Champions but I was nervous today: the conditions change every run so it was easy to make a mistake. You get butterflies in your stomach and you still have to go out and do what you do. Sébastien Loeb didn’t have a fair chance because of his late arrival, but to beat him was quite enjoyable. Then the feeling got better and better. As for Oliver, I knew he’s fast but coming up against the Swedish drivers you really need a perfect run. That’s what he did, and the same in the final. Oliver had a fantastic day’s racing: not just for winning but his speed. He saved me today, just as he did last year.
“I just want to say thank you to the whole team behind the Race Of Champions. As ever it’s been a great event and a fantastic atmosphere. It’s a big job to organise this with the drivers, the track and everyone involved, and I’m just so happy to be a part of it. I’m very impressed with Fredrik, Jessie and the crew: what they do, and their passion and the positivity. You deserve a big clap tonight.”
Oliver Solberg added:
“It’s fantastic