Despite the disadvantage of running first on the road, Petter Solberg made the perfect start to Rally New Zealand today by setting the fastest time on the first stage of the event. An impressive and trouble-free performance from Petter through the rest of the Leg kept him in contention for the lead and he will start tomorrow's second day just 31 seconds off the top-spot, and with the benefit of a far more advantageous road position.
Contesting only his third event in a WRC-class car, Petter's team-mate Chris Atkinson delivered another impressive, mature drive aboard his Subaru Impreza WRC2005. Clinching two WRC stage wins (the first of his career), the young Australian proved to be a fast learner as he ended the day in fifth place overall.
Petter Solberg
"I'm very happy with what we've done today, we've made a really good start. In the morning we took a risk with a softer tyre and were very pleased with the performance. I didn't lose nearly as much time as I thought I would. In the afternoon we went for the same plan, with a softer tyre, only this time it was a mistake and, looking back, we should have taken a harder one. But generally, even though we could have done better, I'm still very happy. We've had absolutely no problems, the car is driving very well, giving lots of confidence, and considering we've been first through the stages all day, we're not too far off the lead. There's a long way to go yet and I'm still aiming for a good points finish."
Chris Atkinson
"We've had a good day today and of course it's encouraging to have collected a couple of stage wins too. The road position worked out well for us and after a cautious start I'm feeling much more confident on the gravel. I think we can continue at this pace, and keep on learning - we are not going after the guys at the front. I think we can make some more adjustments to the car and make it 100 per cent, but at this stage practice is going to make the most difference to my times. For us it is all about getting more experience over the next couple of days and hopefully getting a good result."
David Lapworth, Team Principal
"We've finished the day in a stronger position than we'd expected. Running first on the road was always going to be a problem for Petter, but in fact he's done a great job, he's very pleased with the performance of the new car and is positive about the next couple of days. Chris has also had a very good day. He's taken advantage of his road position to set some very good times but more importantly, he's stuck to the plan and is learning a lot."
Tomorrow's Leg starts at 0900hrs when the first car will leave parc ferme. Leg two, the longest of the event, features 139.49 competitive kilometres and eight competitive stages, including two blasts around the 2.10km Super Special Stage at Manukau. The opening 18.92km stage from Wairere starts at 0923hrs.


Tags: subaru, solberg, atkinson, new, zealand,