Oliver Solberg Was 59 Points Behind: Now He’s in the WRC Title Fight
In June, after a run of crashes and retirements, Solberg was fifth and 59 points off the lead. A run of podiums and a Rally Chile victory later, he’s 21 behind Elfyn Evans with one round left. How the comeback happened, and what he needs in Sardinia.
Solberg Was 59 Behind: Now He’s a Title Contender
From fifth and 59 points down to 21 behind with one rally left.
At the end of June, Oliver Solberg’s first full season in a Toyota Rally1 car looked like a lesson in how hard the top level is. He’d won the season opener in Monte Carlo, but then came a crash-hit spring: a 42nd place in Croatia, a retirement on the Canary Islands and results outside the points in Japan and Greece. After round 8 at the Acropolis, he was fifth in the championship on 103 points, 59 behind Elfyn Evans.
Three months later he’s a genuine title contender. A run of second places, followed by a dominant win at Rally Chile earlier this month, has taken him to 209 points, just 21 behind Evans, with one round to go. Next week’s Rally Italia Sardegna (1–4 October) decides the 2026 World Rally Championship, and the Swede, who turned 25 this week, arrives with a real chance of following his father Petter as world champion. This is the story of how he got here. For every points scenario, see our Sardinia title permutations.
From 59 Behind to 21: The Comeback in Numbers
The turnaround is easiest to see side by side. After the Acropolis Rally in round 8, the championship looked like Evans’ to lose. Four rounds later it’s a three-way fight between Toyota team-mates:
| Driver | After Round 8 (Greece) | Gap | After Round 12 (Chile) | Gap | Points since Greece |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elfyn Evans | 162 | — | 230 | — | 68 |
| Sami Pajari | 116 | −46 | 213 | −17 | 97 |
| Oliver Solberg COMEBACK | 103 | −59 | 209 | −21 | 106 |
Over the last four rounds, Solberg has scored 106 points to Evans’ 68, cutting the gap by 38. That’s more than either of his title rivals. Sami Pajari has had a similar comeback, winning three rallies in a row in Estonia, Finland and Paraguay to go from 46 behind to 17 behind. But Solberg’s recovery started from further back, and he has the momentum of the most recent win.
What changed? Mainly consistency. In the first half of the season, Solberg’s speed was clear but his results were wild: a win, then crashes and retirements. From Estonia onwards he stopped throwing away points. Second places in Estonia and Finland, further points in Paraguay and then victory in Chile turned a disappointing season into a title challenge.
Solberg’s 2026 Season, Round by Round
| Round | Rally | Result | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Monte Carlo | 1st | Wins the season opener WIN |
| 2 | Sweden | 4th | Solid points at his home event |
| 3 | Safari Kenya | 10th | Difficult rally |
| 4 | Croatia | 42nd | Big time loss |
| 5 | Islas Canarias | Ret | Retired DNF |
| 6 | Portugal | 2nd | Back on the podium |
| 7 | Japan | 21st | Another costly weekend |
| 8 | Acropolis Greece | 16th | 59 points behind after this round |
| 9 | Estonia | 2nd | The comeback starts |
| 10 | Finland | 2nd | Second podium in a row |
| 11 | Paraguay | Points | More points as Pajari wins again |
| 12 | Chile | 1st | Win plus Power Stage: 34 points WIN |
| 13 | Sardinia | 1–4 Oct | Title decider |
The first half shows why he was written off. Four rounds out of eight produced almost nothing: 10th in Kenya, 42nd in Croatia, a retirement on the Canaries and 21st in Japan, followed by 16th in Greece. In a championship that pays points only to the top ten, plus bonus points on Sunday and the Power Stage, results like that are very costly.
The second half shows why he’s back. Since Greece, he hasn’t had a bad weekend. That’s the difference between a fast young driver and a title contender. If you’re new to how rally points work, our guide to WRC strategy covers road position, tyres and tactics, all of which shape results on gravel.
Rally Chile: The Win That Changed Everything
Solberg led Rally Chile (10–13 September) from the opening stage on Friday and won by 16.6 seconds from Sébastien Ogier, with Adrien Fourmaux third. He also won the Power Stage, collecting 34 points in total. It was his first win since Monte Carlo in January.
The bigger swing came from Evans’ misfortune. The championship leader was running a comfortable second when he got a puncture on Sunday’s penultimate stage. Changing the wheel cost him more than two minutes and dropped him to fifth. He recovered some points with the second-fastest time on the Power Stage, but a weekend that should have strengthened his lead ended up keeping two rivals in contention. Pajari, after his three wins in a row, finished fourth.
“It’s been an unbelievable weekend. It’s been an up and down year but the team always supported and believed. Finally a little bit of luck on my side and I could just do my thing.”
Chile also settled the manufacturers’ championship. Toyota won its record-equalling 10th WRC constructors’ title, drawing level with Lancia. That matters for Sardinia: with the team title already won, Toyota doesn’t need to manage its drivers for points, and Evans, Pajari and Solberg are free to fight each other for the drivers’ crown.
The Title Maths: What Solberg Needs in Sardinia
With Rally Saudi Arabia running as a national event rather than a championship round, Rally Italia Sardegna is the final round of 2026. The maximum a driver can score is 35 points: 25 for the win, up to 5 for the Sunday classification and up to 5 for the Power Stage.
| Pos | Driver | Points | Gap | What they need |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Elfyn Evans LEADER | 230 | — | Stay within reach of both rivals |
| 2 | Sami Pajari | 213 | −17 | Outscore Evans by 17+ and stay ahead of Solberg |
| 3 | Oliver Solberg | 209 | −21 | Outscore Evans by 21+ and Pajari by 4+ |
In simple terms, Solberg needs a near-perfect weekend and some trouble for Evans. If Solberg takes the maximum 35, Evans must score 14 or fewer, which in practice means a poor rally for Evans. Exact ties would go to countback, so the lines above are the minimum. Solberg also has to finish well ahead of Pajari, who is four points in front of him.
That’s a lot to ask. But Solberg has just done exactly that in Chile, maximum points while Evans had a problem, and Sardinia’s rough, abrasive gravel stages regularly produce punctures and damage. Our full breakdown of every scenario is in Evans, Pajari or Solberg: every Sardinia permutation, and our explainer on WRC shakedown covers how the weekend starts.
On gravel, the cars that start first on each stage sweep loose stones off the racing line for those behind them. Running order on the opening day usually follows the championship order, so Evans, as leader, faces the dirtiest roads on Friday, while Solberg in third starts later on a cleaner surface. On a rally where one day can decide the title, that’s a real advantage for the chaser.
Who Is Oliver Solberg?
Solberg was born on 23 September 2001 in Fredrikstad, Norway, so he turned 25 this week. He holds Swedish and Norwegian citizenship and competes under the Swedish flag. Rallying is the family business: his father, Petter Solberg, won the 2003 World Rally Championship, his mother Pernilla is a former rally driver, and his uncle Henning is a long-time WRC competitor.
His rise to a full-time Toyota seat came through WRC2. In 2025 he starred in the second-tier WRC2 championship in Toyota’s GR Yaris Rally2 while taking his first WRC overall victory at Rally Estonia in a one-off Rally1 outing. That performance helped earn him a full Toyota Rally1 programme for 2026, alongside co-driver Elliott Edmondson, the Briton who has sat beside him throughout.
If he wins in Sardinia, the Solbergs will have two world champions in the family, 23 years apart. It would also cap one of the most dramatic mid-season recoveries the championship has seen in years: from fifth and 59 points down in June to the title in October.
For a broader look at the form of every contender, see our WRC 2026 power rankings, and for where the sport goes next, WRC’s 2027 reset.
Oliver Solberg Title Fight — FAQ
From 59 behind to one rally from the title
In June, Oliver Solberg’s season looked like a learning year. In October, it could end with a world championship. The gap has come down from 59 to 21, he’s won the most recent rally, and he goes to Sardinia with nothing to lose against two team-mates who have plenty.
He still needs help from Evans’ luck. But after the last four rounds, few would bet against Solberg making it close. Follow World of Speed for full coverage of the title decider.
