Henning Solberg very disappointed after exit

Henning Solberg was 'frustrated' and 'really cross' following his retirement from day two of the Acropolis Rally.

The Stobart Ford man had begun the second leg in fifth place, something that gave him an excellent start position for the rough, dusty stages.

Henning Solberg (NOR) Cato Menkerud (NOR), Ford Focus RS WRC 08, Stobart VK M-Sport Ford Rally Team
Henning Solberg (NOR) Cato Menkerud (NOR), Ford Focus RS WRC 08, Stobart…
© PHOTO 4

Henning Solberg was 'frustrated' and 'really cross' following his retirement from day two of the Acropolis Rally.

The Stobart Ford man had begun the second leg in fifth place, something that gave him an excellent start position for the rough, dusty stages.

However, after a steady start on the opening two tests, the Norwegian's challenge was brought to an abrupt halt in SS9 - Kefalari 1, the final stage of the morning loop.

With Dani Sordo's damaged Citroen parked at the side of the road after hitting a large rock, Solberg adjusted his line to avoid the stricken car but clipped the same rock which broke the front right suspension on his Ford Focus RS WRC putting an end to his day. Henning will now re-start on Sunday under the SupeRally.

"I'm very disappointed," Henning reflected. "We stayed out of trouble all day yesterday so I'm really cross that this happened on just the third stage of the day today.

"We were forced too far to the inside of the corner as someone was warning us about Sordo's car which we couldn't see stopped around the bend. It's very frustrating but everything is fixed on the car now so I'm looking forward to getting back out there tomorrow.

"With everything that has happened today we are still in with a chance of scoring points for the team so that's what we'll be aiming for."

Matthew Wilson meanwhile, who retired on Friday with oil pressure problems, re-started this morning under the SupeRally in the sister Stobart Ford Focus.

Wilson Jr set top-six times in every single stage - including posting a second best effort in SS7 and a third best time in SS12. He thus hauled himself up the leaderboard - from 26th on Friday night to 18th heading into the final leg, 46.4 seconds in front of Henning.

"After the problems we had yesterday I'm pleased to say that we've had a very positive day today," said Matt. "We were very close to getting the fastest time on the first stage this morning and the rest of the day has been just as good.

"This afternoon was quite rough, especially the middle stage of the loop which was hard on the car and the driver. We were always having to think about tyre wear but it turned out to be not as bad as we thought it was going to be.

"It's good experience to learn to drive with that in mind. It was definitely the hardest day of the rally but it's positive for us to post consistent top-five times. We can see from the changing leaderboard that anything can happen, though, so we have to stay focussed and bring it home safely."

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