Solberg brothers set for Monte battle

Brothers Henning and Petter Solberg will continue their friendly rivalry when they contest Rallye Monte-Carlo later this month.

The Norwegians will both be making their debuts in the Intercontinental Rally Challenge with Henning piloting an M-Sport Ford Fiesta S2000 and Petter lining up in a Peugeot 207 S2000. Both have prior knowledge of Rallye Monte-Carlo, which celebrates its 100th anniversary this year.

Henning Solberg will link up with Austrian navigator Ilka Minor, who has recovered from injuries sustained in a crash on a round of her national championship last season. Chris Patterson, who hails from Northern Ireland, will partner Petter Solberg.

Although Petter has enjoyed a more successful career than his older brother, it will be Henning who will potentially have the upper hand on Rallye Monte-Carlo thanks to his greater experience of driving Super 2000 machinery.

“We have been competing against each other for many years now so this is nothing different,” said Petter Solberg. “Like me Henning is there for the passion and loves to drive. He’s two years older than me but I don’t think either of us gets any smarter with age. He just has more experience.”