Petter Solberg to the Peak!

There have been rumors swirling around the Internet for a few months now about the possibility that 2003 World Rally Champion Petter Solberg may be coming to the 89th running of the PPIHC. Well those rumors are true! Petter confirmed the Pikes Peak Unlimited class project to automotive journalist Bill Wood back in December, and we thought that now would be the perfect time to showcase this story again.

The car will be “based” off of one of Petter’s 2010 spec Citroen C4 WRC cars, and will feature an all new engine, transmission, suspension, and aerodynamics to be competitive on the hill.  It is unknown what engine the car will have, all though it will most likely be Citroen powered.   The car is to be named the “PS/FX” standing for Petter Solberg and his engineer Francois Xavier, who has been working on the car for some time now.   Listen to Bill Wood’s interview with Petter here:

The “PS/FX” PPIHC Unlimited class car will begin testing in the Andes Mountains after the WRC Rally Argentina takes place.  Then the car will be shipped to America for further testing before this year’s event.  Source: http://www.rallybuzz.com/petter-solberg-pikes-peak-hillclimb-citroen-c4/

This marks another great example of how Pikes Peak attracts the best of the best in the racing world.  Will Petter have better luck then his former WRC competitor Gronholm did in 2009?  Can he beat the huge Unlimited class field consisting of Rhys Millen, Paul Dallenbach, Pat Doran, Nobuhiro Tajima, Dave Carapetyan, and Jean Philippe Dayraut?!  We’ll have to wait till June 21st-26th to find out.  -Colin Brandt

More information from Bill’s interview:http://www.bybillwood.com/online/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1538:petter-solberg-coming-to-america-in-2011&catid=46:racing&Itemid=105