There were high hopes for great Swedish success in the WRC 2 and WRC 3 classes in the Swedish rally - but it was drivers from Norway and Finland who stole the show.

Increased distance

In WRC 2, the battle for the victory between Mads Östberg and Ole Christian Veiby was before Sunday's closing power stage. Östberg had a lead of 15.8 seconds and was able to secure the victory with a 23.4 second margin.

- It feels really good. It has been a very challenging weekend, says Östberg in SVT's broadcast.

The Norwegian has now won the two opening World Cup competitions and has collected a total of 50 points.

The Warmland jump Pontus Tidemand finished third in the class and was 37.7 seconds behind the winner in the end.

Solberg spun

In WRC 3, Finnish victory was won by Jari Huttunen who was five seconds ahead of compatriot Emil Lindholm. Huttunen also became the best R5 driver in the rally, despite the lack of factory support that the WRC 2 drivers have.

- It feels fantastic, says Huttunen in SVT's broadcast.

Oliver Solberg spun on the final stretch. Photo: TT

Swedish interest in WRC 3 was focused on the fight for third place where newcomer Oliver Solberg had a 1.1 second lead to Johan Kristoffersson before the final leg.

Solberg, however, did not keep all the way. He spun on the Likenäs stretch, lost almost two minutes and slipped to fifth place overall.

Johan Kristoffersson, on the other hand, was the fastest of all in the class on the route and was thus able to secure his second straight third place in the class in the Swedish rally.