Oliver Solberg says World Rally Championship legend Sebastien Ogier has helped him “a lot” to feel “ready” to drive a factory Toyota Rally1 car at next week’s Rally Estonia.

The current WRC2 points leader is set to return to the WRC’s top flight for the first time since 2022 after Toyota handed the Swede an opportunity to pilot one of its factory GR Yaris Rally1 cars.

Solberg jumped behind the wheel of the GR Yaris Rally1 for the first time on Tuesday when he teamed up with the Toyota squad for a pre-event test on gravel roads in Finland. 

The 23-year-old labelled the opportunity to drive the WRC’s benchmark car as a “dream come true” and “the coolest thing I’ve done ever in my life” as he stepped up preparations ahead of a coveted drive in Estonia next week.

“To be in Finland with the Toyota Rally 1 car, it’s first of all a dream come true. It’s the coolest thing I’ve done ever in my life and the most fun I’ve ever had in my life. So far it’s fantastic. To drive such an incredible car, already feeling comfortable in the car and having good speed and so on, it’s just absolutely unbelievable,” said Solberg.

“For sure, I feel a little bit nervous, you know, it’s fast, but the feeling is good and we’re learning step-by-step and that’s the main goal.

“It’s going to be a fantastic opportunity and just a lot of fun to be able to do Rally Estonia in such a fantastic car.

“For sure, I feel ready to be back in Rally1 and learn and get experience again and get back to the [highest] level and learn to fight. For sure, everything will be quite new. It’s a totally different car and team and everything will be different, but at least it will be a great time to come back and I feel ready. It’s been a great season so far to get this experience now.”

Solberg has been proactive in his preparations for his Rally Estonia chance, having sought advice from his Toyota team-mates Elfyn Evans, Kalle Rovanpera, Sebastien Ogier, Sami Pajari and Takamoto Katsuta, with Ogier being particularly helpful in assisting his graduation into the team.

“I tried to learn from everybody and I tried to ask my team-mates as many questions as possible,” said Solberg.

“I was speaking a bit with Ogier on the phone. He is a fantastic guy and always super helpful and he tried to help me.

“I tried to ask him questions to learn the team and the car. I feel he has helped me a lot with this, to feel comfortable and confident. I used the other rallies this season to prepare myself in case I got this opportunity. To ask all the drivers as many questions as possible is always a good idea.”

Keen to make the most of this opportunity to drive against the WRC’s elite again, Solberg says his goals in Estonia are simple and clear.

“It’s not an easy rally to start with, that’s for sure. But any rally will be difficult to start with, so it’s just great to have the opportunity and then have some fun, some big jumps and go as fast as possible,” said Solberg.

“My goals for the rally, I think, are pretty simple: to finish the rally, get as much experience in the car as possible, and get more and more comfortable during the rally. I’m not looking to win the first stage and win the rally, but for sure, you know, the goal is to get into it step-by-step, progress the speed and get confidence back.”