Loeb wins Rally Finland-Season 2008

Eurosport - Sun, 03 Aug 12:19:00 2008

Four-times world champion Sebastien Loeb of Citroen won his first Finnish Rally from local hero and championship rival Mikko Hirvonen to reduce the gap between them to one point.

Frenchman Loeb finished the three-day, 24-stage race in a time of two hours, 54 minutes and 5.5 seconds to seal his 42nd world championship victory nine seconds ahead of Finn Hirvonen in the Ford.

Australian Chris Atkinson was third, three minutes and eight seconds further back in his Subaru.

"It's fantastic, an incredible feeling - winning here in Finland means so much to me," Loeb said.

"I desperately wanted to win this rally. Getting a win here was more important to me than just getting points.

"It's been a very hard battle with Mikko all weekend with no chance to relax. He did a great job - I've had to fight for every second."

The high-speed gravel road event has historically been dominated by local drivers and Loeb became only the fourth non-Scandinavian to win the event since it was first run in 1951.

The Frenchman led from start to finish but Hirvonen narrowed Loeb's lead on the penultimate stage when he lost 6.4 seconds after braking too early and getting out of line on the first corner.

Loeb said the error had occurred because he had tried to alter his speed in an effort to take fewer risks.

"I got out of line because I tried to go more slowly," said Loeb. "I was too cautious, braked way too early and was too late to get back on the power. After that I decided to go back to my normal rhythm.

"I'm not used to driving cautiously. I've been going flat out so much this weekend that it's the only way I know how to drive these roads."

In the concluding Ruuhimaki stage, Hirvonen finished second behind Norwegian Petter Solberg, with Loeb only in fifth.

"I wanted to win here, but it was still fantastic event," said Hirvonen, who was bidding to keep Finland's winning traditions on home soil alive after the now retired Marcus Gronholm clinched his seventh Finnish Rally last year.

"I'm pleased with the speed we had but 'Seb' was able to find a few more seconds and in the end that's all he needed to win.

"The championship fight is not over, but of course all the rallies coming up are more important now."