Loeb wins record fifth world title

Eurosport - Sun, 02 Nov 14:05:00 2008

Citroen's Sebastien Loeb clinched a record fifth world title in a row after surviving a late spin to finish third in the Japan Rally.

Rival Mikko Hirvonen led Jari-Matti Latvala in a Ford one-two but it was not enough to keep the title race alive.

"It's incredible," Loeb said. "But that was a terrible rally -- it couldn't have been more tricky. There was a lot of pressure but now it's a great moment. It's perfect.

"I'm so relieved this weekend is over now. Last year (co-driver) Daniel (Elena) and I equalled the record with four wins, so being the only ones with five is nice."

A spin on the penultimate stage almost cost the Frenchman third place and his hopes of glory in Sapporo as torrential rain made conditions treacherous.

"I spun a few hundred metres before the finish," said Loeb. "I was doing about 50kph in a straight line and then 'Bang!' -- it just went.

"We had to reverse and get going again. I lost the electronic differential control because of the water everywhere."

However, Loeb recovered to finish more than a minute clear of Subaru's Chris Atkinson in fourth.

Hirvonen won by 31.1 seconds from fellow Finn Latvala but paid tribute to the 34-year-old Loeb for another dominant season.

"He definitely deserved it," said Hirvonen. "Everybody can see he won 10 rallies this year. I did all I could. I will just have to try again next year."

Loeb had wanted to secure the title in Japan in order to drive flat-out in the last race in Britain later this month in a bid to break his own record of 10 wins in a season.

"I wanted to go to Wales with a totally free mind," he said.

"That made the weekend very long and very frustrating, and I have to say that it wasn't much fun.

"We did what we could to keep any thoughts about the championship out of our minds but it wasn't easy. The title just seemed to loom larger after every stage - it was well worth the wait in the end."

Friday's first leg began frustratingly for Loeb until a high-speed crash involving Ford driver Francois Duval gave the Frenchman third spot.

Duval's accident left his co-driver Patrick Pivato badly injured and needing surgery for a fractured pelvis and tibia, and caused the afternoon's stages to be cancelled.

Loeb, dubbed the "Michael Schumacher of rallying" for his stranglehold over the sport, has won a record 46 races during a career that began in 1999.

"We have achieved half the target we set ourselves this season," said Citroen team boss Olivier Quesnel. "Now we must refocus with a view to wrapping up the manufacturers' title.

Factbox on Sebastien Loeb:

* The 34-year-old Frenchman (born February 26, 1974) surpasses retired Finnish great Tommi Makinen as the only driver to win five titles in a row. Makinen was champion from 1996-99.

* Loeb, with co-driver Daniel Elena, has won a record 46 rallies in a world championship career that started in 1999. All his wins have been with Citroen.

* A gymnast before taking up rally driving, he is only the second Frenchman to have won the world title after 1994 champion Didier Auriol.

* Loeb broke his arm in a mountain-biking accident with four races left and while 35 points ahead of the field in the 2006 season. He won that title when his nearest rival, Marcus Gronholm, could only finish fifth in Australia.

* The Citroen driver has been dubbed the 'Michael Schumacher of Rallying', his stranglehold on the sport comparable to that exerted by the German seven-times world champion at his peak in Formula One.

* Has already matched his 10 victories in 2005 this season with one race remaining. He has won at least three races in every year since 2003, when he almost took the title in his first full season.

* He took his first win in Germany in 2002 after joining Citroen as French rally champion in 2001.

Loeb wraps up Spain win

Eurosport - Sun, 05 Oct 16:17:00 2008

Citroen's world champion Sebastien Loeb won the Rally of Spain for the fourth year in a row to extend his championship lead to 12 points with three rounds remaining.

The victory on the asphalt roads near Tarragona was the five-times world champion's ninth in 12 races this season, and the 45th of his career, leaving the Frenchman with 96 points to 84 for Finland's Mikko Hirvonen.

Loeb's Spanish team mate Dani Sordo was second on Sunday, 24.9 seconds adrift of the leader, to anchor Citroen's third one-two in a row this season.

Ford's Hirvonen took third place after switching positions with his obliging Belgian team mate Francois Duval on the penultimate stage.

"It's been a very good rally for me, almost perfect, but it hasn't been easy," Loeb, who won 11 of the 18 stages and led from the start, said.

"Okay, today I was able to slow the speed a little but I had to work to build the time early on."

Hirvonen thanked Duval for his assistance in getting the extra point.

"Third was the best we could get here," added the Finn.

"At the end, I think I found a good rhythm on tarmac but Corsica will be different. The roads are more abrasive, there's more grip and hopefully we can challenge the Citroens a bit more there."

The next rally is Loeb's home French round in Corsica next weekend.

Norway's Petter Solberg was fifth for Subaru, nearly three and half minutes off the pace, with Finland's Jari-Matti Latvala sixth for Stobart Ford and Australian Chris Atkinson seventh for Subaru.

Norwegian Andreas Mikkelsen took the final point in a privately-entered Ford.

Citroen moved 27 points clear of Ford in the manufacturers' standings.

Loeb wins to extend lead

Eurosport - Sun, 31 Aug 08:17:00 2008

Frenchman Sebastien Loeb clawed his way back after a dramatic spin on the final day of Rally New Zealand to win the event 17.5 seconds ahead of his Citroen teammate Dani Sordo.

It was a dream result for Loeb, who left second-ranked Mikko Hirvonen of Finland trailing in third with a slow puncture, to take his 44th World Rally Championship victory.

The world champion had a shaky start in the opening stage Sunday, losing control with a spin at the three kilometre mark, which cost him 10 seconds and left him struggling in fourth.

Midway through the course it looked like Hirvonen and Ford teammate Jari-Matti Latvala had the top two positions locked out.

"I was on a mission to close the gap on the Ford team, but got onto the wrong part of the road on a long, left-hand corner and had the spin," said Loeb.

"I wasn't able to make up the gap to Mikko -- I thought it was over and we'd lost the chance, but then it all changed and we were leading again," said the world champion.

By the penultimate stage, the Ford team's challenge had crumbled, with Latvala of Finland retiring and Hirvonen losing 50 seconds to a slow puncture, to finish the rally behind Sordo of Spain.

"This was really a difficult rally, changing all the time, with some strategy coming in too," said Loeb after the three-day contest.

"I needed to win for sure, and that's very nice, but I'm not happy for what happened to Mikko because he was doing really well and it was a good battle. But it's a race and these things happen sometimes."

A disappointed Hirvonen brought his bumper-less Ford across the finish line to claim the final podium place, 24 seconds adrift of Sordo's time.

"I was really confident that we were going to win this rally but what could we do," said Hirvonen.

"We had a slow puncture that dropped us to third, but I'm not going to let this knock my confidence.

"I know we can win rallies. The season isn't over yet so we just have to go flat out again on the next rallies."

Latvala's retirement meant a dissatisfied Petter Solberg of Norway finished fourth for the Subaru World Rally team.

"We want to win, not get fourth, I'm sorry but we're not here for fun. We have to improve the speed," said Solberg.

Loeb's victory means he is now eight points head of Hirvonen in the WRC standings after 11 rounds.

His teammate Sordo's success gives Citroen a 20-point lead over nearest rivals Ford.

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."

Sweden Rally - Loeb out, Latvala leads

Eurosport - Fri, 08 Feb 17:02:00 2008

Sebastien Loeb's hopes of a Swedish Rally victory were ended as he rolled his car out of the event on the opening morning, leaving the Fords of Jari-Matti Latvala and Mikko Hirvonen with a comfortable advantage.

The four-time world champion had been running third in his Citroen, a little over 12 seconds off the lead, when he hit a snow bank on stage four and crashed heavily.

Loeb lost over three minutes, dropping to 23rd place as he headed to the remote service point.

"We came up to a left-hander and I went a bit with my side wheel in a snowbank. It pulled the car in sideways and the car rolled one time," said the 33-year-old Frenchman at the time. "Now we have no clutch either.

"We'll try to see if we can get it fixed in service. It's only remote service, so I'm concerned that without all my crew, it may not be fixed."

Loeb's pessimism was well-placed. Citroen failed to fix the car and he was forced to retire.
Citroen said that they will re-start Loeb under SupeRally rules on day two, albeit with a 25-minute penalty.

22-year-old Latvala was a sensation during the morning stages, going quickest on all three to open up a 23 second lead over team-mate Hirvonen.

Latvala, who failed to score a point at the season-opening Monte Carlo Rally, was clearly benefiting from running only tenth on the road.

This enabled him to pass through the morning loop of stages after the slippery top layer of snow had been removed by the earlier runners such as Loeb.

After stage four, Latvala said: "That was a hard one. Compared to the other stages, there was still a lot of snow there, and I had a lot of big moments.

"It was quite a maximum attack though. There were a few places where I was a bit careful, but it's all okay."

Hirvonen, running second on the road behind Loeb, trailed his team-mate Latvala by just over five seconds until the younger of the two Finns took a huge 17 seconds out of him on SS4.

As if the morning had not gone well enough for Ford anyway, they had double the reason to smile as Stobart duo Henning Solberg and Gigi Galli completed the top four.

Fifth is Petter Solberg, who led after the previous day's superspecial stage. The Norwegian is a minute off the lead in his Subaru.

A sensational sixth is Finn Toni Gardemeister, despite a morning of mechanical maladies that left his Suzuki clutchless, meaning that he had to keep his car rolling through the time controls.
Britain's Matthew Wilson, driving the third of the Stobart Fords, ended the morning in seventh, despite an intercom problem that forced him and co-driver Scott Martin to change helmets on SS3, while Mads Ostberg completed the points-paying positions.

The Norwegian Subaru privateer had been the star of the second stage, tearing through in the third quickest time to go fourth overall. But a "stupid" spin on the very next one cost him half a minute as he tried to get his car pointing in the right direction.

Andreas Mikklesen lies ninth in his M-Sport Ford while Finn Jari Ketomaa surprisingly completes the top ten in his Group N-spec Subaru.

It was a bad morning for Suzuki's Swedish driver Per-Gunnar Andersson. Lying seventh, he stopped with an as-yet undiagnosed mechanical problem on stage four, putting him out.
A Suzuki spokesperson told eurosport.yahoo.com that the car would be taken back to Karlstad with the aim of re-starting Andersson on day two under SupeRally rules.

Things were equally bad for Chris Atkinson. The Subaru driver crashed into a ditch on stage three and lost 15 minutes as spectators helped him get the car back on the road.

"I'm really not sure what happened," said Atkinson. "It wasn't a quick bit, just a medium-speed section. I was not pushing too hard, and I just lost it."

Atkinson now lies 58th. That puts him below Dani Sordo, who began the event with a five-minute penalty for an engine chance since the Monte Carlo Rally.

The Spaniard set top-ten times all morning and climbed from 61st to 40th in his Citroen.

Rally Wales GB - Loeb's title, Hirvonen's rally

Eurosport - Mon, 03 Dec 09:10:00 2007

Frenchman Sebastien Loeb secured his fourth world rally championship in a row with a controlled drive to third place on Rally GB.

The 33-year-old Citroen driver's achievement equalled Tommi Makkinen's record, which has stood since 1999, and came after what he described as "difficult" event in which he was unable to push hard in case of making a silly mistake.

"To equal Tommi's record is incredible," said Loeb. "It's been a very good year."
Ford driver Mikko Hirvonen won the rally by 15.2 seconds from his Ford team-mate Marcus Gronholm, taking his third victory of the year.

It was the fourth victory of his career and came after he had set the fastest time on six of the 17 stages and, more significantly, survived a final stage drama when he spun and lost 15 seconds to veteran Gronholm.

"We went off, it was not planned at all," said Hirvonen. "The season has been absolutely fantastic and to finish it like this is the best way possible.

"And I get to stand on the podium with Marcus too. Next year pushing Seb is my job, and I'm ready for it."

For Gronholm, second place on the 150th and last rally of his WRC career, spelt defeat in his long-running championship battle with Loeb.

"Okay, I am disappointed, but okay, it was a hard rally," he said. "We lost the title in Ireland. It was a great fight though and congratulations to Sebastien."

Fourth and fifth went to Subaru's Petter Solberg and Citroen's Dani Sordo, while Britain's Matthew Wilson made it home in a superb sixth place and scored his third successive points finish in his Stobart Ford.

Seventh and eighth went to a disillusioned Chris Atkinson in the second Subaru and to Manfred Stohl in a Kronos Citroen.

The third Subaru driver Xevi Pons, who described the event as "a disaster" came home ninth with Stobart Ford man Jari-Matti Latvala, who won both of the afternoon stages, snatching tenth place from Mads Ostberg by just 1.5 seconds on the final stage.