Rally de España - (21-24 October 2010) – Day 1
Underlining once more their adaptability to new terrain, Sébastien Ogier, Julien Ingrassia and theCitroën Junior Team ended day one of the Rallye de España in second place. Following an openingleg that was held on a mixed gravel and asphalt surface, the French crew brought their gravelspecificationCitroën C4 WRC home just 3.8 seconds behind World Champions Sébastien Loeb and Daniel Elena.
After a long road section, the real competition started with a crucial stage this morning. The 35.94-kilometre Terra Alta test already promised to establish a significant initial order.
Sébastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia started second on the road and soon had to deal with conditionsthat were particularly delicate. “The roads were slippery with some early-morning damp and there wasthick fog in certain places,” reported Sébastien. “I tried to drive neatly, but I still had one or twomoments…”
The Citroën Junior Team crew set third-fastest time and reinforced their position on the second specialstage of the day, which was 100% gravel. On the next stage, Les Garrigues (SS3), they overhauled Jari-Matti Latvala. Sébastien declared himself satisfied with his second place at the end of the opening loop.“We didn’t think we would be this far up the order after the first few stages,” he said. “In theory our startposition wasn’t particularly advantageous, but as it turns out the gaps separating everyone are quitesmall. We need to carry on like this, pull out a gap over our pursuers, and try to get a little bit closer toSeb.”
Just as he promised, Sébastien Ogier launched a big attack on the second run through Terra Alta. Heemerged from the test with his first fastest time of the rally, having taken 8.5 seconds from SébastienLoeb on that stage alone.Thanks to a set-up that suited the conditions particularly well, the n°7 Citroën C4 WRC was able to keepup with Sébastien Loeb on the last two stages, while extending the gap to those behind. “We’ve workedwell together with the Citroën Junior Team,” said Sébastien Ogier. “The slight oversteer that we had thismorning was dialled out perfectly at the service halt. We feel a bit more comfortable now, with bettergrip. My C4 WRC was just perfect throughout the second loop of stages.”
After a long 75-minute evening service, the Citroën C4 WRC entered parc fermé in asphaltconfiguration, ready for the next two days of rallying.
“We’re going to try to stick with Seb on asphalt,” outlined Sébastien Ogier. “The objective is just to stayin touch. We’ve refined our notes well during the recce and I hope that this is going to pay off for ustomorrow.”
Team manager Benoît Nogier concluded: “We really thought that we were going to suffer with roadsweeping today. But it turned out to be less of a handicap than we thought it would be following therecce, to the point that not only is Sébastien runner-up at the moment, but he’s also just three secondsoff Loeb. That’s very encouraging for the rest of the weekend. The team has done a very good job thatpaid off during the afternoon loop of stages. Now, our goal is to maintain this second place all the way tothe end, keeping the championship runner-up spot in mind as our goal for the season.”
THE RALLY BY NUMBERSSébastien Ogier / Julien IngrassiaSS1: Terra Alta 1 (35.94 km) 3rd +7’’1 3rd +7’’1SS2: La Ribera d’Ebre 1 (14.97 km) 5th +5’’6 3rd +10’’7SS3: Les Garrigues 1 (17.28 km) 2nd +1’’2 2nd +11’’9SS4: Terra Alta 2 (35.94 km) 1st 2nd +3’’4SS5: La Ribera d’Ebre 2 (14.97 km) 2nd +0’’1 2nd +2’’1SS6: Les Garrigues 2 (17.28 km) 3rd +1’’7 2nd +3’’8
Fastest stage timesDay 1 – SS1: Loeb (Citroën C4) – SS2: Solberg (Citroën C4) – SS3: Loeb – SS4: Ogier (Citroën C4) –SS5: Solberg – SS6: Loeb.Best performers: Loeb 3 fastest times, Solberg 2, Ogier 1.Leaders: SS1 to SS6: Loeb.
Classification at end of day one1. Loeb / Elena Citroën C4 1:25’26’’82. Ogier / Ingrassia Citroën C4 +3’’83. Latvala / Anttila Ford Focus +19’’94. P. Solberg / Patterson Citroën C4 +22’’45. Hirvonen / Lehtinen Ford Focus +42’’46. Sordo / Vallejo Citroën C4 +54’’77. Wilson / Martin Ford Focus +2’46’’98. Villagra / Curletto Ford Focus +3’21’’29. Block / Gelsomino Ford Focus +3’42’’810. H. Solberg / Prevot Ford Fiesta +4’21’’6...
