RALLYE DE FRANCE ALSACEDAY 3 - ONE STEP CLOSER TO HEAVEN
Sbastien Loeb and Daniel Elena Auteur racked up four stage wins to double their lead on day three of the Rallye de France-Alsace. The Franco-Monegasque crew will therefore start todays final sprint in a very relaxed mood, hoping to be crowned World Champions for the ninth time come Sunday evening. With Mikko Hirvonen and Jarmo Lehtinen comfortably established in third place, the Citron Total World Rally Team is also on course to add an eighth title to its competitive record.
Day three of the rally was the longest leg, with 192km of timed sections, including two runs on the infamous, 43.45km-long Pays dOrmont stage. With clear skies greeting everyone at dawn, the crews didnt hesitate when making their choice at breakfast: coffee and five hard Michelin Pilot Sport tyres all round, please!
Unquestionably the man to beat at this rally, Sbastien Loeb started the day with a stage win on Massif des GrandsCrus. Mikko Hirvonen finished second, just a fraction behind his team-mate, to move clear of Petter Solberg, whowent so far off on the stage that he might have made an early start to the grape-picking season... But with Jari-MattiLatvala still on his tail, Sbastien Loeb couldnt ease off at all. After making a minor mistake on Pays dOrmont, theFinn lost 18s in one fell swoop to the leader. Seb found himself with a 33s lead: That means well be able to take it alittle more easily in the trickiest sections, without turning it into a Sunday drive, as it were! Well still need to drive at agood pace to avoid making any mistakes.
Despite suffering from a heavy, energy-sapping cold, Mikko Hirvonen felt like he had wings on the tarmac of theVosges: I have the feeling that I am making progress and I got closer to Jari-Matti this morning. Im going to continuepushing to keep up the pressure on him. We need to be ready to take the slightest opportunity. Mikko signalled hisintent with his first stage win on SS13, but it was a win he shared with his rival and fellow countryman.
Despite two further stage wins on Pays dOrmont 2 and Pays de la Haute Bruche 2, Seb failed to extend his lead bythe end of the afternoon. He arrived back at the Strasbourg service park with a 29.7s lead. Its going pretty well, washis comment as he faced the mass of microphones and cameras. As the conditions stayed dry, I didnt really ease off.We might well have some rain tomorrow and Id rather start the final leg with a relatively comfortable lead. I cant waitfor tomorrows stages, because they really do run through the area where I grew up.
Holding onto third, Mikko lost a few seconds after a bit of scare on SS15: I hit a large rock which was in the middle ofthe road, and I feared that I had picked up a puncture. Were still there, without having made any real mistakes sincethe start of the rally. I am pleased with my performance today. In fact, there was only one stage which wasnt very goodfor us. Apart from that, we were close to Seb and Jari. Although its shorter, the final day looks like it might becomplicated. If it rains, the roads will be even dirtier and muddier. I will keep pushing without taking any risks thatmight jeopardise the result that is shaping up for the team.
It was an intense day for every member of the team, commented a relieved Xavier Mestelan-Pinon, Citron RacingDeputy Team Principal. We were constantly looking to improve the set-up to optimise the handling of the cars and ourdrivers pushed hard all the way. They didnt make any mistakes and Seb managed to extend his lead ahead oftomorrows final leg. There are only 60km of stages left, but that doesnt mean it will be plain sailing. If it rains tonight,tyre choice will become very important and the crews will be faced with particularly tricky conditions.
NEUVILLE TARGETS FOURTH PLACEStarting in sixth on Saturday morning, Thierry Neuville inherited fifth place after Solberg retired. He then set aboutchasing down Dani Sordo, but the 20-second penalty he received for being late at a time control saw the Citron JuniorWorld Rally Team drop back to sixth again. Undaunted, he went on to set some good times, enabling him to close thegap to Mads stberg and Dani Sordo. The Belgian is now only 8s adrift of fourth place: In the end, it has been agood day, as we have almost made up all the time we lost. Thats what well be aiming for tomorrow, on roads whichare not dissimilar to those you find in Belgium.
OVERALL STANDINGS1 Loeb / Elena Citron DS3 WRC 2:54:33.42 Latvala / Anttila Ford Fiesta RS WRC +29.73 Hirvonen / Lehtinen Citron DS3 WRC +54.04 stberg / Andersson Ford Fiesta RS WRC +1:46.45 Sordo / del Barrio Mini JCW WRC +1:50.56 Neuville / Gilsoul Citron DS3 WRC +1:54.47 Tnak / Sikk Ford Fiesta RS WRC +2:32.08 Novikov / Minor Ford Fiesta RS WRC +2:46.29 Atkinson / Prvot Mini JCW WRC +6:14.910 Prokop / Hrza Ford Fiesta RS WRC +7:46.7
FASTEST TIMESDay 1SS1: NeuvilleSS2 and SS3: LoebSS4: LatvalaSS5: LoebSS6: LatvalaSS7: LoebSS8: Latvala.Day 2SS9 and SS10: LoebSS11: LatvalaSS12: cancelledSS13: Hirvonen and LatvalaSS14 and SS15:LoebSS16: Latvala.
BEST PERFORMERSLoeb, 8 fastest timesLatvala, 6 including 1 tiedNeuville, 1Hirvonen, 1 tied. 1 stage cancelled.
LEADERSSS1: NeuvilleSS2 to SS16: Loeb.
