The Loeb Show remained true to its name, whipping his Citroën DS3 WRC through the Mosel wine valley with aggression. The WRC ADAC Rallye Deutcshland’s Day One, six of the event’s 19 stages, has wowed fans with its asphalt speed. Sebastien Loeb (Citroën Total World Rally Team) leads his team-mate Sebastien Ogier by 7.4sec.
It was Jari-Matti Latvala (Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team) that led the initial charge, but the Finn was caught out running on hard compound tyres as SS2 was hit with rain. Loeb and Ogier were running on soft compound tyres, but their leading rivals made the wrong choice and the result is that the Citroëns will likely extend their advantage over the remainder of the weekend as their compatriots play catch-up.
“It’s been a good day for me,” said Loeb, who is chasing his ninth victory on the event. “I’ve been pushing very, very hard because Ogier has been pushing everywhere. It’s not easy to make a difference, but I’m leading this evening and that’s the main thing. We have a big gap to the others, I am just fighting with Ogier so for the manufacturers’ championship it’s looking very good.”
Ogier said: “For sure I try to push to my limit, I have to progress on this surface. I am happy with my day because we’re going in the right direction. I know I am young and I can improve in the future.”
Third-placed Mikko Hirvonen (Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team) is some 80sec adrift of the leaders, but he has suffered suspension damage after striking a wall on SS4. His outright speed has therefore been compromised and once again Ford is left scratching their heads as to what they need to do to challenge their rivals Citroën. To boot, the privateer Ford Fiesta RS WRCs are struggling with brake problems…
Impressing all is MINI Motorsport: Dani Sordo is fourth place overall and team-mate Kris Meeke is fifth. Petter Solberg (Petter Solberg World Rally Team) is sixth and will be in a position to fight for a higher position on Day Two after he overshot a junction and landed on a bank.
Standings after SS6:
01) S. LOEB – 01h 18m 21.4s
02) S. OGIER +7.4s
03) M. HIRVONEN + 01m 18.4s
04) D. SORDO + 01m 40.3s
05) K. MEEKE + 01m 57.6s
06) P. SOLBERG + 01m 59.8s
07) H. SOLBERG + 03m 22.1s
08) K. RÄIKKÖNEN + 03m 25.5s
09) D. KUIPERS + 03m 31.7s
10) A. ARAÚJO + 04m 22.4s
