Mexico 2010

SEBASTIEN LOEB TURNED THE TABLES ON MIKKO HIRVONEN IN MEXICO AFTER MIKKO'S WIN IN SWEDEN LAST TIME OUT. MIKKO WAS HINDERED ON DAY 1 AS HE WAS SWEEPING THE LOOSE GRAVEL OFF THE SURFACE (BEING FIRST ON THE ROAD AS CHAMPIONSHIP LEADER) AND HE ENDED THE DAY WELL DOWN THE ORDER. MEXICO'S GRAVEL IS OF A VERY FINE TOP SURFACE AND A VERY HARD UNDER-SURFACE. IT IS VIRTUALLY LIKE DUST ON TOP OF HARD ROCK AND IS VERY SLIPPERY.

I'M NOT SURE IT WAS JUST THE GRAVEL BUT SOME OTHER FACTOR WITH THE CAR BECAUSE ALL THE FORD'S SUFFERED WHEREAS THE CITROEN'S COPED MUCH BETTER. SEBASTIEN MANAGED A RESPECTABLE 3RD BEHIND HIS CITROEN JUNIOR TEAM COLLEAGUE, SEBASTIEN OGIER. THE OVERNIGHT LEADER WAS PETTER SOLBERG WITH A WELCOME RETURN TO THE TOP ECHELON.

BOTH HE AND SEBASTIEN OGIER HAD BENEFITTED FROM LOWLY RUNNING POSITIONS DURING THAT FIRST DAY BUT WOULD BE ROAD-SWEEPERS ON DAY 2. ON THAT DAY, SEBASTIEN LOEB ATTACKED, PERHAPS SENSING WEAKNESS IN HIS MAIN RIVALS, AND WHAT A DEVASTATING ATTACK IT WAS - HE ENDED THE DAY WITH A COMFORTABLE LEAD OF 55 SECONDS AND LOOKING FORWARD TO WINNING ON DAY 3, WHICH HE DULY DID. THE OTHER FEATURE OF THE DAY WAS THE BATTLE BETWEEN PETTER SOLBERG AND SEBASTIEN OGIER AND THIS CONTINUED INTO DAY 3.

IN FACT, THIS WAS THE ONLY REAL ISSUE ON DAY 3. PETTER HAD CLAWED A LEAD OVER SEBASTIEN OF 2.7 SECONDS OVERNIGHT BUT SEBASTIEN REVERSED THAT ON THE FIRST, AND LONGEST, STAGE OF DAY 3, LEADING PETTER BY 1.4 SECONDS BUT PETTER FOUGHT BACK, AS ONLY HE CAN, WINNING THE PENULTIMATE STAGE BY 0.8 SECONDS FROM SEBASTIEN, LEAVING ONLY THE 4 KM SUPER SPECIAL THROUGH THE STREETS TO MAKE 2ND PLACE HIS OWN.

HE ALSO WON THAT STAGE, BEATING SEBASTIEN BY 1.7 SECONDS, TO CLAIM THAT PODIUM 2ND PLACE. YOU COULD TELL JUST HOW MUCH IT MEANT TO HIM BY HIS EMOTIONAL REACTIONS AFTERWARDS. SINCE SUBARU OPTED OUT OF RALLYING AT THE END OF 2008, HE HAD TO FOUND HIS OWN FLEDGLING PRIVATEER TEAM AND HAS NOT ONLY FOUGHT ON THE RALLIES SINCE BUT CLEARLY HAS TO FIGHT TO GAIN SPONSORSHIP IN THE WORST FINANCIAL RECESSION FOR DECADES. THAT HE IS A FIGHTER IS BEYOND QUESTION AND THIS RALLY PROVED IT YET AGAIN.

WHILE ALL THAT DRAMA WAS BEING PLAYED OUT, SEBASTIEN LOEB QUIETLY TOOK HIS 4TH CONSECUTIVE MEXICO RALLY VICTORY AND, STAGGERINGLY, HIS 55TH W.R.C. VICTORY. WHEN WILL IT END? HE HAS WON MORE THAN TWICE THE NUMBER OF VICTORIES THAN ANYONE ELSE AND LOOKS AS IF HE COULD GO ON AND ON!

Rally Results posted by
David Little
8th March 2010

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