Sebastien Loeb heads into Rally Wales GB later today aware that he is on the brink of securing his fourth rally championship. The Citroen driver needs to finish fifth or higher to secure the championship regardless of what rival Marcus Gronholm can achieve at the season finale.
The Citroen driver's four point deficit turned into a six point advantage in Rally Ireland when Gronholm crashed out of the event.
Did you ever imagine that the Rally Ireland would turn out to be so dramatic?
"Not at all! The early part of the event was simply crazy. Following our damper hose problem on the run-out to Friday's first stage, we didn't think we had much of a chance but we managed to limit the damage and it's Marcus Grönholm who made a mistake! That put a whole new slant on the rally. The conditions were particularly tricky, so it was important to find the best pace to stay concentrated and profit as much as we needed to from the potential of our C4 WRC. In the end, we picked up an important win which has enabled us to reverse the trend in the Drivers' championship and top the provisional standings going into the Wales Rally GB."
Once again, it will be a case of finding the ideal pace in Wales, no?
"It will. We lead by six points, so we won't need to win at all costs. Should Marcus win, we will have to finish in at least fifth place to make sure of the title. That would put us equal on points but we have more wins to our name. We will consequently need to find a pace that permits us to finish inside the top-five. I don't enjoy driving to finish but, given the importance of the stakes, it's only logical."
There is consequently a strong chance you won't win in Wales this year?
"Unless the event produces a big surprise, we probably won't be adding our names to the list of past winners of this event this time round. I don't mind, however, if that means securing a fourth world title! Along with winning Rally Finland, it will also give us something to aim for in years to come! The Wales Rally GB has never gone well for us in a WRC car. We didn't even start the 2006 event! However, the stages haven't changed much in recent years so I hope our absence last year won't be too much of a handicap. The way the Rally of New Zealand went suggests it shouldn't be."
