Will the M-Sport team call on Sébastien Loeb?

The return of Ott Tänak to the ranks of the training who helped him acquire the foundations to become what he is was the best news received by the WRC since a long time. The almost ideal distribution of contenders for the crown, each of whom finds themselves at the wheel of a different Rally1, makes it possible to dream of a very competitive 2023 season. On paper, such an arrival should allow M-Sport to step out of its role as a foil. The hybrid Puma appeared fast this year, but apart from Sébastien Loeb none of the tamers knew how to draw out the quintessence of the beast.

Ott has arguments to achieve this. With Thank you, Malcolm Wilson attempts an operation identical to that mounted in 2017 and 2018 with Sébastien Ogier. This resulted in titles, but the English boss also said that financially it had cost him several shirts... Was he obliged to buy t-shirts to enlist the Estonian? Even if the 2019 world champion has made concessions, does such an investment not close the door to a 2^e paid pilot? By securing the services of the Baltic, will Wilson also rely on those of Sébastien Loeb? Does he have the means?

Sébastien Loeb present at Monte-Carlo?

In the immediate future and in particular for Monte-Carlo (January 18-22), this seems compromised. Will the winner of the 2022 edition have to follow the event on screens? Each day that passes restricts the chances of seeing the nine-time champion at the start of the Monaco classic a little more. In the best case scenario, his Dakar will end on Sunday January 15 and reconnaissance for the first WRC meeting will begin on Monday 16.

The Alsatian is not a fan of working on videos, but to prepare for the Monaco classic he would still have to do it even though he has not yet returned from Saudi Arabia. Working in the evening at the bivouac would not be ideal. With such tight deadlines in January, it would be impossible for him to do a day of testing unless it was organized before December 28 and his departure for the Saudi desert. So far, it doesn't seem like this is in the cards. However, there are still a few days before the holidays so this can still happen.

While the situation seems compromised for the Monte-Carl', this probably does not mean that the door to the mansion is barricaded. If Red Bull and Sébastien Loeb absolutely want to race in 2023, won't Malcolm Wilson find a solution? With a view to a world title, wouldn't the reinforcement of the Alsatian give more chances to Ott Tänak and M-Sport?

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