Loeb no longer has his destiny in his hands

Sébastien Loeb may have just lost his world champion title. Receiving a one-minute penalty, the Frenchman fell to second place in the Rally from Australia, Mikko Hirvonen inheriting the victory. Even if he wins the last two Rallies of the season, the Frenchman is not guaranteed to retain his world crown. Indeed, if Mikko Hirvonen does not experience any problems in Catalonia and Great Britain and he manages to take sixteen points, he will be world champion.

The three Citroën C4s, placed in the top 4, are all penalized with this minute penalty, due to non-approved steering rods. For Dani Sordo, this sanction changes nothing, he retains his third place. As for Sébastien Ogier, he fell back to fifth position, with Jari-Matti Latvala moving up to fourth place. But the penalty which causes the most consequences of course concerns Sébastien Loeb.

Winner of the first five Rallies of the season, the Frenchman has not won since Argentina in April. This success in Australia rewarded Citroën Racing's efforts to return to the title race. With only one point behind Mikko Hirvonen, Sébastien Loeb ideally entered the final straight of the season, before competing in a Rally on asphalt, where the Citroëns are traditionally dominant, in Catalonia.

Now, five points behind, the Alsatian must win the last two races to retain his world champion title. But, for that, he must also hope that Mikko Hirvonen finishes in third place in one of the two Rallies. Dani Sordo, who was able to compete with the Finn on the last Australian specials, could be a strong ally in the conquest of this sixth title. But, one thing is certain, the penalty imposed on the C4 places Mikko Hirvonen in an ideal situation.