Sébastien Loeb: “Convinced of being able to keep up”

Twelve months earlier, Sébastien Loeb and Daniel Elena achieved a remarkable performance in Rally of Catalonia, to sign a 79th career victory at the wheel of the Citroën C3 WRC, then lacking success since the start of the 2018 campaign.

A performance that the Franco-Monegasque tandem would obviously like to repeat in a week, this time at the wheel of the Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC. The Korean firm is aiming more than ever for the Manufacturers' crown, trailing by 41 points Thierry Neuville face Ott Tänak two rounds from the end of the season appearing almost insurmountable in the Drivers' ranking.

“Of course we know that the level of competition we have seen this season in the WRC is far from making things easy, but we will give everything we have, recalls Andrea Adamo, boss of Hyundai Motorsport.

There are only two rallies left and there can be no missed opportunities. I am confident in our line-up. Thierry is determined to keep his hopes of winning the title alive, alongside Dani and Sébastien, two serious contenders on mixed surfaces in Spain. We want to control our own destiny. »

Loeb will also be able to count on a rather favorable starting position on the first gravel specials, he who prepared for this Catalan meeting this weekend by competing and by winning the Ciudad de Granada Rally in the Spanish Terrestrial Rally Championship.

“The Rally of Spain is a rally that I have always loved, underlines the Alsatian. The mixed surface is something I have always enjoyed in the past and it is the only rally where you completely change the car settings in the middle of the rally.

We are confident that we can keep pace and help the team extend its lead in the manufacturers' battle. »

Hyundai is only eight units ahead of Toyota, who continues to reduce the gap on the Koreans thanks to the success of Ott Tänak, who for his part can secure the Drivers' title next Sunday in Catalonia.