WRC – Argentina: Hirvonen and Loeb react, Ogier complains

The rain made its appearance in Argentina and the mist added a little spice before the fifth round counting for the world rally championship really began (WRC). At the end of SS2? the first real special of the event? Sébastien Ogier was the fastest and increased his lead at the top of the general classification. “No problem for us, everything is fine”, declared the Gapençais afterwards on his Volkswagen Polo R WRC, who took the scratch in 18?20??1. His teammate Jari-Matti Latvala is behind at 5?? and Mikko Hirvonen third at 6??1. Sebastian Loeb, fourth, 8?5 behind his compatriot, struggled with the settings of his Citroën DS3 WRC. “The car understeers too much for my liking, we have to find the right pace.”

The tone will change during SS3. Thanks to Mikko Hirvonen and Sébastien Loeb, the Citroëns will respond to the Volkswagens. The first took the scratch by completing the 51,88 km between Ascochinga and Agua de Oro in 37. Sébastien Loeb, with new settings which seemed to suit him better, finished second, 55 seconds behind his teammate. Very calm after SS1, Sébastien Ogier, third 2?2 behind the leader, complained about Dani Sordo: the Spaniard, who found himself on the roof after a bad indication from his co-driver, would have slowed down the Frenchman? ?Hirvonen didn?t beat the time. I got stuck behind Dani for three or four kilometers”, will explain, irritated, Sébastien Ogier. Despite everything, the leader of the general classification retains the lead of the rally with 3??6 ahead of the Finn and 6?? on the nine-time Alsatian world champion. Latvala, fifth in SS3, is fourth and already concedes 23??5 to his teammate.

SS4 will start at 19:41 p.m. French time, and will once again be followed live on AUTOhebdo.fr!