WRC – Citroën wants to secure its 3rd double

Sébastien Loeb and Mikko Hirvonen put up a great battle during the first two stages of the Rally from New Zealand, the two drivers fighting for seconds over the 143km timed day on Saturday. If the Finn had managed to come back to within two seconds of the Alsatian halfway through the stage, the eight-time world champion regained some air with a six-second lead at the end of the second pass of the day's specials. . DS3 drivers WRC could continue to attack, Petter Solberg (Ford) still posing a threat with his reserve of soft tires. But the Norwegian failed to catch up with the leaders and now secures the podium, which allows Citroën to relieve the pressure. 

“I chose to let our drivers fight for first place, because the threat of a return from Petter Solberg was very real”, commented Yves Matton, director of Citroën Racing. ?However, he was unable to take advantage of his choice of tires and the gap stabilized around a minute and a half. Even if the last stage only offers 60 km of special stages, we will approach it without excess confidence. It is possible that the weather will change again and you will once again have to make wise tire choices. I therefore asked our drivers to ensure a double. »