WRC – Sweden: Ogier surprised by his victory

Sébastien Ogier wins his first victory Rally of Sweden with Volkswagen for his second rally at the wheel of the Polo R WRC. After taking second place in Monte-Carlo, the Frenchman was supreme in the qualifying special which allowed him to start in a good position on the road at the closing Power Stage which he won with three bonus points. The Frenchman collects a maximum of points this weekend and leads the Championship with 22 points ahead of his direct rival Mads Ostberg, Sébastien Loeb three units behind, competing in only four events this year.

The Swedish Rally winner couldn't have hoped for a better start to the season, with Volkswagen Motorsport having set measured targets this year which he described as a learning season. After the snow, the people's builder will have to face the dirt of the Rally Mexico contested in a month. In the meantime, it's time to celebrate for Sébastien Ogier who is celebrating his eighth victory in the discipline. “I have to thank them because they gave me a perfect car all weekend. I've never had a car like this.", commented the winner after kissing the VW logo on the hood of his Polo R WRC. “This victory was incredible but it was also a huge surprise. We spent so much time and effort with the team in preparation, but we never expected to achieve such a performance so quickly. It couldn't be better. Sébastien (Loeb) put enormous pressure this morning. He flew over the stages. We tried to follow him without taking all the risks, but we still had to attack because he was very fast. To win in this way is incredible. »

Discover the analysis of the Swedish Rally carried out by our special correspondents in the next issue of AUTOhebdo, available from Tuesday in digital version for iPad, PC and Mac, and from Wednesday on newsstands.