Xavier Mestelan Pinon: With Sébastien Loeb “I quickly understood”

The Citroën Saxo Kit Car retains a special place in the career of Xavier Mestelan Pinon. Joining Citroën Sport in 1995, the Kit Car became one of his first creations within the competition department of the chevron brand.

A car which will also be of real importance in the career of Sébastien Loeb. The nine-time world rally champion competed in a number of events with this car during his first years in competition before moving on to the Xsara and other C4s and DS3s in rally.

The Alsatian had impressed Xavier Mestelan Pinon from his first laps. “I was in the right seat of an Xsara Group N in the Grenoble region, I had driven with someone else the day before, and we worked the old-fashioned way, stopwatch in hand, remembers the Frenchman.

After Seb's first two runs, I told myself that I must have forgotten to start the timer because the gap was so large. Then I quickly understood. It wasn't the best in terms of focus, but in pure speed it was something else.

I spoke about it to my technical director at the time, Jean-Claude Vaucard, but he told me that it was because I had never ridden next to a Scandinavian, in other words a real driver. He later changed his mind. »

Check out our Carpooling with Xavier Mestelan Pinon in AUTO n°2153hebdo, available now in digital version and on newsstands.