LOEB AND ELENA HIT RECORD-BREAKING HALF-CENTURY

17 March, 2009 07:48:00

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HISTORIC 50TH WRC VICTORY AT RALLY CYPRUS

Sébastien Loeb hit another record landmark in his rallying career at Rally Cyprus over the weekend. The five-time World Rally Champion, together with team-mate Daniel Elena, led all three days of the rally to secure a 50^th world class WRC victory. A fourth place position for Dani Sordo and Marc Marti gave Citroën an even clearer lead in the Manufacturers’ World Championship standings.

With few dramas and a steady performance from Loeb throughout the stages, the attention was on Dani Sordo to hold his position from Norwegian, Petter Solberg. Unfortunately a stall during a hairpin knocked 10 seconds off Sordo’s pace taking dropping him to fourth place overall, but still allowing him to pick up important Manufacturers’ points.

“To have reached our half-century is nice, but it’s just another statistic,” commented Loeb, five-time WRC World Champion. “To tell the truth, my thoughts are already turned to our 51^st win! This rally went well for us from start to finish. Our C4 WRC handled perfectly, both on the loose and on asphalt.” The weekend’s result has taken Sébastien Loeb and Daniel Elena’s record to 13 consecutive podium finishes, a sequence which began on the 2008 Rally Italy Sardinia.

“It’s been a perfect event for us overall,” concluded Citroën Sport Director Olivier Quesnel. “Sébastien’s performance was stunning from every angle. As usual, he put in a perfectly paced run and started every stage with victory as his ultimate goal.”

The next event will be Rally Portugal from 2-5 April.

FINAL LEADERBOARD ON RALLY CYPRUS*

1. Loeb/Elena (Citroën C4)	4h50min 34.7s
2. Hirvonen/Lehtinen (Ford Focus)	+27.2s
3. Solberg/Mills (Citroën Xsara)	+1min 49.4s
4. Sordo/Marti (Citroën C4)	+2min 26.3s
5. Wilson/Martin (Ford Focus)	+6min 41.0s
6. Rautenbach/Barritt (Citroën C4)	+11min 11.9s