Day 4 – Loeb without suspense… Atkinson on the podium
Sébastien Loeb continued to assert his supremacy in the 76th Monte Carlo Rally, thus winning the most popular WRC rally for the 5th time: A new record. The Frenchman, Citroën driver and already a four-time world champion, opted for a very cautious day. He didn’t try to attack but still managed to extend his lead […]
Sébastien Loeb continued to assert his supremacy in the 76th Monte Carlo Rally, thus winning the most popular WRC rally for the 5th time: A new record.
The Frenchman, Citroën driver and already a four-time world champion, opted for a very cautious day. He didn’t try to attack but still managed to extend his lead over the second, Mikko Hirvonen, who also preferred to maintain his second place, more than 2 minutes behind Loeb.
After three days of rallying, the positions seemed already secured, except for the third place as Chris Atkinson and François Duval had a 20-second gap yesterday. Before the Super Special, they had only 1.7 seconds between them. The Belgian indeed posted two best times today, allowing him to catch up with the Australian.
In the end, on the docks of Monaco, it was ultimately Atkinson who maintained his lead with a 1.1 second advantage over François Duval. Atkinson thus climbs onto the podium for the second consecutive year on Monegasque soil.
Behind, Peter Solberg in the second Subaru is in the top 5, ahead of Italian Gigi Galli (6th) in the Ford Focus.
The regional driver, Jean-Marie Cuoq, and double French champion achieved a very fine performance by taking the 7th position. The Ardèche native was 9th last year and with a bit more experience, he now manages to surpass other great drivers.
PG Andersson, from the JWRC (junior) championship, scores the team’s historic first points for Suzuki with an 8th place finish. His teammate, Toni Gardemeister, was 10th yesterday but could not start. (see previous article).
In the top 10, we find two other Stobart drivers, Henning Solberg and Matthew Wilson. The Stobart team thus places all 4 of its drivers in the top 10.
Jari-Matti Latvala on BP Ford continued his Monte-Carlo in Super Rally after retiring due to a shock absorber problem. The Finn is 11th, ahead of the last contender in the championship, Dani Sordo, who is announced as Loeb’s main rival for 2008. He takes the 12th place, more than 20 minutes behind the French champion.
Monte Carlo Rally – Day 4 – TOP 10
| Drivers | Teams | Time | |
| 1 | Loeb | Citroen C4 | 3:39:17.0 |
| 2 | Hirvonen | Ford Focus | +2:34.4 |
| 3 | Atkinson | Subaru Impreza | +2:58.6 |
| 4 | Duval | Ford Stobart | +2:59.7 |
| 5 | P. Solberg | Subaru Impreza | +4:40.9 |
| 6 | Galli | Ford Stobart | +8:46.5 |
| 7 | Cuoq | Peugeot 307 | +10:24.8 |
| 8 | Andersson | Suzuki SX4 | +11:19.5 |
| 9 | H. Solberg | Ford Stobart | +12:43.6 |
| 10 | Wilson | Ford Focus | +14:00.1 |
In the championship, Loeb logically takes the lead in the standings, ahead of Hirvonen and Atkinson. See the 2008 WRC standings
