Mikko Hirvonen meanwhile kept Seb honest throughout and never gave up, but like last year, when he was battling with Marcus Gronholm, the 28-year-old just didn't quite have what it took to take P1.

Indeed he only managed to win seven tests to Seb's 15 - and while they were equal fastest in SS2, SS6 and SS22, illustrating to an extent just how close the battle was, on day two, Mikko never got the gap below 10 seconds.

While he hangs onto the lead in the drivers' championship, his failure to win on home soil will only fuel the doubters who question if he has what it takes to stop Loeb securing that record fifth crown.

"I tried my best but I am really pleased for Sebastien," said Hirvonen magnanimously. "He took every chance he needed to win the rally and it has been a fantastic battle. All the rallies from here on now are important for my championship so we will have some amazing fights coming up."

Chris Atkinson was next up and took the final place on the podium, albeit more than 3 minutes further back, which just shows how quick Loeb and Hirvonen were.

Atkinson's event got off to a bad start and he ended day 1 down in seventh place. The Aussie was happier with the relatively new Impreza WRC2008 on Saturday though - and it showed. He charged back up the order, setting top five times in every single test bar one, and overhauled Dani Sordo for third in the final stage of the day. He eventually beat the Spaniard by 13.9 seconds.

"You have to be fast on this rally and the team has done an amazing job to get the car here," he noted. "It has been an incredible event and this is one of the rallies where you want to be on the podium. It's been a great weekend and to get it here feels really sweet."

Further down the order, Dani Sordo emphasised that he is really a contender on gravel with a very good fourth place - and twelve top-five stages times from 24. He finished day two only one second off Atkinson, but opted not to try and fight for P3 on the final leg in order to ensure he scored manufacturers' points for Citroen. Citroen now reduce Ford's lead from 9 points to just 3.

"My fourth place is really important here for the manufacturers' championship [and our battle with Ford]," he confirmed. "I am happy with my performance - but Sebastien and Mikko were in a different class. It was an amazing rally."

Stobart Ford's Henning Solberg completed the top five and while he had been third at the finish of day 1, he slipped back on Saturday, when he was unable to find a good rhythm. He also came under late pressure from his brother Petter, who cut the 30 second gap post-SS21 to just 6.4 seconds at the finish.