“Our aim in Corsica then will once again be to finish ahead of him and hope that Dani Sordo and perhaps other drivers succeed in splitting us in the final results.”
Asked about the main differences between the Rally Catalunya and the Tour de Corse, Seb was keen to point out that both are quite different – not that it seems to faze him much, as like in Spain he has won the event the last two years in succession.
"You could be forgiven for thinking they were identical, but there are some significant differences. The principal difference is that the Corsican roads are bumpier, while those in Catalonia were even smoother this year than they have been in the past,” he continued.
“The pace will be fast in Corsica, and even very fast in places, but we tend not to take the same racing lines as we take in Spain. The asphalt itself is very different, too. The quality of the asphalt in Catalonia is very good, whereas the Corsican stages are rougher and more damaged.”
Seb’s team-mate,
Daniel Sordo meanwhile heads to France on a high after having led a WRC event for the very first time in Spain.
Sordo performed exactly as
Citroen and Loeb had hoped last weekend and now he will be expected to do exactly the same in Corsica and given how he goes on asphalt - and given he finished third last year on this event - that shouldn’t be too much of a problem.
"I like any rally on asphalt, wherever it takes place! Last year, we posted some decent times in Corsica and I don't see why we shouldn't be competitive again,” noted the 2005 Junior champion. “The stages are different but I do enjoy all the corners.
“Our result in Spain means we are extremely motivated to try to finish ahead of Marcus again."
As for what it was like to finally head the leader-board overall on a WRC event, Dani admitted it was a special feeling: "I was really keen for the first stage to start on Friday - and I will never forget what it felt like to find myself in the lead of a World Championship event for the first time! It's a strange sensation and I hope I will get a chance to experience it again some day.”
BP Ford WRT:
[Marcus Gronholm, car #3 and
Mikko Hirvonen, car #4]
Gronholm hoping it stays dry
Marcus Gronholm had to settle for the final place on the podium on the Rally Catalunya after a tyre gamble on the first leg backfired and left him 30 seconds off the pace in the final test of the day.
