The full route for next year’s Monte Carlo Rally has also been announced, although that event of course won’t be part of the WRC in 2009, but a round of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge.
News from the Manufacturers' teams:
Citroen Total WRT:
[
Sebastien Loeb, car #1 and
Daniel Sordo, car #2]
Loeb won't go silly in pursuit of first Finland win.
Sebastien Loeb has said that while he would dearly love to win the Rally Finland this week, he isn't going to get distracted and lose sight of what is really important.
Loeb heads to the ninth round in the WRC trailing
Mikko Hirvonen by three points in the race for the 2008 drivers' title, despite having won five events to the Finn's two in the first half of the year.
Seb’s focus then is very much on regaining the initiative as he strides to win the drivers' crown for a record fifth time - something that has never before been achieved in the history of the sport.
The '1000 Lakes', as it use to be known though, is one of the few events in the WRC that Loeb has yet to win on and while he has done well there in the past - and finished on the rostrum in 2007, 2006 and 2005 - he has yet to finish on the top step.
"We have never won this event and that is one of the targets I set myself for 2008," he confirmed ahead of what will be his ninth outing in Finland. "But however dearly I would love to win it, and despite the ground that would enable us to make up in the Drivers' standings, I have no intention of taking any more risks than usual just to add a fresh line to my personal record.
"This time last year, we were nine points down. This year, the gap is just three points. We therefore can't afford to make any mistakes, yet it is so easy to put a foot wrong in these forests where you're constantly driving on a knife edge, with all the concealed bends and the trees so very close!"
Loeb’s team-mate Dani Sordo meanwhile is feeling confident heading to Jyvaskyla having had his morale boosted by his relatively recent success on the O.K. Auto-Ralli.
