Sebastien Loeb has said that things are looking 'very encouraging' for him and
Citroen after he ended day 1 of the Rally Catalunya well placed to take the overall win.
Although Seb was made to work for the top spot and was kept honest by his team-mate,
Daniel Sordo, he showed his class on the final test, when rain swept in.
Indeed he was 14.9 seconds quicker than his Spanish team-mate in SS6 and consequently moved back up into P1. The result also allowed him to increase the margin over Marcus Gronholm, his chief championship rival and with the Finn now third and 50 seconds or so back, Loeb is looking good to cut Gronholm's 10 point advantage at the top of the drivers' standings.
Furthermore while Sordo may be able to match Loeb, Dani will have to play a supportive role, as the Frenchman needs all the points he can get to try and get back on terms with Marcus and claim his fourth drivers' title in a row.
"Our choice wasn't ideal for the rain on SS6. We managed to live with it, though, and even succeeded in pulling out a useful gap over Marcus Grönholm,” said Seb.
“It's been a dramatic opening day but the car and the team ensured we came through it unscathed. It's looking very encouraging at the moment, but there's still a long way to go."
Sordo meanwhile was also happy with his days work and the fact he managed to head a WRC event for the very first time, when he took the lead on SS4, will no doubt give him a good confidence boost.
His priority though remains on keeping Gronholm in P3, something that will allow Loeb to take an extra 2 points off the Finn.
"It was a positive day for us. The last stage was really very difficult but I'm pleased to say that we succeeded in pulling even further clear of Marcus,” he added.
“Although it's not the most important thing this weekend, it was nice to lead a World Championship rally for the first time in my career - and on home soil, too. That was something special but, as I say, the main thing is to be ahead of Grönholm on Sunday afternoon."
