Citroen boss Olivier Quesnel has said that his team will continue to push on the Rally New Zealand in two weeks' time in a bid to further extend its lead in both championships.
Citroen retook top spot in the manufacturers' standings in Germany last weekend, after
Sebastien Loeb and Dani Sordo finished one-two to give the French outfit the maximum 18-point haul.
However, with Ford just eight points adrift - 123 points versus 115 - Quesnel is more than aware that the situation could change quickly.
Indeed, while he was pleased with the result on the Rallye Deutschland - the eighth year in a row that Citroen has won in Trier if Philippe Bugalski's 2001 win with the Xsara WRC is included - with five rounds still to go and 90 potential manufacturer points up for grabs, the championship is still very open - and the situation is the same in the drivers' with Loeb just four points up on
Mikko Hirvonen.
"The plan for the rest of the season is quite clear," Quesnel admitted, "We want to be first in New Zealand and try to win all the rallies that are coming - maybe even be first and second like here. We want to win the manufacturers' championship.
"A fortnight ago, in Finland, we were the outsiders, but we managed to come out on top. Here, on the contrary, everybody saw us as favourites and that put us under a certain amount of pressure. I am proud to say, however, that everyone at Citroen Sport rose superbly to the occasion and played their part in securing our first one-two finish of the year as the championship enters its final phase. That's an encouraging result for the battles ahead.
"Sebastien and Daniel [Elena] produced an impeccable run, while Dani and Marc [Marti] put in a solid performance to claim second overall and bring us more valuable points.
"Our cars and crews have a strong record on the Rallye Deutschland and another outstanding performance this time round has taken us to the top of the manufacturers' championship.
