Loeb, Solberg locked in battle for Rally GB lead
Citroen number one driver Sebastien Loeb leads Wales Rally GB heading into the mid-day halt, although Petter Solberg is right up there in his privately entered C4 WRC and a major threat, just 2.3 seconds adrift.
Solberg took the lead from Loeb on the opening stage of the day, Radnor 1, although he, like all the drivers, found conditions difficult: "Bloody hell guys, that was slippery!" said 'Hollywood'. "I hope Seb said the same!"
The biggest loser on the opening stage was Sebastien Ogier who rolled out of the rally, and probably second place in the 2010 World Rally Championship, close to the flying finish. The following drivers' reported that they couldn't even see the Citroen from the road.
Loeb conceded further time to Solberg on the following stage, Monument Hill, after making a rare error: "I went straight on at a junction and stalled the car," he explained.
The Frenchman struck back on the next stage though, Four Ways Crychan 1, which saw the cars tackle the gravel tracks of Crychan Forest before taking on the tarmac of the Epynt Military ranges.
As he conceded the event lead once again, Solberg felt he had been at a disadvantage: "A lot of mud has been pulled onto the road by Seb. This made the tarmac very tricky. We lost time to Seb on the tarmac. The second run should be more equal," Solberg stated.
The final stage of the morning, Halfway 1, saw Loeb's advantage more than halved after he hit a problem: "We spun on a corner and lost ten seconds. It was very slippery and I misjudged the braking point," he revealed.
Behind the leading duo, Ogier's demise has left three drivers fighting it out for third place. Mikko Hirvonen currently holds the final podium place despite a scare on Halfway 1: "I had to slow down when I hit a sheep!" he explained, although there was no visible damage on the car.
Dani Sordo also struck problems on the stage and suffered an overshoot: "There were two crests and a hairpin. I braked at the second crest when I should have braked at the first!" he noted.
That promoted a delighted Jari-Matti Latvala to fourth place, although after his problems on the final stage yesterday he appears to have conceded any hopes of a win: "I'm looking at the pace of Loeb and Solberg but have to be realistic now," said the Finn.
Henning Solberg is in sixth place despite being distinctly uncomfortable with some of the conditions: "Tricky is an understatement," he said after SS8. "We went flat out but I don't enjoy these conditions - we'll do what we can."
Seventh placed Matthew Wilson had a scare in Halfway 1 and reported that he had a 'really big slide', while Mads Ostberg is in eighth and is more concerned he not on it enough: "Three stages now with no spin so we must try harder. This car is made to push!" he joked.
Lying ninth as he headed to service, F1 2007 world champion Kimi Raikkonen said he had had a 'good morning' while tenth placed Ken Block was also 'having a great time'.
Andreas Mikkelsen continues to lead the SWRC category in his Ford Fiesta reporting at the end of Halfway 1 that he was 'on cruise control now'. Jari Ketomaa lies more than 30 seconds behind, the Skoda driver: "We took time out of Mikkelsen but lost too much to him yesterday," Ketomaa noted. With Eyvind Brynildsen putting his Skoda off the road in Monument Hill 1, third place in SWRC is now held by Xavier Pons in his Fiesta.
Ott Tanak leads the PWRC, 35.8 seconds up on Patrik Flodin, while Martin Semerad completes the provisional class podium.
The action now continues this afternoon with all four of this morning's tests due to be repeated. SS12, Radnor 2, starts at 14.07 hours local time. Day two concludes - as the opening leg began - with a second-run through the short 1.70 kilometre Cardiff Bay Super Special Stage [SS16].
Wales Rally GB: Overall standings after Stage 11 (Top 10):
1. Sebastien LoebCitroen Total WRT C4 WRC1hour 53min 17.3secs M
2. Petter SolbergPSWRT Citroen C4 WRC+00mins 02.3secs A8
3. Mikko HirvonenBP Ford Abu Dhabi Focus RS WRC +01mins 02.5secs M
4. Jari-Matti LatvalaBP Ford Abu Dhabi Focus RS WRC +01mins 13.7secs M
5. Dani SordoCitroen Junior Team C4 WRC+01mins 20.1secs M
6. Henning SolbergStobart M-Sport Ford Focus RS WRC+03mins 51.3secs M
7. Matthew WilsonStobart M-Sport Ford Focus WRC+04mins 55.4secs M
8. Mads OstbergSubaru Impreza WRC+05mins 26.5secs A8
9. Kimi Raikkonen Citroen Junior Team C4 WRC +06mins 28.9secs M
10. Ken BlockMonster WRT Ford Focus WRC+07mins 50.9secs A8
Other:
11. Andreas MikkelsenSkoda Fabia S2000+08mins 11.4secs S
SWRC Standings after Stage 11 (Top 3):
1. Andreas MikkelsenSkoda Fabia S20002hours 01mins 28.9secs S
2. Jari KetomaaFord Fiesta S2000+00mins 30.2secs S
3. Xavier PonsFord Fiesta S2000+03mins 24.7secs S
PWRC Standings after Stage 11 (Top 3):
1. Ott Tanak Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X2hours 06mins 29.3secs P
2. Patrik Flodin Subaru Impreza STi+00mins 35.8secs P
3. Martin SemeradMitsubishi Lancer Evo IX+01mins 30.5secs P
Notable retirements:
SS8. Sebastien OgierCitroen Total WRT C4 WRCCrashed M
all times unofficial
