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Nine-time World Rally Champion Sebastien Loeb will rejoin Citroen racing in the coming weeks to test the squad's C3 WRC.

The 43-year-old Frenchman, who claimed 78 wins with Citroën in his record-breaking WRC career, will drive the car for one day on asphalt next month. 

The announcement was made this afternoon by PSA Motorsport, the group in charge of Peugeot Sport, Citroën Racing and DS Performance. 

It said the alliance between its brands would enable Loeb to get back behind the wheel of a WRC car and continue his current programmes with Peugeot. 

PSA said it was was 'an opportunity for Citroën Racing to get valuable technical feedback on the C3 WRC from the great champion.'

Loeb said: "At the same time as competing in cross-country and the World Rallycross Championship with Peugeot, I can bring my experience to Citroën by testing the C3."

"I can't wait to get back into a WRC and test how the technology has changed in that discipline! I'm still passionate about rallying. Of all the disciplines I've tried since I retired 5 years ago, it's the sensation of rallying that I love most."

Introduced at the start of the year, and built to the new World Rally Car specifications, the C3 has failed to match the success of previous Citroën WRC models like the Xsara, C4 and DS 3. 

Despite taking a year out of WRC competition in 2016 to prepare for its comeback, Citroën has claimed just one win from the eight rounds so far this season and is ranked last in the FIA manufacturers' standings. 

Kris Meeke scored Citroën's only win in Mexico but he was dropped for this month's Polish encounter after a series of crashes. The team drafted in Andreas Mikkelsen to replace him but Meeke returns for this week's Neste Rally Finland.  

Earlier this month, team boss Yves Matton acknowledged that "directions taken during development of the C3 WRC were not fit for purpose" and that staff working for new technical director Christophe Besse were working on "upgrades that would provide the car with greater versatility." 

"The priority now is to prepare for 2018," he said. "Some of the upgrades will need several months of development work and they won't be ready to be introduced until the start of next season."

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Sebastien Ogier has apologized to fellow m-sport drivers Elfyn Evans and Teemu Suninen for a heavy crash that ended the squad's Rally Finland pre-event test before they got the chance to drive.

Ott Tänak and Ogier tested a Ford Fiesta WRC in Finland last week and were due to hand the car over to Evans and Suninen on Friday and Saturday (yesterday) respectively.

But the test was abandoned on Thursday afternoon after Ogier crashed on his final run. 

"There was nothing I could do to avoid the crash. [There was] a big rock in the line at the exit of a long flat sixth-gear corner," Ogier explained. 

The rock broke the Fiesta's suspension and sent the car off the road and into a tree. Ogier was uninjured but the car could not be repaired on location. 

"I’m sorry for my teammates who were unable to continue, the car felt fantastic. I’m really looking forward to the rally now – where we hope to secure a good result for our championship defence,” said Ogier, who leads the drivers’ standings by 11 points. 

Team boss Malcolm Wilson said: “It’s a shame that our test was cut short, but both Ott and Sébastien came away happy having found a good feeling on these specialist roads. 

"I believe that all of our drivers are capable of delivering some very positive results and we’re working to ensure that everyone is as prepared as they can be given the circumstances."

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Jari-Matti Latvala has the chance to match his Toyota Gazoo team boss Tommi Makinen's record of four WRC home round wins at this week's Rally Finland [27 - 30 july].

Four-time world champion Mäkinen won his country's WRC counter four times between 1994 and 1998, first in a Ford Escort RS Cosworth, and then three times at the wheel of a Mitsubishi Lancer.

Meanwhile Latvala secured his first home victory in 2010 in a Ford Focus RS, and later won the 2013 and 2014 editions in a Volkswagen Polo R. 

This week, Rally Sweden winner Latvala will be chasing another victory in Toyota's Yaris World Rally Car, on a rally with enormous personal significance. 

"Along with Monte-Carlo, Finland is the rally that everyone wants to win; especially if you are Finnish," he explained.  

"There's pressure to do well, but it's a positive pressure. No doubt about my target: victory. I'm feeling confident, but I don't think there's such a thing as a big home advantage for Finnish drivers anymore. Now that so many of the stages are used every year, the other drivers have got a lot of experience as well. I'm expecting a big fight."

As well as being the home round for Mäkinen, Latvala and the squad's two other drivers, Juho Hänninen and Esapekka Lappi, Finland is also the home of Toyota's WRC operation, which is based close to the rally's host city Jyväskylä. 

The Yaris WRC grew up in the area too, having completed much of its development running on local gravel roads as well as specific pre-event testing.

Mäkinen acknowledged that the strong local connections, and the enthusiastic support of the home crowd, added to the sense of anticipation. 

"Finland is a very special home rally for us, and as long as the drivers are feeling confident, then I am feeling confident too," he said. 

"I think we are well prepared as we have quite a lot of experience of Finnish stages. On the other hand, our car has been constantly evolving so we are always discovering new things. What's certain is that this rally is going to be an incredible experience for all of us and we'll see lots of fans on the stages. 

"We have a great line-up of drivers: Jari-Matti knows how to win here, Juho is very experienced and fast, while Esapekka is young and hungry. I think they will all be very strong."

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Rally Finland (27-30 July), the next stop for the FIA World Rally Championship contenders, is one of the most spectacular events on the calendar. It has an awesome reputation and while a handful of ‘outsiders’ have stood on the top step of the podium, it continues to be dominated by Finnish drivers who have won 54 of the 66 editions.

The event dates back to 1951 when it was a qualifier for the Finnish entrants for Rallye Monte-Carlo. Known back then as the 1000 Lakes Rally, it was first included in the WRC in 1973 and is still affectionately referred to as the Finnish Grand Prix. The smooth gravel roads are kind on cars but the high-speed nature of the fast and flowing stages see the cars fly from jump to jump and reward only the bravest crews. The challenge is immense and pace notes have to be perfect in order to judge the speed and positioning of the car over blind crests that hide a following corner. Mastering the jumps, precision delivery of pace notes and fearlessness are key to success in Finland.

With the Championships closing up following Rally Poland, competition will be fierce at the head of the field. There is also a strong entry of FIA WRC 2 Championship contenders and the Junior WRC Championship crews will again be in action for the fourth of their six-round series.

Five stages will be broadcast live; the opening Harju stage on Thursday as well as its repeated run on Friday evening, the legendary Ouninpohja on Saturday, and both Oitilla stages on Sunday, the second counting as the all-important Power Stage.

THE 2017 ROUTE

The 2017 Rally Finland route is a mix of old and new with just two stages identical to those run in 2016 – Saalahti on Saturday and Lempää run on Sunday. Stage 14, Pihlajakoski, is completely new and all other stages have modifications from previous years. The rally kicks off on Thursday evening with the Harju street stage in Jyväskylä before a marathon day on Friday that takes in nearly 16 hours behind the wheel over classic Finnish stages. Saturday’s route heads south to Jämsä and the legendary Ouninpohja, which will be driven in its traditional direction this year. Sunday remains the same as 2016 with two loops of two stages culminating in the 6.8 kilometre Oittila Power Stage.

RALLY DATA

Total distance:
Stage distance:
Number of stages:

1,425.96 km
314.20 km (22%)
25

 

         

 

 

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