Sébastien Loeb returns to the FIA World Rally Championship for his third and final outing with Citroën Total Abu Dhabi WRT in 2018 keen to add another victory to his legendary rally career.
Having won eight times out of thirteen attempts at the unique gravel/tarmac rally, Loeb has a strong case for victory in a car that despite its strong opposition, has shown strong pace throughout the year.
Loeb’s two outings this year saw him finish fifth in Mexico, and fourteenth in Corsica after going off of the road on the opening day, being forced to retire after the Citroën C3 WRC was marooned in a ditch.
“After setting some good times on both surfaces in Mexico and in Corsica, I’d love to get through an entire rally without making any mistakes.”said the Frenchman talking before the event. “My two days of testing went well. It’s now up to me to put it all together, from start to finish.”
Credit: Citroen Racing
While his reputation precedes him, Loeb is realistic in what can be achieved this weekend, with that said, you would be a fool to discount him.
“The standard is so high that it would be pretentious to say that I’ll be able to challenge the three title contenders, but I hope to be more or less on the pace.
“If it’s dry on day one, then we’ll need to make the most of the potential advantage of our road position, because lots of things always happen on this leg, with hidden, embedded rocks pretty much everywhere.”
The 54. RallyRACC Catalunya – Costa Daurada 2018 gets under way on Thursday 25 October with the crowd favourite Barcelona city stage returning to the event.
Follow The Checkered Flag throughout the event for updates each day.
