Andalucia Rally: Sebastien Loeb fights back after a tough day in Spain; Stage win for Nasser Al Attiyah

Starting
position

With
Saudi
Arabia’s
Yazeed
Al
Rajhi
moving
into
second
place
in
another
Toyota
Hilux,
Guerlain
Chicherit,
winner
of
the
penultimate
round
in
Morocco
earlier
this
month
in
another
Prodrive
Hunter,
finished
the
day
in
fourth
position
behind
Loeb
and
Dutchman
Eric
Van
Loon.

WRC
legend
Loeb
picked
the
No.1
starting
position
on
the
stage
after
winning
the
prologue,
as
he
looked
to
extend
his
advantage
over
Al
Attiyah.

Wheat
fields

fter
collecting
a
one
minute
penalty
on
the
opening
leg
for
speeding
in
a
neutralised
zone,
the
Qatari
began
the
stage
down
in
11th
place,
behind
a
succession
of
slower
cars
on
a
route
where
overtaking
is
hazardous.

In
sharp
contrast
to
the
Moroccan
desert
conditions
at
the
previous
round,
the
319kms-stage
unfolded
over
fast
tracks
in
the
midst
of
Andalucia’s
olive
groves
and
wheat
fields.

Power
steering
woes

Loeb’s
power
steering
problems
saw
him
drop
six-and-a-half
minutes
inside
the
first
34kms
as
Al
Attiyah
swept
into
the
lead,
and
the
WRC
legend
initially
dropped
to
13th
position.
But
by
the
205kms
checkpoint,
Loeb
had
clawed
his
way
back
to
third
spot
to
stay
in
the
hunt.

The
stages
in
Spain
are
expected
to
suit
the
the
WRC
legend
as
they
are
similar
to
those
in
last
year’s
Baja
Aragon
where
he
led
before
a
small
technical
problem
denied
him
a
certain
victory.

Tense
finish

Loeb’s
input
from
the
BRX
rally
programme
has
been
a
key
factor
in
the
design
of
the
hypercar,
which
is
being
built
in
limited
numbers
to
the
individual
specifications
of
select
super
car
enthusiasts.
Stage
wins
in
Andalucia
could
ultimately
prove
decisive,
as
they
carry
extra
bonus
points.

Added
to
the
uncertainty
of
rally
raids,
which
run
over
difficult
terrain
and
present
stern
navigational
challenges,
this
means
the
title
race
may
still
produce
a
tense
finish.