Citroën Total World Rally Team

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Citroën Total World Rally Team

Logo-citroen-racing.jpg

Surname Citroën Total Abu Dhabi WRT
Companies Citroën
Company headquarters FranceFrance Versailles
Team boss FranceFrance Pierre Budar
Technical Director FranceFrance Christophe Besse
2018 season
driver United KingdomUnited Kingdom Kris Meeke Mads Østberg Khalid al Qassimi
NorwayNorway
United Arab EmiratesUnited Arab Emirates
Co-driver IrelandIreland Paul Nagle Jonas Andersson Chris Patterson
SwedenSweden
United KingdomUnited Kingdom
vehicle Citroën DS3 WRC
tires Michelin
World Cup position 2
statistics
First rally world championship run Rally Catalonia 1998
Constructors' championship 8
2003 , 2004 , 2005 , 2008 , 2009 , 2010 , 2011 , 2012
Drivers World Championship 9
2004 , 2005 , 2006 , 2007 , 2008 , 2009 , 2010 , 2011 , 2012
Rally victories 93
Position 2014 season 2
Status: after 9 of 13 World Championship races in 2014

The Citroën Total World Rally Team (the " Total " is the French oil company) is the works team of the Motorsport Division Citroën Racing of the French carmaker Citroen , which according to the company's founder, André Citroën is named and since the 2003 season in the FIA - World Rally Championship involved. The team has been called Citroën Total Abu Dhabi WRT since 2013 . With 93 WRC victories, Citroën is the most successful car manufacturer in rally history by 2014.

prehistory

Citroën ZX Rally Raid at the 14th ICCCR Citroen World Meeting Rome

The brand was already active in motorsport in the 1950s and 1960s. For example, Paul Coltelloni won the prestigious Monte Carlo Rally in 1959 in a Citroën ID 19 and Pauli Toivonen in a DS 21 the 1966 Monte.

Citroën Sport entered the World Rally Championship for the first time in 1986 with a Group B Citroën BX 4TC . The newly developed vehicle could only be used in three rounds of the Group B championship. Group B has already been criticized after a few tragic accidents and was finally banned during the course of this season after Henri Toivonen's fatal accident in the Lancia Delta S4 at the Corsica Rally . The Citroën team then withdrew from the World Rally Championship.

With the market launch of the Citroën ZX in 1991, Citroën Sport began to operate in a different kind of rally sport . After Citroën with the ZX Rally Raid the Rally Raid won -Konstrukteursmeisterschaft 1991, 1994, 1995, 1996 and 1997, in this period, the Paris-Dakar Rally won four times, it withdrew from this motor sport and started preparations for building a new rally vehicle.

The Citroën Xsara , introduced as the ZX successor, was to be used as a front-wheel drive kit car in the up to 2000 cm³ displacement class (at that time class A7) in the French rally championship.

1998–2000: Occasional World Cup participation with the kitcar

Jesús Puras at the 1998 Cantabria Rally

In the French championship, the vehicle turned out to be a successful and competitive construction. Since the Xsara drove from victory to victory from the very first outings in French rallies, three of which were also part of the European Rally Championship , the decision was made to expand the commitment.

Initially, the team started from the 1998 World Rally Championship with the two-wheel-drive Citroën Xsara Kitcars in the asphalt rallies of the world championship without being registered in the constructors' world championship.

When it was first used in the World Championship at the Rally Catalonia , Philippe Bugalski took the class win and fifth place overall behind four turbo all-wheel drive vehicles in the WRC class, which has been advertised since the 1997 season, with the Xsara with around 280 hp, a 2 liter naturally aspirated engine and front wheel drive . He retired in Corsica after a collision with a broken suspension and after an accident at the San Remo Rally . His team mate Jesús Puras took part in two world championship rallies in 1998 without reaching the finish.

In the 1999 season , Philippe Bugalski and Jesús Puras again took part in three World Cup asphalt rallies in the Xsara Kitcar. At the Rally Catalonia, Philippe Bugalski took the overall victory this time ahead of the stronger World Rally Cars . Bugalski and Puras achieved a double victory at the Corsica Rally. Dissatisfaction with the situation began to spread among the established factory teams. The voices of those demanding a change in the regulations grew louder and louder. So said the then Ford factory driver, Colin McRae :

"Even my grandmother would have a good chance of winning the Corsica Rally in an Xsara kitcar."

Both Bugalski and Puras retired from the San Remo Rally. In spite of this, air flow limiters have been introduced as mandatory for class A7 vehicles . Citroën Sport then withdrew with the Xsara Kitcar from participating in World Rally Championship races in the 2000 season.

As mentioned above, the team also took part in the French rally championship with the Xsara Kitcar, where Philippe Bugalski won the championship title in 1998 and 1999. Under the name Citroën Hispania , Citroën Sport also used the Xsara kitcar in the Spanish rally championship for three years. Jesús Puras won the title with this vehicle in 1998, 1999 and 2000.

Citroën Sport also built Citroën Saxo kitcars as customer vehicles in the next lower class . A young up-and-coming driver started in the team created to promote youth, the Équipe de France FFSA, at three World Cup races in 1999 to “sniff the air”. Sébastien Loeb , who was already causing a stir back then with impressive special stage times, was to make a name for himself later.

2000–2001: Xsara T4 and Saxo Super 1600

In 2000 the team reacted to the restrictions on the kitcars. Since the group brother Peugeot drove with the Peugeot 206 WRC in the world championship for the driver and manufacturer title, which it ultimately won with Marcus Grönholm , Peugeot did not want to compete and set the class A8 according to the regulations , newly developed Xsara T4 only for the French rally championship.

Bugalski won every rally he took part in, including the Rally Germany , which was held as a European Rally Championship, and the third French championship title in a row. He also drove three World Championship rallies in the privately owned Saxo. Loeb started, also with a privately used Saxo, in two world championship races and was used by the Citroën team for training in the Xsara kitcar at a single European Championship rally, which he also won.

From the 2001 World Rally Championship , Citroën Sport increased its involvement in the World Rally Championship. The team continued to forego full participation and did not take part in the Manufacturers' World Championship. However, it was the first to use Citroën Xsara T4 vehicles of the WRC class (A8) equipped with all-wheel drive and turbocharging . When this vehicle first appeared in Catalonia, Puras and Bugalski already demonstrated the future competitiveness of the Xsara before they were eliminated in first and second place. Jesús Puras later achieved his first overall victory in the World Rally Championship at the Corsica Rally.

Sébastien Loeb in the Citroën Saxo S1600 at the 2001 Rally Finland

The team started with the Citroën Saxo VTS Super 1600 in the one-time World Championship for Super 1600 vehicles , which was held as part of the World Rally Championship . As the most hopeful young Citroën driver, Loeb contested most of the season in this series, from which the 2002 Junior World Rally Championship emerged. In the Citroën Saxo S1600, he won his class in all five rallies he has driven, including the Rally Catalonia, Rally Greece , Rally Finland , Rally Corsica and Rally Great Britain . At the San Remo Rally, however, he did not start in the Super 1600 class. His team principal and mentor Guy Fréquelin made it possible for him, as a reward for his outstanding performance, to instead make his first outing in the Citroën Xsara T4 at the San Remo Rally. Loeb scored right away four special stage -Bestzeiten and had at the end of the rally only a few seconds the absolute asphalt specialists and Favorites Gilles Panizzi in the Peugeot 206 WRC beaten. Nevertheless, with second place he achieved his best result so far in the world championship as well as his first WRC points. At the end of the season, the title in the Super 1600 World Championship was clear in points.

In addition to his S1600 World Championship campaign in 2001, Loeb was still active for the Citroën team in the Citroën Xsara Kit Car, which is still used in national competitions, in the French rally championship on asphalt. There Loeb won all six rallies in which he crossed the finish line and was French champions with a large point advantage.

2002 The Citroën Xsara WRC

As before, the team did not fully enter the World Rally Championship. It started at eight of fourteen rallies to test the 2002 version of the Xsara, which from now on carried the addition of the World Rally Car (WRC), for the eventual full World Championship participation from 2003 onwards. The young Loeb showed his talent again at the first rally in Monte Carlo . In his first outing in the Xsara WRC, Loeb completed the rally as the fastest driver, but he was subsequently given a time penalty for a prohibited tire change and thus fell back to second place behind Tommi Mäkinen . Bugalski was third overall in the Rally Catalonia. Her team-mate Thomas Rådström , who was used for the first time this season , also achieved third place overall in the Safari Rally . After Loeb had only achieved average results in the meantime, he celebrated his first WRC victory at the Rally Germany in August .

Daniel Solà at the 2001 Rallye de Avilés

In the Super 1600 class, now known as the Junior World Rally Championship, the Spaniard Daniel Solà achieved the junior title in 2002 with three wins in five races in a Saxo S1600 supported by the Citroën team.

Record of the Citroën Total WRT

2003 First year and first title

In the 2003 season, the brand - from now on as the Citroën Total World Rally Team - took part in all rounds of the World Rally Championship for the first time. At that time, typical factory teams in the World Rally Championship consisted of three vehicles. In addition to the experienced works drivers Carlos Sainz and Colin McRae , a third vehicle was also provided for the "home-made" Sébastien Loeb. At the first outing of the Citroën Total World Rally Team in Monte Carlo, Citroën achieved a triple victory. Loeb was able to secure the second overall victory of his career ahead of his teammates McRae and Sainz. No Citroën driver made the podium at the Rally Sweden . The Finnish Peugeot factory driver and reigning world champion Marcus Grönholm won there .

Carlos Sainz took victory in the subsequent Rally Turkey and was second in the Rally Argentina and also in Greece and Corsica . Colin McRae achieved fourth place four times as the best result during the season and ended the season in seventh place overall.

Eliminated in Turkey, Argentina and Greece, Loeb reached third place overall in Cyprus . At the Rally Germany , Loeb won his second rally of the season. With a second place in the Rally Australia and another victory in the Rally San Remo , he prevailed over his more experienced teammates in victories. But Sainz, who consistently scored points over the course of the season, still had a good chance of winning the title. After Loeb's second place in the Catalonia Rally , Sainz and Loeb traveled to the Rally Great Britain tied as leaders in the intermediate championship result.

In the manufacturers' championship, it was the Peugeot team that put the greatest pressure on the Citroën team during the season. With just five points behind the last rally, it was the only team that had the opportunity to challenge Citroën for the brand's world championship title.

In the drivers' championship was only the Subaru -Pilot Petter Solberg , one point behind, within striking distance of Sainz and Loeb.

Since McRae was already far behind in Great Britain and Sainz was eliminated, an express instruction was given to Loeb, who was driving for victory. He should drive as defensively as possible so as not to lose the brand world title to Peugeot. Loeb obeyed, took off the gas and ended the rally in second place behind Solberg and missed the world title by just one point.

After this stable management , the Peugeot drivers Grönholm and Rovanperä dropped out during the rally and Freddy Loix only finished sixth. Thus the Citroën Total World Rally Team won its first rally world championship in the manufacturers' championship , for the price of Loeb's world title, with a 15 point lead.

Course of the Manufacturers' World Championship in 2003

space team World Championship rally Points
MON
MonacoMonaco
SWE
SwedenSweden
DOOR
TurkeyTurkey
NZL
New ZealandNew Zealand
ARG
ArgentinaArgentina
GRC
GreeceGreece
CYP
Cyprus RepublicRepublic of Cyprus
GER
GermanyGermany
FIN
FinlandFinland
OUT
AustraliaAustralia
ITA
ItalyItaly
FRA
FranceFrance
ESP
SpainSpain
GBR
United KingdomUnited Kingdom
1 FranceFrance Citroën 18th 6th 15th 5 8th 10 11 15th 9 13 15th 12 10 13 160
2 FranceFrance Peugeot 6th 16 9 18th 16 8th 8th 14th 6th 9 11 8th 13 3 145
3 JapanJapan Subaru 0 11 2 9 5 10 10 2 11 14th 2 12 5 16 109
4th United KingdomUnited Kingdom ford 10 5 10 1 3 10 4th 7th 10 1 10 7th 11 4th 93
5 Czech RepublicCzech Republic Škoda Auto 2 1 3 6th 7th 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 23
6th Korea SouthSouth Korea Hyundai 3 0 0 0 0 0 3 1 3 2 0 0 0 0 12
7th JapanJapan Mitsubishi 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

2004 Second year and two world championship titles

Carlos Sainz Rally Finland 2004

From the 2004 season, only two vehicles per works team were allowed. The comparatively unsuccessful Colin McRae was not extended the contract for this season. Loeb and Sainz were signed as the two works drivers in 2004.

The first two rallies in Monte Carlo and the Rally Sweden - where Loeb was the first non- Scandinavian to win - Loeb won. He was eliminated in Mexico and the rally Catalonia, the penultimate round of the season, but with six second places and an additional four victories in the rallies of Cyprus, Turkey, Germany and Australia, he won his first drivers' world title ahead of schedule . He was the first driver since Didier Auriol to win six World Championship rallies in one year, thus equalizing the record of his compatriot, who also won six WRC rallies in one season in 1992.

Carlos Sainz achieved eight podiums in 2004, including a victory in the Argentina Rally. At the Rally Australia, which was held at the end of the season, only the Loeb Xsara WRC started. Because the team won the Manufacturers' World Championship this year, with a 51-point lead, superior and also ahead of the Ford factory team.

Course of the Manufacturers World Championship 2004

space team World Championship rally Points
MON
MonacoMonaco
SWE
SwedenSweden
MEX
MexicoMexico
NZL
New ZealandNew Zealand
CYP
Cyprus RepublicRepublic of Cyprus
GRC
GreeceGreece
DOOR
TurkeyTurkey
ARG
ArgentinaArgentina
FIN
FinlandFinland
GER
GermanyGermany
JPN
JapanJapan
GBR
United KingdomUnited Kingdom
ITA
ItalyItaly
FRA
FranceFrance
ESP
SpainSpain
OUT
AustraliaAustralia
1 FranceFrance Citroën 10 14th 6th 8th 16 11 15th 18th 11 16 12 13 14th 14th 6th 10 194
2 United KingdomUnited Kingdom ford 14th 8th 18th 7th 8th 5 5 6th 12 13 6th 10 5 10 10 6th 143
3 JapanJapan Subaru 2 8th 9 12 9 10 9 5 0 3 12 12 10 7th 9 5 122
4th FranceFrance Peugeot 9 8th 4th 12 0 6th 8th 4th 10 4th 8th 3 4th 5 8th 8th 101
5 JapanJapan Mitsubishi 3 0 2 0 0 4th 2 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 17th
6th Czech RepublicCzech Republic Škoda Auto 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

2005 the year of records

François Duval at the 2005 Cyprus Rally

In 2005 the Belgian François Duval became the new teammate of the reigning world champion Loeb. At the season opener in Monte Carlo, Loeb won this prestigious event for the third time in a row, while his new team-mate had an accident lying in second place and was eliminated. Because Duval retired twice in the next five rallies through his own fault, failed to reach the top ten twice and only finished fourth in the points at the New Zealand Rally , he was given compulsory leave for the next two world championship races. Carlos Sainz was used again in the rallies in Turkey and Greece. Sainz finished fourth in Turkey and third in Greece. After Duval started the last eight rallies for Citroën again, he retired once and finished in the points seven times. He finished second in Germany, Wales and Catalonia and won the Rally Australia, which was the end of the season. He finished the season with 47 points as sixth overall and without a contract extension at Citroën.

Loeb retired from Rally Sweden after his Monte victory and finished fourth in Mexico. Starting with Rally New Zealand, he set a new record by winning six rallies in a row and another record for being the first driver to win seven rallies in one season. At the Corsica Rally, he was the first driver to win all the special stages of a WRC rally. He finished second in Finland and won the Rally Germany for the fourth time in a row - also a record. He finished second at the Rally Great Britain and third in Japan. He won the next two World Championship races again, setting two more records: he was the first rally driver to finish twelve World Championship rallies on the podium in succession and the first ten-time winner of a World Championship season. With 127 points, Loeb was again world champion ahead of Solberg and Grönholm (both 71 points). 56 World Championship points was another record, some of which are not listed here.

With eleven Citroën victories, the team also set a record and won the Manufacturers' World Championship for the third time in a row.

The 2004 FIA junior rally world championship was won by 22-year-old Spaniard Daniel Sordo in a Citroën C2 Super 1600 built and supported by Citroën Racing . Five podiums, including four wins in seven participations, opened the door to a future career as a works driver for him at Citroën.

Course of the Manufacturers World Championship 2005

space team World Championship rally Points
MON
MonacoMonaco
SWE
SwedenSweden
MEX
MexicoMexico
NZL
New ZealandNew Zealand
ITA
ItalyItaly
CYP
Cyprus RepublicRepublic of Cyprus
DOOR
TurkeyTurkey
GRC
GreeceGreece
ARG
ArgentinaArgentina
FIN
FinlandFinland
GER
GermanyGermany
GBR
United KingdomUnited Kingdom
JPN
JapanJapan
FRA
FranceFrance
ESP
SpainSpain
OUT
AustraliaAustralia
1 FranceFrance Citroën 10 1 5 15th 12 10 15th 16 12 9 18th 14th 13 10 18th 10 188
2 FranceFrance Peugeot 9 8th 14th 12 11 8th 10 7th 11 16 11 0 11 2 5 0 135
3 United KingdomUnited Kingdom ford 10 10 3 3 7th 11 5 8th 5 7th 3 4th 5 12 7th 4th 104
4th JapanJapan Subaru 0 10 10 8th 8th 2 8th 1 7th 5 3 10 6th 11 2 6th 97
5 JapanJapan Mitsubishi 9 8th 6th 1 0 5 1 7th 4th 2 4th 7th 4th 1 4th 13 76
6th Czech RepublicCzech Republic Škoda Auto 1 2 1 0 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 4th 0 3 3 3 21st

2006 Kronos Racing takes over the Xsara WRCs

Xavier Pons at the 2006 Rally Greece

Since Citroën Sport withdrew from the World Rally Championship for one year in 2006 to fully concentrate on the development and preparation of the successor WRC C4 , Citroën chose Kronos Racing to represent the brand this season. The team, fully supported by Citroën, looked after Citroën WRT under the name Kronos Total. three Citroën Xsara WRC, one of which was provided for the reigning world champion Sébastien Loeb. The other two were driven by Xavier Pons and last year's Junior World Champion Daniel Sordo.

At the beginning of the season it looked like the team would have a serious competitor in the fight for the world championship this year. Loeb had to admit defeat to the Finn Marcus Grönholm in the first two rallies in Monte Carlo and Sweden . However, while Grönholm's achievements subsequently waned, Loeb proved constancy. In the further course of the season he won the Rally Mexico, the Rally Catalonia, the Rally Corsica, the Rally Argentina, the Rally Sardinia, the Rally Germany and the Rally Japan. With now 27 world championship victories, he set a new record and ousted Carlos Sainz from the top of the all-time table of the most successful rally drivers. Loeb then also won the Cyprus Rally. It is also remarkable that he always crossed the finish line in all twelve rallies and never finished worse than second.

Dani Sordo in the Citroën Xsara WRC Rally Japan 2006

In September, however, Loeb broke his upper arm when he fell on a mountain bike and was therefore unable to compete in the last four World Championship races of the season. Loeb's former team-mate Colin McRae then competed in the Rally Turkey for the team when he was replacing the injured Sébastien Loeb.

After Kronos Total Citroën led the team standings up to four rounds before the end of the season, Loeb retired due to injury and Xavier Pons and Daniel Sordo were relatively unsuccessful, Kronos Racing finally had to admit defeat Ford in the team standings. Nevertheless, Sébastien Loeb still won the drivers' championship one point ahead of his injury break at the end of the season thanks to his large points lead. Pons was seventh in the World Championship with four fourth places and 32 points. Sordo took two second places in Catalonia and Germany, two third places in Corsica and Sardinia and finished fifth in the World Rally Championship with 49 points.

Course of the Manufacturers World Championship 2006

space team World Championship rally Points
MON
MonacoMonaco
SWE
SwedenSweden
MEX
MexicoMexico
ESP
SpainSpain
FRA
FranceFrance
ARG
ArgentinaArgentina
ITA
ItalyItaly
GRC
GreeceGreece
GER
GermanyGermany
FIN
FinlandFinland
JPN
JapanJapan
CYP
Cyprus RepublicRepublic of Cyprus
DOOR
TurkeyTurkey
OUT
AustraliaAustralia
NZL
New ZealandNew Zealand
GBR
United KingdomUnited Kingdom
1 United KingdomUnited Kingdom ford 14th 12 4th 12 14th 1 8th 16 10 16 14th 14th 18th 14th 18th 10 195
2 BelgiumBelgium Kronos Citroën 11 13 10 10 15th 10 16 11 18th 8th 10 10 3 6th 9 6th 166
3 JapanJapan Subaru 5 3 12 11 7th 13 7th 5 0 2 9 5 4th 11 3 9 106
4th NorwayNorway Peugeot Norway 6th 4th 11 0 0 10 5 5 0 9 0 9 8th 6th 7th 8th 88
5 United KingdomUnited Kingdom Stobart Ford 0 7th 2 1 0 5 0 2 3 4th 5 1 5 2 2 5 44
6th AustriaAustria Red Bull Škoda 3 0 0 5 3 0 3 0 8th 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 24

2007 new beginning with the C4 World Rally Car

Loeb's C4 WRC was unbeatable on asphalt from the first season

The Citroën Total WRT used the WRC version of the Citroën C4 WRC from the 2007 season . With Loeb and Sordo as works drivers, the team started the first rally with this vehicle in Monte Carlo. Neither Loeb nor the team were expecting a title this season as it is always difficult to get a new car into the first rally season.

The expectation that the Citroën would - typically - be fast on asphalt was confirmed at the Monte Carlo Rally with the double victory of Loeb and Sordo. In Sweden, Loeb finished second and Sordo came twelfth. At the rally in Norway , which was held for the first time , Loeb only finished 14th and Sordo came 25th. Loeb won the subsequent World Cup races in Mexico, Portugal and Argentina. Sordo was fourth, third and sixth there. While Sordo reached third place in Sardinia, Loeb was eliminated there. In Greece Loeb reached the finish line in second place, Sordo did not come close to World Championship points with 24th place and was eliminated from the next two rallies. Loeb finished second in Finland and hit his own record with his fifth win in a row at the Rally Germany. After finishing second in New Zealand and two wins on Spanish and Corsican tarmac, he reached six podiums before retiring in Japan. Sordo secured a one-two victory in his home rally and came third on Corsica. He finished second at the Rally Japan and the first ever Rally Ireland , where he achieved the third one-two of the season with Loeb. With a fifth place in Great Britain, Sordo was fourth with 65 World Championship points. A third place was enough for Loeb to secure his fourth consecutive world title. This year his lead over Grönholm was only four points in the final accounting.

In the manufacturers' world championship this year, the Citroën Total Team had to admit defeat to the Ford works team with 183 to 212 championship points. However, starting with the Rally Portugal, Loeb was able to describe himself as the most successful rally driver of all time. With 31 victories, after Marcus Grönholm had meanwhile challenged him for this honor, he moved to the top of the “all-time best list” of rally drivers. After Loeb had achieved four drivers' world titles in a row, he also equalized Tommi Mäkinen's record from the 1999 season .

Course of the Manufacturers' World Championship 2007

space team World Championship rally Points
MON
MonacoMonaco
SWE
SwedenSweden
NOR
NorwayNorway
MEX
MexicoMexico
POR
PortugalPortugal
ARG
ArgentinaArgentina
ITA
ItalyItaly
GRC
GreeceGreece
FIN
FinlandFinland
GER
GermanyGermany
NZL
New ZealandNew Zealand
ESP
SpainSpain
FRA
FranceFrance
JPN
JapanJapan
IRL
IrelandIreland
GBR
United KingdomUnited Kingdom
1 United KingdomUnited Kingdom BP Ford World Rally Team 10 16 18th 14th 9 14th 18th 15th 18th 11 16 11 9 10 5 18th 212
2 FranceFrance Citroën Total World Rally Team 18th 9 1 15th 16 13 6th 8th 6th 10 11 18th 16 8th 18th 10 183
3 JapanJapan Subaru World Rally Team 8th 2 5 4th 8th 2 5 9 5 5 7th 4th 7th 2 6th 8th 87
4th United KingdomUnited Kingdom Stobart VK M-Sport Ford 1 5 10 3 2 9 7th 4th 4th 5 5 2 7th 7th 9 1 81
5 BelgiumBelgium OMV Kronos 2 7th 5 3 4th 1 3 2 0 8th 0 4th 0 4th 0 2 45
6th ArgentinaArgentina Munchi's Ford World Rally Team - 0 - 0 - 0 0 1 5 - 0 0 - 8th - 0 14th

2008 Loeb chases his own records in the C4

From 2008 the C4 behaved very responsibly on all surfaces

From 2008 Pirelli became the sole WRC tire supplier. At the same time, as of this season, mousse, like all other run-flat systems , which allowed a nearly unrestricted drive at racing speed in the event of tire damage, was banned. This had a major influence on the results and the individual driving style of the individual rally drivers.

After minor teething problems had been eliminated with the Citroën C4 WRC and valuable experience had been gained in the course of the previous season, especially with the gravel setup , the 15 2008 World Championship races were started with a much more competitive vehicle.

Factory drivers for this season were again Sébastien Loeb and Dani Sordo. Sordo established himself as a podium-capable gravel driver this season, with two third places in Argentina and Great Britain and two second places in Jordan and New Zealand. In 2008 he came second twice in asphalt rallies and finished his second season with the Citroën Total World Rally Team as the "No. 2 driver" with the most points in third place overall in the drivers' world championship.

Loeb shocked - in short - the competition of the surviving Ford, Subaru and Suzuki factory teams with thirteen podium places - including eleven wins - in fifteen races. This was a new record, like his fifth victory in the Monte Carlo Rally, his seventh consecutive victory in the Rallye Deutschland, his fifth consecutive world title and many more. Loeb won the 2008 World Rally Championship by 19 points over Mikko Hirvonen .

Sébastien Ogier in the C2 S1600 at the Corsica Rally 2008

The Citroën Total World Rally Team won the Manufacturers World Championship this year with two drivers, 18 points ahead of the BP Ford World Rally Team, although BP Ford used two to three drivers per rally and the two best placed in the manufacturers' standings were recorded.

The young French driver Sébastien Ogier followed a career path that was very similar to that of his role model Loeb. As Loeb had done nine years earlier, in 2008 he won the Junior World Rally Championship in a Citroën of the Super 1600 class provided and supported by Citroën Racing and used by the Équipe de France FFSA . With his first class win in the JWRC in Mexico, he was the first class A6 driver to reach eighth place overall and thus his first place in the world championship points. After his class wins in Jordan and Germany, he had established a considerable lead over his rivals. At the Rally Catalonia he retired while in the lead on the last special stage of the second stage. The reason was a technical defect. Nevertheless, it was enough for him to win the championship with a second place in Corsica. After his title in the JWRC, he was given the opportunity to take part in the Rally Great Britain with a C4 WRC. He took the lead on his first special stage in a World Rally Car. On SS6, however, he had to give it up due to transmission problems and also lost time until he finished the rally in 26th place overall. Nevertheless, he had won a place for the next year in the C4 WRC this season.

Course of the Manufacturers World Championship 2008

space team World Championship rally Points
MON
MonacoMonaco
SWE
SwedenSweden
MEX
MexicoMexico
ARG
ArgentinaArgentina
JOR
JordanJordan
ITA
ItalyItaly
GRC
GreeceGreece
DOOR
TurkeyTurkey
FIN
FinlandFinland
GER
GermanyGermany
NZL
New ZealandNew Zealand
ESP
SpainSpain
FRA
FranceFrance
JPN
JapanJapan
GBR
United KingdomUnited Kingdom
1 FranceFrance Citroën Total World Rally Team 11 4th 10 16 9 14th 15th 11 15th 18th 18th 18th 10 6th 16 191
2 United KingdomUnited Kingdom BP Ford World Rally Team 8th 18th 11 7th 13 14th 10 18th 9 7th 6th 11 14th 18th 9 173
3 JapanJapan Subaru World Rally Team 10 6th 9 8th 6th 3 8th 3 9 7th 5 6th 7th 6th 5 98
4th United KingdomUnited Kingdom Stobart M-Sport Ford Rally Team 8th 8th 3 3 7th 5 3 4th 4th 6th 0 4th 7th 2 3 67
5 JapanJapan Suzuki World Rally Team 2 3 0 1 0 1 3 0 2 1 7th 0 1 7th 6th 34
6th ArgentinaArgentina Munchi's Ford World Rally Team 0 0 6th 4th 4th 2 0 3 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 22nd

2009 Two more world titles and the junior team

Red Bull became a main sponsor of Citroën's involvement in the World Rally Championship

Sordo and Loeb became the works team again in 2009, which contested the only twelve World Championship rallies. Loeb won the first five events of the season, while Sordo secured double victories with his second places in Ireland and Argentina, while Sordo took third place at the Rally Portugal. Subsequently, Loeb and Sordo did not get past second place in the rallies in Poland, Finland and Australia before they achieved the next double victory at the Rally Catalonia. At the end of the season rally in Wales, Loeb won and Sordo came third.

Loeb and the Citroën team secured the next world championship title and Sordo was again, as a constant point collector without a win, the best “second driver” of this season and third in the world championship.

Creation of the Citroën Junior Team

There were only two works teams left this season. The only manufacturers who used World Rally Cars were Citroën and Ford. Hyundai, Mitsubishi, Peugeot, Škoda and now Suzuki and Subaru were eliminated from the former rivals for the world rally championship title.

For several years now, these automakers have been dissatisfied with the performance of their own World Rally Teams. Behind the scenes, pressure was exerted on the FIA ​​from various quarters to introduce changes to the regulations and the mode of the World Rally Championship. The FIA ​​partially gave in to this. From the 2008 World Rally Championship, it was introduced that the World Championship leader always has to start first on the tracks, which are mostly contaminated with loose ground or fresh snow, and the respective rally leader then takes over this position from the next few days and the next special stages. This regulation became known in the trade press as the "anti-Loeb rule".

The above-mentioned ban on run-flat systems for tires, introduced in 2007, mainly served to generate “random winners”.

In addition, the asphalt rallies - on which Loeb had been unbeaten since 2004 and which often led to Citroën one-two victories - were further reduced. For example, the Italian run of the championship of “the asphalt rally” - San Remo , which is considered to be a crowd puller, was relocated to the gravel roads of the hard-to-reach island event Sardinia in 2004 and other asphalt rallies were deleted from the calendar. In the 2009 season, only three rallies, which were held on asphalt, were advertised as World Championship events. The number of rally runs also fell from sixteen in the four years from 2004 to 2007 to twelve in 2009 in order to save the teams costs.

The FIA ​​often reacted a step too slowly, losing manufacturer after manufacturer. Ultimately, Subaru and Suzuki also withdrew, referring to the global economic crisis in 2008 . In order not to turn the manufacturers' championship into a two-team championship, factory-supported “satellite teams”, such as OMV Kronos or Stobart Ford , have already been set up in recent years . These semi-works teams gave either hopeful young drivers or financially strong paydrivers the opportunity to compete in the World Rally Championship with a World Rally Car.

This is how Citroën Racing founded the Citroën Junior Team from this season . This provided the young French up- and- coming driver Sébastien Ogier and the former Citroën privateer Conrad Rautenbach from Zimbabwe with a C4 WRC for all races this year. The Russian Evgeny Novikov competed in eight World Championship races and in one run each the German Aaron Burkart , the Australian Chris Atkinson and - the former arch rival of Loeb - Petter Solberg for the junior team.

Ogier turned out to be the most successful junior driver. While participating in twelve rallies, he was eliminated in four races, but achieved points six times. His best result was a second place overall at the Rally Greece. His 13 special stage best times also indicated a successful future in rallying. Ogier also had people sit up and take notice when he made his first guest appearance at the Intercontinental Rally Challenge (IRC). He had won the Monte Carlo Rally, which was part of the IRC for the first time this season, in a Peugeot 207 S2000 .

The performance of his teammates, on the other hand, was rather average, so the junior team finished its first season in the manufacturers' championship with 47 points in fourth place.

Course of the Manufacturers World Championship 2009

space team rally Points
IRL
IrelandIreland
NOR
NorwayNorway
CYP
Cyprus RepublicRepublic of Cyprus
POR
PortugalPortugal
ARG
ArgentinaArgentina
ITA
ItalyItaly
GRC
GreeceGreece
POLE
PolandPoland
FIN
FinlandFinland
OUT
AustraliaAustralia
ESP
SpainSpain
GBR
United KingdomUnited Kingdom
1 FranceFrance Citroën Total World Rally Team 18th 14th 16 16 18th 8th 4th 12 13 14th 18th 16 167
2 United KingdomUnited Kingdom BP Ford World Rally Team 8th 14th 10 8th 3 18th 18th 10 16 15th 10 10 140
3 United KingdomUnited Kingdom Stobart M-Sport Ford Rally Team 8th 8th 6th 5 10 7th 5 11 4th 5 4th 7th 80
4th FranceFrance Citroën Junior Team 5 2 4th 0 2 5 6th 5 4th 4th 5 5 47
5 ArgentinaArgentina Munchi's Ford World Rally Team 0 0 3 4th 5 0 6th 0 2 1 2 0 23

2010 successes and changes at Citroën

From the 2010 season, a new points system was introduced in the World Rally Championship.

Valid 1. 2. 3. 4th 5. 6th 7th 8th. 9. 10.
until 2009 10 8th 6th 5 4th 3 2 1 0 0
from 2010 25th 18th 15th 12 10 8th 6th 4th 2 1

This enabled more drivers and teams to collect World Championship points at the 13 World Championship races in 2010.

Loeb wins his seventh world title

Loeb on the way to his 7th World Cup title in France in 2010

At the Rally Sweden at the beginning of the 2010 season, Loeb initially achieved second place. This was followed by victories in the gravel rallies in Mexico, Jordan and Turkey. As a result, Loeb once again clearly set itself apart from its competitors in the driver standings. In the further course of the season nobody could put Loeb under serious pressure. However, he had to admit defeat to a fellow brand for the first time since 2005 in the Citroën triple victory of the Rally Portugal, where he finished second. After Loeb had won the Rally Bulgaria in the first four-fold victory since the Safari Rally at the World Rally Championship in 1993 , he also won the Rally Germany again . Not only had he won the German WRC round eight times in a row since it was first held in 2002, but was also the first driver ever to win a certain WRC rally eight times. It was also the 32nd victory for the Citroën C4 WRC, and the previous model, the Xsara WRC, had won the same number of rallies. In October, he won his home rally, the Rally France in Alsace, and secured his seventh world title there early in the last special stage held in his native Haguenau . He also finished victorious in the last two rallies in Catalonia and Great Britain. Overall, Loeb saw the finish line in all 13 WRC rallies in 2010 and placed on the podium 12 times.

Sordo's position as a Citroën factory driver is shaky

Dani Sordo in Junior Team C4 at Rally Finland 2010

The Citroën dominance, which was generally attributed to the outstanding performance of "Super Séb" , was in a different light from this season on. The young compatriot and namesake Loebs, Sébastien Ogier, managed to finish third ahead of Sordo in the junior team's car from last year. With his second place in New Zealand and his victory at the Rally Portugal, he even reached the finish immediately before Loeb. Sordo had never managed to win a rally in his career. After his victory in Portugal, Ogier was second in the drivers' championship with 88 points. Sordo had 49 points after this rally and was sixth in the World Championship. Citroën decided to bring Ogier to the works team for the last three gravel rallies in 2010 and to use Sordo in the junior team.

Ogier at his first rally with starting number 2 in Finland in 2010

In the three asphalt rallies and his home rally, which was held on mixed surfaces, Sordo was still used as a works driver. As usual, he finished second in Bulgaria, Germany and France. In Spain he was third. In the three gravel rallies in the junior team, he finished fourth in Japan and fifth in Finland and Great Britain.

Ogier, who competes in the junior team on asphalt and mixed road surfaces, finished fourth in Bulgaria, third in Germany, sixth in France and tenth in Spain. In the three gravel rallies in the works team, he finished second in Finland, again twice ahead of Loeb, and won the second World Championship rally of his career with the Rally Japan. Still in second place in the championship standings, he started the last rally of the season in Great Britain. There he was eliminated and slipped to fourth place in the World Cup table, just ahead of Sordo.

The year of many multiple victories for Citroën

Petter Solberg in the Citroën C4 WRC at the 2010 Rally Finland

For the 2010 season, the private Petter Solberg World Rally Team from Citroën Racing received two Citroën C4 WRCs in 2009 specification. Petter Solberg now wanted to compete for top positions in the championship again, which he managed to do despite his small budget. He achieved second place at the Mexico Rally and thus his best result since 2008. He was also able to keep up with the pace of the top in third at the Jordan Rally and second at the Turkey Rally . In Bulgaria, Solberg took third place. At the end of the season, Solberg finished on the podium four times in a row. At first he was barely beaten in second place in Japan. He then finished third in France before finishing second in the last two rallies in Catalonia and Wales. In total, Solberg made it onto the podium in 8 of 13 rallies, but he was denied a hoped-for victory. He reached third place in the championship and thus his best placement since 2005.

With the newly won competitiveness of Solberg and the Citroën drivers Loeb, Ogier and Sordo, they achieved three double victories, five Citroën triple victories in Mexico, Portugal, Germany, France and Spain. In addition, the four-fold victory mentioned above was achieved in Bulgaria. The Citroën World Rally Team finished the season 119 points ahead of the BP Ford World Rally Team with the sixth Manufacturers' World Championship title. The Citroën Junior Team came third in the manufacturers' standings.

The former Formula 1 world champion in the C4 WRC

Kimi Räikkönen found a place in the Citroën Junior Team in 2010

After Kimi Raikkonen had made his debut in the World Rally Championship as a guest starter with a Fiat Grande Punto S2000 at Rally Finland in 2009 , he received a place in the junior team as “probably the most famous young driver of this season”. He now regularly competed in the World Rally Championship with his co-driver Kaj Lindström . In his first full season he drove the Citroën C4 WRC of the Citroën junior team with varying degrees of success and commitment. At the first event in Sweden, he finished 29th. In Mexico he did not reach the goal. In Jordan, he finished eighth for the first time in points. His best result of the season was a fifth place at the Rally Turkey. He did not start in New Zealand and finished tenth in Portugal. The next two World Cup races, he failed to make the top 10. At the Rally Germany he won a special stage for the first time and finished seventh in the final classification. In Japan and France he dropped out and in Spain he did not start despite being named. At the World Cup in Wales he finished eighth. In 2010 he completed a total of eleven rallies and finished five times in the points. At the end of the season he took tenth place in the drivers' championship with 25 points, which was very popular for Citroën.

Course of the Manufacturers World Championship 2010

space team SWE
SwedenSweden
MEX
MexicoMexico
JOR
JordanJordan
DOOR
TurkeyTurkey
NZL
New ZealandNew Zealand
POR
PortugalPortugal
BUL
BulgariaBulgaria
FIN
FinlandFinland
GER
GermanyGermany
JPN
JapanJapan
FRA
FranceFrance
ESP
SpainSpain
GBR
United KingdomUnited Kingdom
 Points 
1 FranceFrance Citroën Total World Rally Team 30th 31 40 25th 30th 33 43 33 43 37 43 43 25th 456
2 United KingdomUnited Kingdom BP Ford World Rally Team 40 27 20th 24 40 12 22nd 25th 12 28 27 27 33 337
3 FranceFrance Citroën Junior Team 14th 18th 16 27 31 19th 20th 23 15th 10 6th 18th 217
4th United KingdomUnited Kingdom Stobart M-Sport Ford Rally Team 14th 14th 16 12 18th 10 14th 10 10 12 10 18th 18th 176
5 ArgentinaArgentina Munchi's Ford World Rally Team 8th 8th 10 6th 8th 6th 8th 4th 58
space team SWE
SwedenSweden
MEX
MexicoMexico
JOR
JordanJordan
DOOR
TurkeyTurkey
NZL
New ZealandNew Zealand
POR
PortugalPortugal
BUL
BulgariaBulgaria
FIN
FinlandFinland
GER
GermanyGermany
JPN
JapanJapan
FRA
FranceFrance
ESP
SpainSpain
GBR
United KingdomUnited Kingdom
Points

2011 Loeb and Ogier in the DS3 WRC

New regulations bring new vehicles

After many manufacturers withdrew from the world rally manufacturers championship, only the “blues” and the “reds” remained , surrounded by their satellite teams and more or less independent privateers. In order to counteract a noticeable decline in public interest, the FIA was forced to act. The FIA ​​has long made efforts to get new automakers to join the WRC. However, these were answered negatively, mainly for cost reasons.

The newly developed Citroën DS3 WRC at its presentation in Paris 2010

The FIA ​​introduced new WRC regulations for the 2011 season in order to reduce costs and make the entry of new brands more attractive, because all participants had to develop new vehicles equally. The World Rally Cars have been based on the Super 2000 regulations since 2011 , but with 1600 cc engines with direct fuel injection and turbocharging. These vehicles are much closer to the production models than their predecessors.

Citroën Racing decided the based DS3 Citroen , the Citroen DS3 WRC , directed by Citroen technical director Xavier Mestelan-Pinon to construct during the year 2010.

Main competitor Ford upgraded the Ford Fiesta S2000 , which had already been tested in the SWRC 2010 and also used in the SWRC 2011 , to the Ford Fiesta RS WRC .

Daniel Sordo, who was involved in the development of the DS3 WRC, switched to Mini . The Mini WRC based on the Mini Countryman was used in cooperation with Prodrive from the Rally Sardinia .

Volkswagen Motorsport presented the VW Polo R WRC during the 2011 season and took part in the Rally Finland with two Škoda Fabia S2000s constructed on the same floor pan . The VW World Rally Team wanted to use it to prepare for future entry into the WRC, scouting drivers and getting to know the tracks.

The junior team will be replaced by customer teams

Kimi Räikkönen is probably the best-known customer driver of the Citroën DS3 WRC

After Ogier received a two-year contract as a works driver in the Citroën World Rally Team and Sordo had lost his long-term position at Citroën, it was decided to dissolve the junior team.

The head of Citroën Racing and Peugeot Sport Olivier Quesnel announced in January that Kimi Raikkonen had signed a customer contract with Citroën. Raikkonen had planned to initially take part in ten World Championship races. Citroën provided the vehicle, infrastructure and mechanics to its newly created ICE 1 Racing team . Räikkönen not only started for driver points this season, his team was also entered in the Manufacturers' World Championship.

Peter van Merksteijn jr. in the DS3 WRC at the 2011 Rallye Deutschland

Petter Solberg also competed with a Citroën in 2011. Initially registered as a private team at the 2011 Rally Sweden , his team also registered for manufacturer points at the request of sponsors. Team principal Ken Rees said: “We are still a self-established private team, but at the same time we are very professional. Gaining prestige as a manufacturer team is very important to our sponsors. We played with the big boys for two years and now it's time to take the next step. ”The Petter Solberg World Rally Team , supported by Citroën under conditions similar to ICE 1 Racing, registered for all 13 World Championship races in 2011.

The Dutch team Van Merksteijn Motorsport was also equipped with Citroën DS3 WRCs. While team owner Peter van Merksteijn senior only planned a few starts in the World Rally Championship, eleven participations were planned for his son Peter van Merksteijn junior . But since not enough vehicles were available yet, he decided not to start at the season opener in Sweden in favor of Solberg.

Two titles despite internal rivalries in the works team

Ogier (left), Loeb (middle), Latvala (right) in Finland 2011

Before the 2011 season, Loeb initially announced that he would end his career at the end of 2011. Most recently in the team he only signed one-year contracts in order to keep all options open. After his impressive performance last year, Ogier has now switched to the Citroën Total World Rally Team as a regular driver. Ford had noticed him too and was trying to win him over. Ogier nevertheless decided to stay with his "teacher and employer". As early as July 2010, he and his team negotiated a contract that was valid until 2013 and ensured that he would be on an equal footing with the seven-time world champion. At the 2011 Rally Sweden , which was characterized by heavy snowfall and many tire damage, he was the fastest Citroën driver, right in front of the former world rally champion Petter Solberg, his own team-mate Loeb and Kimi Räikkönen, who finished eighth Target. At this rally he was the first driver in World Championship history to secure the three bonus points of the power stage . After the first rally he was five points ahead of his team-mate.

Sébastien Loeb in the Citroën DS3 WRC at the 2011 Rally Portugal

At the second rally of the season in Mexico there was a duel for victory between Loeb and Ogier. The overall leadership changed between them several times. In the end, Ogier retired on the 20th of 22 special stages when he collided with a large rock and severely damaged the suspension. Loeb won and restored the situation. On March 27, in the third round of 2011, Ogier won the Rally Portugal for the second time and thus achieved the third overall victory of his career. Loeb finished second. At the following Rally Jordan on April 16, 2011, Ogier won his fourth World Championship rally and also the power stage, making him the first driver to receive the full number of 28 points to be achieved in a rally. Loeb finished the event in third place. Now Ogier was five points behind Loeb with two wins and his mistake in Mexico. Loeb won the Rally Sardinia and Ogier came fourth. It got exciting again between the two in Argentina . Ogier attacked his team-mate hard, was 43.7 seconds ahead of Loeb in the lead and overturned his car on the 16th of 19 special stages. He continued the race with the badly damaged vehicle and, after his second accident resulting from a stable duel, crossed the finish line in third behind a Ford. The tensions between the teammates became more and more public.

Sébastien Ogier in the DS3 WRC at the 2011 Rally Greece

At the next Rally Greece , Ogier won both the overall standings and the power stage ahead of his team-mate Sébastien Loeb, making him the only driver to achieve 28 points in the drivers' world championship for the second time. Before that, however - with the active support of the team - he dropped back twice for tactical reasons in order to have a more favorable starting position the next day. These events heavily overshadowed the glamor of the second DS3 double victory. The media then began to make Prost - Senna comparisons. At the high-speed rally held in Finland there was another split-second battle. Loeb's competitors also used tactics several times, which is why Loeb had to be the first on the track on all three days. The leadership changed several times between the teammates. The victory went to Loeb, so he was the only non-Finnish driver to win this event twice. Ogier finished the rally in third place overall 5 seconds behind Jari-Matti Latvala after a puncture . A few days before the Rally Germany , Loeb extended his contract with his regular employer for a further two years. He left the option open after the 2012 season . Since 2002 in Germany and since 2004 unbeaten on asphalt in Germany Loeb was the clear favorite. Ogier, on the other hand, had never won an asphalt rally. The Ogier team therefore demanded that they drive safely. When the team intervened in Loeb's favor this time, Ogier repeatedly vented his displeasure in interviews during the rally. That was not well received by the team, at Loeb or by the Group's management board. Citroën made public that Ogier would be summoned to headquarters for a meeting. After losing 75 seconds of time due to a puncture, Loeb only achieved second place overall behind Ogier. As a result, two of his winning streaks were interrupted by his own teammate. Ogier's success made Citroën the most successful car manufacturer in the history of the World Rally Championship. The next double victory was achieved, the eighth win in a row, and the lead over the Ford works team increased to 91 points. The media had focused their attention on the rivalry between the two drivers within the team.

Sébastien Ogier on the way to his fifth World Championship victory in 2011

At the next Australian Rally to be held , Loeb, who was in the lead, rolled over five times on the fourth special stage. As the first vehicle on the track, two seconds ahead of his teammate, Loeb compared his split times with those of the drivers behind him on the display and braked too little before a right-hand bend. The leadership passed to Ogier. Ogier had an accident on a tree on the sixth special stage. Both driver and front passenger were uninjured. Overall leadership went to Ford works drivers Mikko Hirvonen and Jari-Matti Latvala. The two DS3 WRCs could be repaired and made ready overnight. Under Superally regulations , Loeb started the next day with a 30 minute penalty and Ogier with a 20 minute penalty. Latvala took over the lead from his team-mate on the first special stage of the day. Due to their time penalty, Ogier started a chase for world championship points from 16th and Loeb from 21st place. It looked as if Loeb would not achieve a World Championship point for the first time since the 2009 Rally Greece . Ogier had meanwhile worked his way up to ninth place overall and the chance of taking eighth place from the slower PWRC vehicle in front of him was great. Loeb had meanwhile moved up to twelfth place. In this special stage, both Ford and Citroën issued a stable management that is permitted in rallying . Latvala stopped just before the finish to give Hirvonen 28 seconds and the win. Ogier deliberately received a 50-second time penalty when he started this special stage 5 minutes too late. He then parked next to the track and intentionally lost an additional nine minutes to give Loeb a championship point. After this one-two Ford victory, Ford shortened the gap in the Manufacturers' World Championship to 62 points. Loeb traveled to his home rally as a top favorite. However, while in the lead, he retired on the third special stage. The reason for Loeb's first failure due to technical problems since the Rally Sweden 2008 was an engine problem caused by an assembly error. Ogier took over the lead from him and, after several changes in leadership with Dani Sordo and Petter Solberg, finally won his fifth World Championship round of the season. After this rally, Ogier was three points behind his team-mate in the championship standings. Ogier retired from the next rally in Catalonia . Loeb won there for the seventh time in a row. Loeb thus had an unrecoverable point lead over his team-mate. Only Hirvonen was within striking distance. The team secured the seventh manufacturer's world title in Spain since 2003. After Ogier had an accident on the first special stage at the season finale in Great Britain and Loeb's only remaining competitor for the world title had been eliminated after the seventh special stage with Mikko Hirvonen, Loeb won his eighth driver's world title before the end of the event. Loeb was involved in a traffic accident on the connecting route between the 18th and 19th special stages by a Spanish wrong-way driver. All those involved were unharmed, but the cooler of the DS3 WRC was damaged and Loeb had to give up. The way to victory was now clear for Jari-Matti Latvala, but nothing changed at the top places in the World Cup. Ogier was third with 196 points.

Course of the Manufacturers World Championship 2011

Item team SWE
SwedenSweden
MEX
MexicoMexico
POR
PortugalPortugal
JOR
JordanJordan
ITA
ItalyItaly
ARG
ArgentinaArgentina
GRE
GreeceGreece
FIN
FinlandFinland
GER
GermanyGermany
OUT
AustraliaAustralia
FRA
FranceFrance
ESP
SpainSpain
GBR
United KingdomUnited Kingdom
 Points 
1 FranceFrance Citroën Total World Rally Team 22nd 25th 43 40 37 40 43 40 43 14th 25th 25th 6th 403
2 United KingdomUnited Kingdom Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team 40 33 27 30th 20th 24 21st 30th 17th 43 33 33 25th 376
3 United KingdomUnited Kingdom M-Sport Stobart Ford Rally Team 18th 18th 4th 3 18th 14th 12 14th 4th 12 16 12 33 178
4th NorwayNorway Petter Solberg World Rally Team 12 10 0 15th 12 12 10 12 15th DSQ 0 0 98
5 NetherlandsNetherlands FERM Power Tools World Rally Team 4th 0 2 4th 0 4th 2 6th 12 10 10 54
6th United Arab EmiratesUnited Arab Emirates Team Abu Dhabi 6th 1 6th 6th 1 10 4th 8th 12 54
7th ArgentinaArgentina Munchi's Ford World Rally Team 6th 6th 8th 4th 8th 0 6th 38
8th United StatesUnited States Monster World Rally Team 2 4th 0 0 2 1 2 8th 0 8th 27
9 NetherlandsNetherlands Van Merksteijn Motorsport 0 0 0 0 0 8th 4th 0 4th 0 16
10 BrazilBrazil Brazil World Rally Team 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 7th 10
Item team SWE
SwedenSweden
MEX
MexicoMexico
POR
PortugalPortugal
JOR
JordanJordan
ITA
ItalyItaly
ARG
ArgentinaArgentina
GRE
GreeceGreece
FIN
FinlandFinland
GER
GermanyGermany
OUT
AustraliaAustralia
FRA
FranceFrance
ESP
SpainSpain
GBR
United KingdomUnited Kingdom
Points
Status after the end of the 2011 season

2012 the second year with the DS3 WRC

Loeb stays, Ogier leaves and Hirvonen comes

In mid-2011, the FIA ​​announced that it would change the starting order regulations for the special stages, which put the championship leaders at a disadvantage. Loeb then decided to stay at the World Rally Championship and extended his contract with the team. Sébastien Ogier , who had previously been promoted as a junior, felt disadvantaged by Loeb's continued commitment and wanted to switch to another team. In November 2011 it was announced that Ogier's contract would be terminated. For the 2012 season , the Citroën Total World Rally Team signed long-time Ford works driver Mikko Hirvonen alongside Loeb. Sébastien Loeb and Daniel Elena win the 2012 World Championship with nine victories out of 13 world championship races. The duo celebrated their ninth world title in a row with Citroën. Loeb / Elena decide to only run a few selected world championship races in 2013.

See also

Web links

Commons : Citroën Total World Rally Team  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. wrc.com: Citroën Total Abu Dhabi WRT , August 26, 2014
  2. a b c d Sébastien Loeb in portrait (Motorsport-Magazin.com on November 2, 2006)
  3. ^ Profile of Sébastien Loeb , rallybase.nl, accessed on September 21, 2011
  4. ^ Website of the driver Daniel Solà (Spanish) ( Memento of July 27, 2002 in the Internet Archive ), accessed on November 21, 2011.
  5. ^ Rally-Bulgaria-Review , wrc.com, accessed October 8, 2011.
  6. Loeb: "A joy to win in Germany" (Motorsport-Total.com on August 22, 2010)
  7. Haguenau trembles: Title number seven for Loeb! (Motorsport-Total.com on October 3, 2010)
  8. Petter Solberg opts for Citroën C4 WRC (Motorsport-Total.com on January 12, 2010)
  9. Petter Solberg: "I'm absolutely mega-happy" (Motorsport-Total.com on March 8, 2010)
  10. Fighter Solberg: The works teams mixed up (Motorsport-Total.com on November 14, 2010)
  11. "Citroen confirms: Raikkonen is changing fronts" (sport.t-online.de on December 4, 2009)
  12. ^ "Raikkonen: Best time and championship points conquered" (Motorsport-Total.com on August 22, 2010)
  13. ^ "Exit of Subaru and Suzuki from the WRC" (Motorsport-Total.com on December 16, 2008; accessed on October 9, 2011)
  14. ^ "WRC regulations 2011" (Motorsport-Total.com; accessed on October 9, 2011)
  15. "Citroen DS3 WRC test on asphalt with Dani Sordo [CLIP]" ( Memento from March 5, 2012 in the web archive archive.today ) (rallybuzz.com on July 1, 2010; accessed on October 9, 2011)
  16. "Raikkonen commits to 10 WRC events" (wrc.com on 25 January 2011; accessed October 9, 2011)
  17. ^ "More teams register for manufacturer points" (wrc.com on February 22, 2011; accessed on October 9, 2011)
  18. Loeb announces: After 2011 it will be over (Motorsport-Total.com on September 23, 2010; accessed on October 9, 2011)
  19. Citroen 2011 with Rallye-Dream Team (auto-motor-und-sport.de on July 20, 2010; accessed on October 9, 2011)
  20. Ogier demands clarity ( Memento from September 27, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) (Rallye-Magazin.de on August 25, 2011; accessed on October 9, 2011)
  21. Senna-Prost reloaded ( Memento from August 27, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) (Rallye-Magazin.de on August 22, 2011; accessed on October 9, 2011)
  22. Small error, big effect  ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) (Rallye-Magazin.de on September 9, 2011; accessed on October 9, 2011)@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / www.rallye-magazin.de
  23. Hirvonen wins with team help  ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) (Rallye-Magazin.de on September 11, 2011, accessed on October 9, 2011)@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / www.rallye-magazin.de
  24. Loeb again world champion! ( Memento from November 14, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) (Rallye-Magazin.de on November 11, 2011)
  25. Loeb explains Rally GB exit (wrc.com on November 13, 2011)
  26. Manufacturer rating on wrc.com
  27. Hirvonen replaces Ogier at Citroen (wrc.com on November 16, 2011)