Hirvonen: Loeb success won't entice me back to WRC

The 15-time WRC rally winner was one of Loeb's fiercest rivals, finishing second to the Frenchman on four occasions in the championship from 2008-2012. The closest fight came in 2009 when the Finn, driving for M-Sport, was pipped to the title by a single point.

While Hirvonen bowed out of the WRC at the end of 2014, nine-time champion Loeb, aged 47, has continued to compete in sporadic appearances, including his most recent comeback this year, resulting in a victory at last month's Monte Carlo season opener.

Although impressed by his comeback, Hirvonen is not interested in reviving his own WRC career at the age of 44, but would prefer to impart his knowledge in helping aspiring drivers break into the championship.

This week Hirvonen has been thrusted back into the spotlight in a new role as Toyota's chief instructor for its WRC young driver programme, that aims to provide young Japanese drivers a pathway into the WRC.

This week three new young recruits were selected to participate in the programme.

"For sure I'm not going to compete on the WRC level," Hirvonen told Autosport, when asked if Loeb's success had ignited a wish to make a WRC return.

"I might do some fun historic rallies or autocross but there are no plans. For the moment I'm happy enough to see my boys doing their training and be part of their hobbies, and commit more to the Toyota [young driver] programme. That is enough for me.

"Hats off to him [Sebastien Loeb]. He did a fantastic rally in Monte Carlo. It hasn't got me excited to do comeback or anything."

Winners Sébastien Loeb, Isabelle Galmiche, M-Sport Ford World Rally Team Ford Puma Rally1

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

Since departing the WRC as a driver, Hirvonen has remained in the background helping young drivers on their journey into the championship.

The former Citroen factory driver reacquainted himself with the team when he acted as Craig Breen's safety crew in 2016-2017, offering valuable stage information to the Irishman, who now drives for M-Sport.

Hirvonen has since teamed up with Toyota's Kalle Rovanpera to assist the up and coming Finn on tarmac rallies, a relationship that will continue into 2022 alongside his new young driver instructor role at Toyota.

This week Hirvonen has been working with Toyota's three new Japanese young driver recruits - Hikaru Kogure (20), Nao Otake (21) and Yuki Yamamoto (24) - as they bid to follow countryman and fellow graduate Takamoto Katsuta into the WRC in the future.

The trio have begun the first week of training following their selection and will relocate from Japan to Toyota's team base in Finland in April to complete their extensive course to prepare them for future WRC outings.

"Of course I'm happy to help," added Hirvonen. "Its part of the reason I have been doing the safety crew thing with Craig Breen and now with Kalle.

"It is always nice to share my experience and information and knowledge that I have.

"Now with the young Japanese drivers in some ways they are at quite a low level in a way and there is a lot more things to go through more in approaching rallying in a professional way."

However, Hirvonen has already been impressed by the trio following their first outings in rally cars on snow and ice.

"In Finland we invited eight drivers which we did the shootout with them for the past few weeks and last Saturday we chose these three drivers to do this programme," he said.

"I was positively surprised by their level in a way, as most of them had never driven on snow or ice, but the way they were able to adapt to those situations was pretty impressive.

"For sure, there is a long way to go but they are really committed. They are really open and asking questions.

"We will give them everything they need, you never know what is going to happen.

"It is pretty much up to themselves how much they commit to it. If they are ready to work hard then anything should be possible."