How M-Sport's faith in Loubet led to a WRC reprieve after a dismal 2021

Time, as they say, is a great healer. This certainly applies to World Rally Championship driver Pierre-Louis Loubet, who will resume a fledgling top-flight rally career at Rally Croatia this weekend - an opportunity he thought wouldn’t be possible.

Six months ago had painted a very different landscape for the 2019 WRC2 champion Loubet. The 2021 season started with high hopes and anticipation ahead of his maiden full season in the WRC, driving a 2C Competition-run Hyundai i20. But what unfolded was a series of struggles and misery. A string of accidents and technical issues from an under-developed car masked glimpses of speed.

However, worse was to follow as a bizarre accident away from the stages curtailed his campaign two rounds early, leaving the French rising star with an uncertain future. Loubet was leaving a restaurant in Paris after dinner with a friend, and while attempting to cross a road on foot he was hit by a speeding car. The impact forced Loubet onto the bonnet of the vehicle and he sustained a broken hip in the process, necessitating a trip to hospital. In hindsight, Loubet was lucky the injuries were not more severe - but the incident summed up his 2021.

Missing the final two rounds of the season in Spain and Monza was not the plan as his WRC future remained up in the air, while he focused on his recovery at home. Seats quickly began to fill up at Toyota, Hyundai and M-Sport Ford as the WRC prepared for its seismic shift to its Rally1 hybrid future. Even Loubet thought his WRC career had stalled. Given the limited drives available it can be easy to drift back down the ladder, as former factory WRC drivers Andreas Mikkelsen and Mads Ostberg can attest, having been forced to ply their trade in WRC2 in recent years.

But Loubet and his management team refused to give up. The efforts from an off-season of graft were rewarded with salvation back to the WRC in the form of a seven-round deal with M-Sport, driving the already Monte Carlo rally-winning Ford Puma Rally1. It was an announcement that surprised many, but M-Sport has previously worked with Loubet in WRC2 back in 2017 and have spotted the talent that was masked by a difficult 2021.

"We never knew until it happened," Loubet tells Autosport when asked if he was surprised to be back in the WRC. "We have worked on this for a long time with my management and we did a fantastic job during the winter, and after my injury I was thinking it would not be possible to continue in WRC and so to be here is very special. I will try to appreciate it as much as I can.

Pierre-Louis Loubet endured a difficult 2021 with Hyundai machinery

Photo by: Austral / Hyundai Motorsport

"It is amazing to do your passion and to do your dream, it is something very special. Last year was very tough but I think I have everything to do well and to prove that I can be at the level in WRC.

"Every year is important for sure but this one is a bit special because I have everything to do very well. I know in your career you don’t always get such an opportunity so I will try to take this chance and do my best."

Tough is perhaps an understatement to describe Loubet’s campaign, as the earlier summary alluded. While Loubet was driving an older version of the i20 compared to that of the factory drivers Thierry Neuville and Ott Tanak, the machinery cannot be solely blamed for a grim run of results.

"I have been waiting for this for a long time now. I was very impressed with the car as the feeling has come very early. After my first run I was feeling very good in the [Puma]" Pierre-Louis Loubet

From the eight rounds contested, a solitary points finish was secured courtesy of a seventh place at Rally Estonia, and this arrived while battling to find a set up sweet spot. There were however costly mistakes in Monte Carlo that resulted in finishing 16th overall. He slid into a ditch while fighting over sixth in Croatia, before crashing out on Stage 2 in Portugal.

That being said, he was let down by a series of technical troubles. A turbo problem hampered him at Arctic Rally Finland, a mechanical issue ended his rally early in Sardinia, while broken steering led to a trip off the road and retirement at the Acropolis in Greece.

It was a campaign that was far from conducive in building a reputation in the WRC, and out of character compared against his record in junior categories. In WRC2, Loubet retired from only six events in his four-year spell in the second tier and never finished outside the top 10. His 2019 title-winning season, driving a Skoda Fabia R5, featured five top-five finishes from the six events, including two wins.

Pierre-Louis Loubet won the WRC2 title with wins in Portugal and Sardinia

Photo by: McKlein / Motorsport Images

The performances highlighted a continuation of speed in the Loubet family bloodline. His father Yves Loubet enjoyed success in rallying, the 1989 European Rally Championship crown among the highlights of a career that also saw the Frenchman contest 30 WRC rallies, recording four podiums, including second-place finishes in Corsica in 1987 and 1988, driving for the factory Lancia operation.

Despite his father’s affinity with rallying, circuit racing emerged as Pierre’s initial path into motorsport as the aspiring young racer enjoyed a karting career, where he shared the track with a host of future Formula 1 stars, including world champion Max Verstappen, current championship leader Charles Leclerc, George Russell (Mercedes), Esteban Ocon (Alpine) and Pierre Gasly (AlphaTauri). It was here where he forged strong friendships with Leclerc, Gasly and Ocon, and the latter continues to be an off-season winter training partner.

Five years of serious competition in the French karting scene, competing regularly against Ocon and Gasly culminated in the 2011 European Championship KF3 class final in Italy, won by future Red Bull star Verstappen, with Loubet finishing 25th of the 32 runners. An attempt to pursue a single-seater career reached as far as testing Formula Renault machinery in 2014, before a call was made to switch to rallying the following year. There are no hard feelings and Loubet still follows the careers of Leclerc, Ocon, and Gasly closely.

"It is really nice to see what they are doing and I’m really impressed by these guys, and I hope in my category I will try and do the same," he says when asked about the careers of his former rivals and now friends.

Fast forward a decade and the decision to enter the rally arena has led to a second chance to shine in the WRC. This lifeline thrown by M-Sport could be pivotal career moment. It provides a true litmus test of Loubet’s quality now he’s equipped with a proven package in the Puma.

"It was an amazing feeling," he said after his first taste of the Puma. "I have been waiting for this for a long time now. I was very impressed with the car as the feeling has come very early. After my first run I was feeling very good in the car.

Loubet drove M-Sport's Ford Puma Rally1 car at the South Belgian Rally in preparation for Croatia

Photo by: M-Sport

"The WRC car is always something special but this car is born very well because the feeling was ready there. Now we know if there is a problem then it is me, so there is no excuse. "It is also good to have some great team-mates to know where I am compared to them. I have a good environment to do very well this season."

This unique opportunity does come with added pressure, but so far Loubet has settled in well at M-Sport, enjoying a strong maiden run at the South Belgian Rally in March, followed by a positive pre-event test ahead of this weekend’s return to the WRC in Croatia.

"It is really important as this is the event that will help build my confidence for the future and for the rest of the season" Pierre-Louis Loubet

After the turmoil of last year, Croatia’s asphalt represents not only a chance to return to the big time but more importantly an opportunity to rebuild confidence and belief. While many drivers would be eager to impress from the outset, Loubet is prepared to walk again before learning to run.

"It is really important as this is the event that will help build my confidence for the future and for the rest of the season, so the main goal is to reach the finish," he says. "And if we can show a good pace that would be great. For sure we will try to go step by step and try to be competitive as soon as possible. I will try to find my limit and be close to the other guys. We need to be clever and not go flat out in the early stages.

"I don’t want to burn my chance; I know the level is super high in WRC."

Loubet is eager to prove himself with M-Sport in 2022

Photo by: Romain Thuillier / Hyundai Motorsport