Loeb expects tough times ahead

The Kronos Citroen driver claimed his third consecutive win of the year in the Rallye de France on Sunday but, with gravel rallies coming up next on the calendar, he is not expecting such an easy time from now on.

"In the short term, this is a valuable win as it gives me a lead of more than 10 points in the drivers' championship," said Loeb, who beat home main title rival Marcus Gronholm.

"This means I have some breathing space, which is useful as the gravel rallies coming up will be extremely tough."

Loeb believes that his performance in Corsica was more representative of the relative performance of the Citroen and Ford cars on asphalt than what happened in Spain.

"In Catalunya, my choice of set-up at the start of the rally was hardly ideal and then Marcus hit problems," he explained.

"This time, we both had a clean run. The Xsara and its BFGoodrich tyres were extremely competitive, the team was faultless, and we were able to bring home a victory that was extremely important to us."

The victory was also important to Loeb for another reason - it moves him within striking range of Carlo Sainz's record of 26 WRC wins.

Loeb admitted: "Looking further ahead, this 23rd win takes me close to Carlos Sainz's record - which is obviously a big thing for me."