Loeb reflects on poor luck
World Rally Championship leader Sebastien Loeb has taken a philosophical view on his exit from the lead of Rally Mexico on Saturday, which cost him a shot at a record-breaking third WRC event win on the trot
Loeb held an advantage of over 30secs ahead of Ford's Markko Martin when he was forced to retire from the event due to cracking his Citroen Xsara's sump after hitting a rock. Should Martin win in Mexico, he will draw level with Loeb at the top of the standings.
"Coming out of a very fast corner, the car took off, " explained Loeb. "Where it touched back down, the road was cambered, with, in the middle, a rock solidly set in the compacted earth. The lower protection was lifted up, and the oil emptied out of the damaged sump.
"What happened afterwards was unavoidable: a drop in oil pressure, a damaged engine, and then retirement. Of course, this is a great disappointment. We were leading, setting our pace on that of Markko. Yesterday, Petter [Solberg]'s problems put me in the lead. Today, I'm the one to suffer bad luck. The outcome of a rally sometimes depends on fate. You have to learn to accept it."
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