Loeb vows to keep pushing

Gronholm was quickest by 1.1 seconds in Loelle 1, extending his advantage over second placed Loeb to 36.5 seconds.

Loeb admitted that he might not have the speed to catch Gronholm, who has dominated this event since the start, but will keep the pressure on in the hope that his rival might make an error or fall victim to the reliability problems that have hampered Ford on occasion this year.

"I was pushing and he did exactly the same pace as me, so it's impossible to do anything different at the moment," said Loeb.

"It's 35 seconds, so it's a lot, but if I continue to push then he has to continue pushing also.

"We'll see, but at the moment we continue (pushing)."

Gronholm acknowledged that Loeb remained a threat, but was not concerned.

"He is pushing, and I try to do same," said the leader. "I'm not worried."