Subaru confident of Monte win

Loeb won the event on the road in his Citroen Xsara WRC on Sunday, as his penalty was suspended pending the appeal from his Citroen team. They claim that he gained no advantage when they illegally changed the tyres of his car at a re-fuelling halt.

The appeal will be heard by the FIA in Paris on next Wednesday, January 30.

"We look forward to hearing the result of the appeal court as soon as possible," said Lapworth. "Tommi was confident of achieving a clear victory, but when we learned of Loeb's penalty he backed off with the intention of cruising to the win.

"Obviously Sebastien drove extremely well at the weekend, but it is apparent that his team broke the rules and the Stewards decided to impose a penalty. This is a fantastic victory for Subaru and an incredible result for Tommi on his debut with the team," he added.

Subaru's sporting director George Donaldson believes that Citroen could face stronger action if they don't drop the appeal.

"If Citroen take it to the Court of Appeal they're very brave," he said. "The person I feel very sorry for is Sebastien Loeb. I have every confidence with the stewards and the FIA. I believe the original decision was a sound one and the FIA Court of Appeal has a good record of supporting signed decisions."