WRC Argentina: Sebastien Ogier insists he won't chase Sebastien Loeb
Sebastien Ogier says he will not take any risks to try and get back past Sebastien Loeb in Rally Argentina
The Volkswagen driver lost his lead on the second stage of Friday morning, when he slipped off the road on a muddy right-hander. The Frenchman blamed a faulty handbrake mechanism on his Polo R WRC for the incident.
"It was a slow corner, a long right tightening at the exit," said Ogier. "It was full of mud.
"I didn't arrive too fast, the handbrake was not working. I wanted to use the handbrake at the end of the corner and, if it worked, it would have been good.
"But it didn't. It locked the front wheels and made me understeer more and I had no option except to go off the road."
Ogier will resume in third place, 26 seconds behind Loeb - a gap he described as "a bit too big."
"We will drive as fast as we can and see what happens," said Ogier.
"From the beginning we said that the target is the championship and the position is not so bad for that.
"We will see if we can catch Mikko [Hirvonen, in second place] at least, but for Seb, he's not the main target."
Loeb laughed off Ogier's stance, saying: "He said that? That's shit!"
The Citroen driver leads Hirvonen by eight seconds, with Ogier a further 18 behind.
"Nothing is done," said Loeb. "Ogier had an 18s lead, now he is 26s behind, because he still had to push hard - because I was pushing him hard.
"Now we will be in the same situation. Hirvonen is only nine seconds behind me, it's far from being finished."
Argentina WRC: Loeb takes lead after Ogier mistake
WRC Argentina: Sebastien Loeb breaks away from Sebastien Ogier
How Rovanpera tamed a wild Safari Rally
The Safari Rally acted as a brutal test of driver and car resolve as multiple retirements opened the path for a historic Toyota 1-2-3-4 triumph, headed by star Kalle Rovanpera. But keeping things clean was only half of the challenge, as a well-timed charge when conditions worsened allowed the Finn to take control
How Tanak turned the tables to deliver Hyundai a timely WRC triumph
The 2019 champion has been a bit-part player recently, but Ott Tanak ended a 15-month drought in fine style with a dominant win in Sardinia. On a weekend when championship leader Kalle Rovanpera struggled with cleaning the road, his Hyundai rival has made his belated arrival into the title race and given cause for those predicting a walkover from the Toyota star to pause
How Rovanpera overcame rallying royalty in Portugal to extend his WRC lead
Although the Rally Portugal entry list featured World Rally Championship royalty in Sebastiens Loeb and Ogier, victory was secured by rallying's rising star in Kalle Rovanpera. Here's the story of his 2022 hat-trick, as his key rivals faltered among the gravel and asphalt ahead of them
The former WRC star playing the unsung hero role for Rovanpera
Kalle Rovanpera’s 2022 World Rally Championship displays have been spectacular, with the Toyota driver benefitting from a secret weapon in his crew to win two of the opening three rallies. But while the former challenger to Sebastien Loeb won’t take credit for his fellow Finn's performances, a key bond has been formed which could prove key to Rovanpera’s title charge
How Rovanpera's Croatia turnaround sent a message to his WRC rivals
After a dominating Rally Croatia, a wrong tyre choice on the final day looked to have undone all Kalle Rovanpera's hard work and left him with a mountain to climb heading into the power stage. That he emerged the winner all the same has surely quelled any lingering doubts that the Finn is the man to beat in the 2022 WRC
How M-Sport's faith in Loubet led to a WRC reprieve after a dismal 2021
It's fair to say 2021 was a year to forget for Pierre-Louis Loubet. A maiden full World Rally Championship season offered hope but soon turned into a nightmare that ended in hospital, after being hit by a car in a road traffic accident. Now handed a lifeline by M-Sport, the Frenchman is desperate to rebuild his career
Why WRC mechanics deserve more respect
The drivers get the glare of attention, but it’s the mechanics who are key to the operation of any World Rally Championship car. Autosport donned a set of overalls and joined M-Sport on a Belgian national rally event to get an inside look into the trials and tribulations of a rally mechanic
The African McRae aiming to become a WRC pioneer
Taking his first step into the Junior World Rally Championship category, McRae Kimathi - named after 1995 world champion Colin - found himself in the unfamiliar climes of Sweden's snow and ice. Having impressed, Kimathi hopes to blaze a trail to the top level of WRC and help other African drivers to step onto the ladder