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Loeb looks to Finland success

Author: Rose Young
Date: 01/08/2009

Rally Finland is the next stop for the World Rally Championship, with Citroen's Sebastien Loeb in the unusual position of having to try to play catch-up.

The French ace has been overtaken in the overall standings by Ford rival Mikko Hirvonen, having suffered crashes in both of the last two rallies.

Hirvonen has cashed in in perfect style, taking victory at both the Acropolis Rally and the Rally of Poland to head the drivers' standings by a single point from reigning champion and online favourite to retain his title, Loeb.

Loeb will therefore need to upset the home fans this weekend, with Hirvonen and team-mate Jari-Matti Latvala sure to enjoy huge support from the Finnish spectators.

They will be hoping that a season which started looking like the same predictable procession for Loeb will continue to shock and surprise.

Loeb opened up the campaign with five wins in a row, but Hirvonen remained in contention by taking three second places and a third to ensure that the Frenchman was not out of sight.

The momentum started to shift in Italy, where Ford clinched a one-two finish, although it was Latvala who took the honours ahead of Hirvonen.

Loeb then crashed out spectacularly in Greece, before a tree stump ended his hopes of a good finish in Poland, leaving Hirvonen to pile on the pressure with two flawless drives.

The season has also been made a little more interesting by the return to the sport of former champion Petter Solberg, who has already clinched two podium finishes in his out-of-date Citroen Xsara.

Meanwhile, the action this weekend is spiced up by the presence of Ferrari Formula One ace Kimi Raikkonen, who will be behind the wheel of a Fiat Grande Punto Super 2000.

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The Finn has also hinted that he could opt to change sports on a more long-term basis in the future, saying: "I am still in F1 and have one more year's contract but everything is open.

"It all depends on which way F1 is going. Nobody is exactly sure how it will be, but I am in no hurry."

The recent history of Rally Finland has been dominated by one man, Marcus Gronholm, who has won seven of the last nine runnings of the rally.

The two-time world champion also enthused his fans by making a comeback into the sport earlier this season at the Rally of Portugal.

Last year's action in Finland saw a battle royal between Loeb and Hirvonen, with the former edging home by a narrow margin of nine seconds, and a repeat looks to be on the cards this time around.

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