Germany : Finish - SummaryThe German round of the World Rally Championship, the OMV ADAC RALLYE saw Frenchman
Sebastien Loeb leading all the way towards another clear win with his Citroën Xsara WRC in front of almost 200,000 spectators.
For the reigning world champion,
it was the fifth consecutive victory in Germany, where he also matched the record of Spaniard Carlos Sainz with 26 world championship wins. "Just great, my fifth victory in a row here and the 26th WRC win, and all that in front of such a great crowd and especially so many fans from my home country in the neighbouring Alsace,” Loeb said at the finish in front of the Porta Nigra in Trier.
Shooting star Loeb, who is still only 32 years old, needed only five years of competing in the World Championship to match the record, while Sainz reached this achievement after only 15 years (1990-2004). Moreover, Loeb became the first driver in the history of the world championship, going back to 1973, winning one particular world championship round five times in a row.
Loeb's team-mate Daniel Sordo (Spain) completed Citroëns double win while arch rival Marcus Grönholm had to make do with third place after tyre problems in the rain early on. The Finnish Ford Focus WRC driver commented: "It was a huge battle with Citroën, but we didn't have any realistic chances. Now, we have to win in Finland next week.
”
There were mixed feelings for DTM-star Mattias Ekström, who made it up into 11th place with a lot of perseverance with his Skoda Fabia WRC. "It was my first outing on asphalt with a World Rally Car. I have learned a lot in the continuously changing weather conditions and I am very happy like this.”
ADAC sports president Hermann Tomczyk also was delighted at the finish in front of the Porta Nigra in Trier. "The thing that pleased me most was the great atmosphere during the rally. Thanks to the fans. They have turned this WRC round into an international rally festival once again. It was just great and again, the organisation was trouble-free, too.”
Clerk of the course Armin Kohl analysed: "From an organisational point of view, everything worked perfectly. Of course, that isn't self-evident with over 3,000 employees and volunteers involved. A big thank you also to the disciplined crowd that has helped us and thus contributed to this success. Luckily enough, the few accidents were also harmless.”
Source OMV ADAC Rallye
