Having won the World Rally Championship
nine times
and served notice he could make it 10 if he damned well
felt like it
Sebastien Loeb has more than earned some time with his feet up.
Loeb and car are ready for Pikes Peak
Of course he's not quite ready for his pipe and slippers yet, final preparations for his much hyped Pikes Peak run next week stepping up apace with confirmation that his
875hp 208 GTI T16
has successfully passed scrutineering for the event. And Loeb the 'rookies test' for first-time runners. So that's a relief then.
Obviously the desire to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Ari Vatanen's Pikes Peak win in the 405 T16 will be forefront of his mind right now but that hasn't stopped Citroen announcing that he'll be taking part in the WTCC next year with an all-new team.
Citroen has obviously been the brand most associated with Loeb's WRC dominance, even it's singularly failed to exploit the fact by building any appropriately spicey road cars. That hasn't stopped Loeb taking to the track in some tasty machinery, as evidenced by this neat page on his official website. And having taken two wins in last year's French Porsche Carrera Cup at Pau, driven in the Porsche Supercup at Monaco and Barcelona and campaigning in the FIA GT championship in a McLaren 12C GT3 he's not lacking in frontline track experience. His own Sebastien Loeb Racing team runs five cars in the French Carrera Cup and last year took the team title and counted the series 'gentleman driver' champion among its number too.
Porsche Supercup among Loeb's 'retirement' fun
Citroen isn't saying much about its WTCC car, other than it will benefit from the development work and the same 1.6-litre turbocharged engine that go into the DS3 WRC. On that, Citroen Racing's boss Yves Matton said, "We're still committed to rallying and we'll continue to work hard to try and get the best possible result in 2013. Our partnership with Abu Dhabi is set to be reinforced, enabling us to continue to be involved in WRC with a new system and with new objectives."
Of the WTCC car he says, "Work has already begun in our Versailles technical centre and is set to be stepped up in the coming weeks, with the first tests of our car and the start of our development programme to prepare for the 2014 season." WTCC may seem like a strange choice for Citroen but the brand is thinking globally, the series' profile in emerging markets like China, Russia and South America mirroring those in which it hopes to expand road car sales in lieu of increasingly difficult times in the traditional European market.
As much as Citroen is giving away for now
And Loeb? "It's a bit of a dream to think that we are going to write a new chapter in our history. I can't wait to get out on track in the car and start testing," he says. "I have used this transitional year to try out various experiences and to improve my track driving skills. I don't expect to win straight away, but I am determined to get there one day." Given that he won his first race in the FIA GT any WTCC rivals hoping that modest assessment of his ambitions means they're in for an easy ride had best wise up and get ready for a fight.
Photos: Peugeot/Citroen/LAT