Motorsport: Loeb takes fourth rally victory

Sebastien Loeb

BUENOS AIRES - World champion Sebastien Loeb won the Rally of Argentina yesterday - his fourth victory in a row.

The French Citroen driver beat Subaru's Petter Solberg by 44.6s after the two closing super-special stages inside Cordoba's soccer stadium to go 21 points clear in the championship after six rallies.

The victory also allowed Monaco's Daniel Elena to equal the record of 24 wins by a co-driver held by Spaniard Luis Moya, who raced alongside now-retired Spanish champion Carlos Sainz and is now Subaru's sporting director.

Loeb, who also won on the gravel roads of Argentina last year, is himself just two wins away from Sainz' record of 26.

Finland's Marcus Gronholm, 11 points adrift before Argentina, finished 10th and out of the points for Ford after retiring on the first leg and rejoining with time penalties.

He remains second overall in the championship.

Loeb has 56 points to Gronholm's 35. The Kronos Citroen team have 69 in the constructors' standings to Ford's 57.

"I wanted to win here but I think to finish second is still very good," said Solberg, who has 18 points, after overcoming technical problems and several punctures.

"I tried everything and we would have had a very good chance of winning this rally if it wasn't for the problems we had.

"Underneath it all I'm feeling much more positive. The car is getting there now, we're back fighting for the lead and I can go for an attack. It's been a long time since I felt like this."

Italian Gigi Galli was third in a privately entered Peugeot, 3m 24.3s adrift of Loeb, for his first world championship podium. Austrian Manfred Stohl was fourth in another Peugeot.

Spaniard Dani Sordo, Loeb's team mate, finished fifth, and Australian Chris Atkinson was sixth in the second Subaru.

Solberg's older brother Henning was seventh in a Peugeot, after stopping with clutch problems within sight of the finish on the final stage.

Briton Matthew Wilson, driving a Ford, took eighth place after winning the final sprint.

- REUTERS