Sebastien Loeb says he can’t afford to relax on Rallye de France Alsace as he edges closer to victory and FIA World Rally Championship title number nine.
Loeb is 27.0s in front with three stages of day two remaining at the wheel of his Citroen DS3 WRC.
He said: “It’s not more pressure but it’s also not the time to relax. In this type of road when it’s really tricky and you relax a bit you lose a lot of time. I am in a situation when I can accept to lose a bit of time in some places but I have to continue to push even though I know my lead is quite comfortable.”
Loeb also acknowledged the continued threat posed by Ford driver Jari-Matti Latvala in second place. Latvala starts the 43.45-kilometre Pays d’Ormont test on the back of his second stage win of the day.
“Jari-Matti is still very fast and it’s a long way to go,” said Loeb. “There is still the long stage this afternoon. It’s very tricky and you still need to be concentrated and keep the rhythm for that.”