Sebastien Ogier’s blistering early form in the 2013 World Rally Championship suggests that the Frenchman could go on to be even more dominant than his nine-time title winning compatriot Sebastien Loeb.
An analysis of stage wins from the opening five rounds of this year’s championship shows that Ogier’s stage winning percentage is double the figure that Sebastien Loeb achieved in the same period in 2012.
Of the 90 stages run so far this season, Ogier has won 39 – or 43.3 per cent – in his Volkswagen Polo R. This compares to reigning champion Loeb’s 2012 stats of 22 wins from 107 stages in the opening five rallies – a win rate of 20.5 per cent.
This year, despite contesting only three of the five rallies, Loeb is Ogier’s closest rival in terms of stage wins, with a total of 17.
Of those drivers contenting a full season, however, Mads Ostberg is Ogier’s closest challenger; the Norwegian’s 12 stage wins at the wheel of a Ford Fiesta RS giving him a win rate of 13.3 per cent.
Ogier’s Volkwagen team-mate Jari-Matti Latvala lies fourth, with eight wins (8.8 per cent) while Citroen driver Mikko Hivonen is fifth having won just six stages (6.6 per cent).
Here is the full list of stage winners so far this season, with their percentage win rate in brackets.
1) Sebastien Ogier. Volkswagen Polo R: 39 (43.3%)
2) Sebastien Loeb. Citroen DS3: 17 (18.8%)
3) Mads Ostberg. Ford Fiesta RS: 12 (13.3%)
4) Jari-Matti Latvala. Volkswagen Polo R: 8 (8.8%)
5) Mikko Hirvonen. Citroen DS3: 6 (6.6%)
6) Dani Sordo. Citroen DS3: 3 (3.3%)
7) Evgeny Novikov. Ford Fiesta RS: 2 (2.2%)
=8) Thierry Neuville. Ford Fiesta RS: 1 (1.1%)
=8) Bryan Bouffier. Citroen DS3: 1 (1.1%)
=8) Juho Hanninen. Ford Fiesta RS: 1 (1.1%)