Sébastien Loeb: "I kind of feel like I'm the last hope"
Discreet throughout the summer, the M-Sport driver is entering a very busy period with a first event at the Acropolis. While he still enjoys the WRC, a full-time return seems unlikely.

Sébastien Loeb, you have competed in the Acropolis several times, but your last participation dates back a bit, right?

It's been 10 years. Already. (Laughs)

The Acropolis returned to the calendar last year, but the pilots will still have a certain knowledge of the terrain that you will not have...

Like always. However, I compared the courses of 2021 and 2022 and only half are similar. They will therefore have 50% of the specials to discover, i.e. 4 or 5 to take notes.

What do you remember from your last participation?

There are two sections that I have already done… a priori! My memories are very distant. It remains blurry and I mix them. (Laughs) Potentially, there are things that I will recognize as Bauxite because it marked me with its atypical profile. I've been there several times, but it still dates back to 2012.


READ ALSO > Sébastien Loeb's results at the Acropolis Rally

Did you try to work on the videos for the final edition?

I tried. I also searched my old notes to see if it matched with images from 2021 and it looks like it pretty much does. I will reuse them. I manage to watch the dash cams from last year, but I fall asleep after 15 minutes. I am, however, unable to view the videos of the organizer. There, it is after 4 minutes that I sleep!

Was it a challenge you enjoyed?

Yes. From what I have been able to understand, it is quite varied this year. There are still some brittle portions, but that has changed a lot. Ten years ago, it was already much less degraded than what competitors before me had experienced and it has improved even more. There were still well-identified places, but it was not a rally where you had to be sure. With the evolution of cars, suspensions and shock absorbers, this is even less the case today, especially since the roads have also been improved. Except in three bowls, there will be no management, we will have to attack.

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