Quote Originally Posted by N.O.T View Post
both these wins were because of starting order ... .
Not an entirely unreasonable statement however the 'facts' are inconclusive.
If the issue of road sweeping were such a determinant of the outcome then surely Ogier should be winning the 2nd pass over the multi use stages. He's not doing so, at least not consistently.

I can recall a time (very many years ago) when 'seeding' was recognition of the driver's status and the expectation of their result. The #1 was worn by the car expected to win which may not have been the current champion but the winner of the previous year's event. The cars would start each event in numerical order. The car numbers would change on each event, as would their start position on the first day. The start order on subsequent days would reflect their position in the event.
A simple system which everybody understood ... the competitors, the media and, most importantly, the spectators.
What's not understandable is why they ever changed it.