Auto Hebdo No. 2190 - November 7, 2018 part 3/3

DAVID RICHARDS, HOWEVER, HAVE NOT YOU PLAYED A SALE BY SIGNING A COMPLETE TWO-YEAR WRC PROGRAM AGREEMENT THAT WILL REPRESENT THE SIX RALLIES?

I do not see it that way. Before he hired me, I was an IRC pilot. Six world participations with the Mini have made me a WRC driver. Even though the promises were not kept, even though the program was shaky, it made me take a step forward. Without these six rallies, maybe Citroën would never have thought of trusting me for Finland and Australia 2013.

WHAT EFFECT WILL YOU HAVE TO CONFRONT, THE NEXT YEAR, GAILLARDS THAT ARE 15 OR 20 YEARS LESS THAN YOU?

I feel as young as they are. I am not only young in WRC, I am in rally. Earlier, Renaud (Jamoul, his co-driver at the Condroz Rally, Editor's note) was referring to the youth of Breen. Admittedly, Craig is 11 years younger than me, but we took the start of an almost identical number of rallies: 171 for me, 165 for him.

WHAT DO YOU FEEL WHEN YOU SEE SÉBASTIEN LOEB LOOKING FOR OVER 44 YEARS?

My first reaction was to be happy for him. We like to have, at times, been team companions (Monte-Carlo 2015, Mexico and Corsica 2018. Editor's note). He impresses me by the number of his victories: 79! Hard to imagine for me who am in 61 starts in WRC. In Catalonia, he had always won after dominating. This was not the case this time. He showed that there are other ways to win.

IT SHOULD YOU THINK?

Yes, but Seb would not have triumphed if Tänak had not had to change a wheel after a puncture and if Latvala had not, also punctured twice. Loeb is for nothing in these incidents, but he wins and everyone greets the intelligence of the master ...

SUNDAY MORNING, IT HAS ALSO BEEN THE ONLY ONE TO OPT FOR THE MICHELIN AT HARD GUM!

For me, this choice was obvious. I was surprised when Ogier said he did not dare to do the same for safety in his title race. I am convinced that it is rarely appropriate to play the security card. The card Ogier played was not safe, it was not the right one. If he had made the right choice, today his lead over Neuville would be 11 points. Obviously, it's easy to say, from someone who has never been in the position of being pressured into a title fight. That said, I promised myself: if, one day, it should happen to me, I would continue, until the end, to play "the right card" - at least the one I think is the right one - and not the card of alleged security.

WHY CHANGE OF COPILOTE? IS IT THE CHOICE OF PAUL NAGGLE?

It's mine. It was not easy to decide. It's like when you've been with a girl for a long time. Eleven years together! So many common memories: our title in IRC, our five world victories. It seemed to me that I needed a different atmosphere in the car. Warning: I have no complaints to Paul. Maybe we had only become too close. Our relations a little too automatic. A little freshness should not hurt me. I do not have intimacy with his successor. I only know that he does his job perfectly. Having just professional relationships could make it easier for me to share the cabin with my best friend.

AFTER EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENED WITH CITROËN, AND WITH THE POWER UP OF SEVERAL YOUNG PEOPLE, WHY ARE TEAMS CONTINUING TO SEARCH FOR YOUR SERVICES?

It's a question to ask them rather than me ... I think I was helped by the circumstances. For 2019, only two drivers were under contract: Ott Tänak at Toyota and Andreas Mikkelsen at Hyundai. Obviously, Citroën wanted to renew his team by getting rid of Ostberg and me. Only Craig has, perhaps, still his chances, on some rallies. They would therefore necessarily sting a minimum of two pilots to others. This has created a great stir in the minds of decision makers. In addition, the coming into force of the new technical rules has made it much more difficult to move up the R5 category to the new WRCs. Training young people may take time without guarantee of results. Talents are always lost on the way. Based on these data, why was I coveted? Certainly not because I'm slow (laughs).

ARE YOU ALWAYS ABOUT THE ASCENDING SLOPE?

I believe him. I only have three full seasons in WRC. 2019 will be my fourth. Time is on my side. I still have two years to develop my potential.

LOEB HAS NOT NEEDED FIVE SEASONS TO REACH THE SUMMITS! AND TODAY, HE WINS STILL ...

Okay, but he's Sebastien Loeb. I'm not in his head, but I believe that Seb will play several WRC races in 2019. Alongside Ogier, it will create an incredible momentum within Citroën. They will confirm each other's directions in the evolution and development of the C3. If this combination is born, it will be up to us, Toyota Gazoo Racing WRC, to react, so that our victories and titles are even more beautiful!


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