Loeb sure Sordo will impress

Seven-times World Rally Champion Sebastian Loeb has said that he expects his former team-mate Dani Sordo to impress in his new surroundings.

Sordo, who signed for MINI in January, completed five seasons as team-mate to Loeb in the Citroen World Rally Team. He was brought into the Citroen-backed Kronos Racing WRT in 2006 after a successful run in the J-WRC, which he won. Citroen retained him for 2007, where he impressed on the tarmac rounds, most notably completing a 1-2 finish for Citroen behind Loeb on the début of the C4 WRC. He improved with multiple gravel podiums in 2008 and 2009 before a dip in performance led to him being demoted to the Citroen Junior squad for gravel rallies, being replaced in the No.1 team by Sebastian Ogier, who would eventually take Sordo's vacated seat.

The Spaniard somewhat enjoyed a No.2 status at Citroen, never really being able to compete with his all-conquering team-mate Loeb. Sordo did show enough pace at times to be able to better Loeb, most notably taking four straight stage wins, six throughout the rally and leading throughout Day 1 on his home event in 2009 and on the 2008 Jordan Rally, where he lead for most of the rally, only relinquishing the lead after a hard fight with Ford driver Mikko Hirvonen.

“He will have the freedom to fight for himself now and maybe he can be stronger because it’s a different situation for him,” said Loeb, the current WRC title leader. “I think it’s good for him to have this position in the team now he has a lot of experience. He was working for a manufacturer for a long time and for sure he can do some good things.” said Loeb.

Loeb said that Sordo did a good job in Citroen No.2, regularly scoring points and always doing his best: “I always was in front of him immediately at the start of the season and he accepted easily to be the second driver and score the points and do what the boss was telling him to do. He accepted I was faster than him and he didn’t try [to beat me]. He was doing his best but I was always in front.”

Sordo and new team-mate Kris Meeke will now mark the début of the new MINI John Cooper Works on next week's Rally d'Italia Sardegna. Meeke and Sordo have been team-mates before, back in the Kronos Racing J-WRC team in 2005, when Sordo took the title.