What happens? After Loeb/Citroen’s fail in Poland last weekend the WRC seems to become a little bit more interesting this year. After a spring where Loeb seemed to be more unbeatable than ever, winning five events in a row, Hirvonen has suddenly turned the championship to his favor and now leads by one point before Loeb. In the manufacturers championship, Ford is still quite behind Citroen (17pts), but even there it’s everything but over. Sordo isn’t as stable as Loeb, there are plenty of races to go and the season so far has really shown how fast things change.

I guess that Rally Finland in the end of July/beginning of August will be very, very important for both Ford and Citroen. If Loeb can win on Hirvonen’s (and Latvala’s) home soil, Citroen will have a really good position considering that Rally Catalunya is one of the three remaining rallies after that. Loeb will of course be a huge favourite on the Spanish tarmac surface!

But if Loeb and Citroen doesn’t play their cards right in Finland, Hirvonen will extend his lead in the championship, boosting him and putting quite some pressure on Loeb. Then Loeb will have some pressure to make the odds even again by winning in Catalunya – which would leave the championship totally open again. Besides Finland and Catalunya there are Rally Australia and the season closer Wales Rally GB left on the calendar – two rallies where I don’t feel that either Loeb or Hirvonen have a real advantage. It will for sure be an interesting battle – and for the sake of thrill… Let’s hope that Hirvonen (or Latvala?) is fastest in Finland!