WRC Spain: Ogier retains title with victory

Volkswagen’s Sebastien Ogier won the World Rally Championship (WRC) for a second year in a row after winning the penultimate round of the season in Spain.

The Frenchman only needed to finish one point ahead of his teammate Jari-Matti Latvala to be crowned WRC champion, but following a hiccup or two in the previous rounds he went all out for victory, finally winning the rally by a margin of 11.3 seconds.

“I am so happy,” said a delighted Ogier. “It has been a fantastic weekend. It was tough, I was pushing so hard on day one and then it was a long two days on tarmac where I had to watch Jari-Matti flying. I had to be clever and watch him all the time. The car has been fantastic all weekend. Big thanks to Volkswagen for giving me such fantastic car. This was the target at the beginning of the season [to retain my crown]. It is everything I wanted.”

The foundation of this victory was laid on Friday when his lead stood at the top of timesheets stood at 30 seconds. Latvala desperate to delay the fight to WRC Wales, won eight of the last 10 stages but eventually had to concede defeat to the more consistent of the duo.

M-Sport’s Mikko Hirvonen finished third to secure his second podium of the position, the first coming with a second place result in Portugal.

Ostberg finished 30 seconds adrift of the final spot of the rostrum to take fourth place while local hero Dani Sordo wasn’t far behind in fifth.

Andreas Mikkelsen suffered two punctures on his Polo WRC over the course of the four day rally and languished in seventh place, bringing an end to his three race podium streak. The Norwegian driver grabbed a bonus point for finishing third in the power stage which was won by Latvala.

The final round of 2014 WRC takes place in Wales from November 14 -16.

WRC RALLY DE ESPANA - TOP 10

1. Sebastien Ogier Volkswagen
2. Jari-Matti Latvala Volkswagen
3. Mikko Hirvonen M-Sport
4. Mads Ostberg Citroen
5. Dani Sordo Hyundai
6. Thierry Neuville Hyundai
7. Andreas Mikkelsen Volkswagen
8. Martin Prokop Jipocar Czech National Team
9. Hayden Paddon Hyundai
10. Nasser Al-Attiyah Ford