Rally France has barely begun, but Volkswagen’s Sebastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia have already been crowned World Rally Champions.
Driving the Polo R WRC in its debut season, Ogier has won six out of the ten rallies and needed just one point to tie up the title following his victory in Australia.
As it turned out, the Frenchman’s closest rival Thierry Neuville, who had to pick up maximum points in France to keep his title dreams alive, could only manage a second place behind fellow Citroen driver Dani Sordo on the Strasbourg Power Stage, so it became an impossible task to catch Ogier and Ingrassia, who recorded the third-fastest time on the opening stage.
“The feeling is impossible to describe. To have won the World Championship title in France is an absolute dream come true. As a little boy, I used to marvel at the cars and top drivers at the Rally Monte Carlo with my father in my home town of Gap – and now Julien and I are World Rally Champions,” said a jubilant Ogier.
[Source: Volkswagen Motorsport]