Petter Solberg cruised to his third consecutive rally win on Sunday, setting 13 of 19 scratch times. But the win did little for his title hopes, as Sebastien Loeb finished second, giving up only two championship to Solberg. Loeb’s lead stands at 26 points with only 30 left on the table. Solberg has promised to fight to the bitter end, and given his speed over the last couple of months, he should be on the podium for the rest of the year, but unless Loeb runs into serious problems, he should cruise to the title.

Citroen’s Carlos Sainz put in another fine performance in third place. Only two other factory cars managed to score — Ford’s Francois Duval in fifth and Peugeot’s Marcus Gronholm in seventh. Fourth, sixth, and eighth were filled with privateers, though sixth place finisher Gianluigi Galli has driven a factory Lancer this season.

Next up on the calender is France, with it’s tight and quick tarmac stages. Loeb will be the man to beat, and even with his speed as of late, it will take another miracle/disaster for Solberg to win (last year Loeb had problems in the rain and Solberg won). Loeb can wrap up the championship with a podium finish.

The manufacturer’s race has heated up some, with Subaru within striking distance of Ford in second place. Ford had a terrible rally in Italy, and given Mikko Hirvonen’s speed, Subaru could overtake Ford in France.

Posted on 4 October 2004