Ogier and Volkswagen win 2015 Rally Monte Carlo

  • Jan 27, 2015
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After a successful 2014 season, Sebastien Ogier and Volkswagen continue with their tremendous form taking a win in the first rally of 2015

Sebastien Ogier, Volkswagen Motorsport

With eight wins in the 2014 season, Sebastien Ogier had a fantastic one to defend his title. And he resumed his brilliant performance as he won the season opener in Monte Carlo for the second time. 

The Frenchman was engaged in a fierce battle on Friday with nine-time champion Sebastien Loeb  making a one-time return to rallying. Loeb led a major part of Friday with Ogier right at his tail hounding him. The veteran was finally forced into making an error in SS7. Ogier took lead soon after and quickly managed to get a commanding lead of 1:45.4 minutes which helped him cruise to victory on Sunday. With this victory Ogier equals Colin McRae’s record of 25 World Rally Championship victories, and sits fourth in the all-time table with Carlos Sainz (26), Marcus Gronholm (30) and Sebastien Loeb (78) ahead of him. 

Meanwhile, Jari-Matti Latvala who was running in the top three throughout the rally comfortably took the second best spot on the podium. He brought an extra point for the team with a third place in the Power Stage towards the end of the rally. Andreas Mikkelsen took the final spot on the rostrum giving Volkswagen a clean sweep of the podium. The last time a manufacturer managed to secure a 1-2-3 in Monte Carlo was in 2003 with Loeb taking top honours, McRae and Sainz taking  the remaining two podium places for Citroen.

Mads Ostberg took fourth in his Citroen but the battle to watch was between the two Hyundai drivers Thierry Neuville and  Dani Sordo. The two were split by just 0.8 seconds in the final test with Neuville finishing ahead in fifth place. After restarting in P15, Loeb finished eighth and brought home two points with a second place in the Power Stage. Kris Meeke finished ninth and won the power stage. 

This is just the first rally of the season and we have already seen Volkswagen dominate it thoroughly. Will 2015 be a repeat telecast of last year’s championship? The story will continue in the second round at Sweden on February 12. 

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