Citroën C4 WRC

Citroën C4 WRC.

The Citroën C4 WRC is a World Rally Car built for the Citroën World Rally Team by Citroën Racing to compete in the World Rally Championship. It is based upon the Citroën C4 road car and replaced the Citroën Xsara WRC. The car was introduced for the 2007 World Rally Championship season and has taken the drivers' title each year since in the hands of Sébastien Loeb, as well as the manufacturers' title in 2008, 2009 and 2010.

The C4 WRC and Loeb maintained a 100% record on asphalt events during its WRC career, winning all 13 pure asphalt rounds of the World Rally Championship.[1]

Competition history

2007

The car made its debut at the 2007 Monte Carlo Rally in the hands of Citroën World Rally Team drivers Sébastien Loeb and Daniel Sordo. Loeb won the rally after leading throughout, with Sordo finishing as runner-up, with the pair winning the first nine of 15 stages. Loeb went on to win seven of the remaining 15 rallies that season to beat Ford's Marcus Grönholm to the title by nine points. Sordo finished fourth in the standings.

2008

Citroën retained Loeb and Sordo in their team for 2008, with Loeb winning 11 out of 15 rallies to take the title, while Sordo finished third in the standings. This was enough for Citroën to regain the manufacturers' crown.

C4 WRCs were also run by privateer squad PH-Sport for Conrad Rautenbach and Urmo Aava during the season, as well as for Junior World Rally Championship winner Sébastien Ogier at the final event of the season, Rally GB. Ogier lead the event early on despite it being his first in a WRC car.

2009

In 2009, Loeb and Sordo once again drove for the factory squad, with Loeb winning the first five events of the year and then winning the final two to beat Ford driver Mikko Hirvonen to the title by just one point. Sordo finished a solid third as Citroën retained the manufacturers' title.

PH-Sport ran a second team of C4 WRCs under the Citroën Junior Team banner for Rautenbach and Ogier, with Evgeny Novikov, Chris Atkinson and Aaron Burkart also appearing under the banner during the year. Petter Solberg ran an old Xsara WRC for his own team for most of the season, before switching to a C4 WRC for the penulitmate round, and was then entered under the Junior Team banner for the final round of the season.

2010

Loeb and Sordo continued with the factory team into 2010, while the Junior Team ran Ogier and Kimi Räikkönen. Ogier, though, had a strong start to the season (including a win in Portugal) and so was swapped with Sordo for gravel rounds in the second half of the season. Ogier then won the 2010 Rally Japan as a factory driver.

Petter Solberg drove a C4 WRC for his own team and picked up eight podiums over the season, finishing third in the final standings, ahead of work's drivers Ogier and Sordo.

WRC victories

No. Event Season Driver Co-driver
1 Monaco 75ème Rallye Automobile de Monte-Carlo 2007 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
2 Mexico 21º Corona Rally México 2007 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
3 Portugal 41º Vodafone Rally de Portugal 2007 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
4 Argentina 27º Rally Argentina 2007 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
5 Germany 26. ADAC Rallye Deutschland 2007 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
6 Spain 43º Rally RACC Catalunya – Costa Daurada 2007 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
7 France 51ème Tour de Corse – Rallye de France 2007 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
8 Republic of Ireland 1st Rally Ireland 2007 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
9 Monaco 76ème Rallye Automobile de Monte-Carlo 2008 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
10 Mexico 22º Corona Rally México 2008 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
11 Argentina 28º Rally Argentina 2008 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
12 Italy 5º Supermag Rally Italia Sardinia 2008 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
13 Greece 55th BP Ultimate Acropolis Rally 2008 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
14 Finland 58th Neste Oil Rally Finland 2008 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
15 Germany 27. ADAC Rallye Deutschland 2008 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
16 New Zealand 38th Repco Rally New Zealand 2008 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
17 Spain 44º Rally RACC Catalunya – Costa Daurada 2008 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
18 France 52ème Tour de Corse – Rallye de France 2008 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
19 United Kingdom 64th Wales Rally of Great Britain 2008 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
20 Republic of Ireland 2nd Rally Ireland 2009 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
21 Norway 3rd Rally Norway 2009 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
22 Cyprus 37th Cyprus Rally 2009 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
23 Portugal 43º Vodafone Rally de Portugal 2009 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
24 Argentina 29º Rally Argentina 2009 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
25 Spain 45º Rally RACC Catalunya – Costa Daurada 2009 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
26 United Kingdom 65th Wales Rally of Great Britain 2009 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
27 Mexico 23º Corona Rally México 2010 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
28 Jordan 28th Jordan Rally 2010 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
29 Turkey 6th Rally of Turkey 2010 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
30 Portugal 44º Vodafone Rally de Portugal 2010 France Sébastien Ogier France Julien Ingrassia
31 Bulgaria 41st Rally Bulgaria 2010 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
32 Germany 28. ADAC Rallye Deutschland 2010 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
33 Japan 6th Rally Japan 2010 France Sébastien Ogier France Julien Ingrassia
34 France 2010 Rallye de France 2010 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
35 Spain 46º Rally RACC Catalunya – Costa Daurada 2010 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena
36 United Kingdom 66th Wales Rally of Great Britain 2010 France Sébastien Loeb Monaco Daniel Elena

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Citroën C4 WRC.
  1. David, Evans (25 October 2010). "Loeb praises C4's asphalt record". autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved 1 November 2010.
Awards
Preceded by
Ford Focus WRC
Autosport Awards
Rally Car of the Year

2008–2010
Succeeded by
Mini John Cooper Works WRC
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