When Loeb showed his class at the Rally de Portugal

The participation in the Azores Rallye is just the latest incursion of Sébastien Loeb on the Portuguese tracks. The most successful driver in the history of rallying, with a record of nine titles and 80 wins in WRC, started his special relationship with Portugal in 2007, when he won on his debut at the Vodafone Rally of Portugal, driving the Citroën C4 WRC, in the Algarve, in the edition that marked the return of the Portuguese race to the FIA World Championship. Two years later, he repeated the feat on his way to another world title, only to succumb in 2010 to a young, talented team-mate, called Sébastien Ogier…

Loeb never managed to win again in Portugal, finishing runner-up in 2011 as well, before retiring from full-time rallying. The occasional returns with Hyundai (2019) and Ford M-Sport (2022) saw Loeb show his class on the northern sections too, although he never managed to finish the race. Still, in 2022, the Frenchman shone by placing himself at the front of the race late on Friday morning... at the age of 48. Will there be an encore? With a talent of the magnitude of Sébastien Loeb, never say never...