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Three weeks after a double helping of Mediterranean asphalt, the WRC moves 9000km east and back to gravel roads for the 14th and penultimate challenge of the year, Pioneer Carrozzeria Rally Japan, which starts on Thursday 30 October.
Sébastien Loeb started the last championship round, Rallye de France, with a slim chance of winning the 2008 drivers' championship. He didn't quite manage it then but now, with a 14-point lead over his nearest rival Mikko Hirvonen, it's looking likely that he will wrap things up in Japan - even if he doesn't win the rally.
Even if Hirvonen wins in Japan and Great Britain, and takes 10 points from each, Loeb needs just six more points from either of them to clinch an historic fifth consecutive title. A podium in Japan would do the Frenchman nicely, thank you.
Even though this year's rally will provide a brand new challenge to the one he mastered in 2007, Hirvonen has vowed to push Loeb right to the bitter end. He needs a win next week and, in the nicest possible way, some bad luck to go Loeb's way. Misfortune isn't something that usually troubles Loeb but it's a new brand new rally and, as Hirvonen is keen to point out after his up and down season, 'anything can happen.'
The other Ford driver to watch is Francois Duval. Although not as happy on gravel as he is on asphalt, the Belgian, who will partner Matthew Wilson at the Stobart VK M-sport team, is also a man with podium potential.
For the Subaru no event is more important than Rally Japan and they will be pulling out all the stops to impress on home ground. Petter Solberg won the inaugural Rally Japan for Subaru in 2004 and was on course to do it again in 2005 before hitting a rock on the penultimate stage and retiring with broken steering.
The majority of Subaru's testing since New Zealand has been focused on improving the performance of the Impreza WRC2008 for the gravel rallies in Japan and GB. We'll find out how they did this weekend.
photo:Subaru
Three weeks after a double helping of Mediterranean asphalt, the WRC moves 9000km east and back to gravel roads for the 14th and penultimate challenge of the year, Pioneer Carrozzeria Rally Japan, which starts on Thursday 30 October.
Sébastien Loeb started the last championship round, Rallye de France, with a slim chance of winning the 2008 drivers' championship. He didn't quite manage it then but now, with a 14-point lead over his nearest rival Mikko Hirvonen, it's looking likely that he will wrap things up in Japan - even if he doesn't win the rally.
Even if Hirvonen wins in Japan and Great Britain, and takes 10 points from each, Loeb needs just six more points from either of them to clinch an historic fifth consecutive title. A podium in Japan would do the Frenchman nicely, thank you.
Even though this year's rally will provide a brand new challenge to the one he mastered in 2007, Hirvonen has vowed to push Loeb right to the bitter end. He needs a win next week and, in the nicest possible way, some bad luck to go Loeb's way. Misfortune isn't something that usually troubles Loeb but it's a new brand new rally and, as Hirvonen is keen to point out after his up and down season, 'anything can happen.'
The other Ford driver to watch is Francois Duval. Although not as happy on gravel as he is on asphalt, the Belgian, who will partner Matthew Wilson at the Stobart VK M-sport team, is also a man with podium potential.
For the Subaru no event is more important than Rally Japan and they will be pulling out all the stops to impress on home ground. Petter Solberg won the inaugural Rally Japan for Subaru in 2004 and was on course to do it again in 2005 before hitting a rock on the penultimate stage and retiring with broken steering.
The majority of Subaru's testing since New Zealand has been focused on improving the performance of the Impreza WRC2008 for the gravel rallies in Japan and GB. We'll find out how they did this weekend.
photo:Subaru