Loeb: 'I've tried hard all day but he's still in front'

Sebastien Loeb says he and the Citroen team have work to do if they are to catch Jari-Matti Latvala on the second day of Rally Mexico.

Loeb trails Latvala by almost 10 seconds after 135km of stages and has no simple explanation for his inability to catch the 22-year-old’s Ford Focus.

“I’ve tried hard all day and he is still in front, said Loeb. “Maybe we have to work a bit on the suspension and the way it works with the new tyre. I don’t have a lot of grip, but at the same time I really feel I do some good stage times; but it’s not enough so we have work to do.”

Even though the Citroen wanted to replace the engine in his car on Thursday, Loeb says it has not given him any cause for concern. “I never thought about the engine. I forget about it and try to go as fast as possible.”

Comprising 157 stage kilometres, Saturday’s leg is the longest of the rally, and Loeb is hoping that before then his engineers can help find an answer to Latvala’s speed. “We will speak with the engineers this evening to see if we can do something on the car and then just try and do better tomorrow.”