Peugeot Total faced a challenging outing at home round in France.

PHOTO CREDIT: Peugeot Sport

Team Peugeot Total were unable to secure their desired result on home territory in France, with a 5th and 6th place finish for Timmy Hansen and Sébastien Loeb respectively in the final at Loheac, but nonetheless all 3 drivers showed considerable fighting spirit and pace through the weekend. 

Only a series of racing incidents compromised their opportunities to achieve a better result – but this is all part of the fast paced and closely-matched sport of rallycross. 

Timmy Hansen is currently fourth in the drivers' standings, and believes that the team have all the pieces, but its just a matter of putting it together: "The start procedure, chassis and engine of the Peugeot 208 WRX are already great.”

The Swede expected a stronger result in Loheac, but in the end he was the best placed Team Peugeot Total driver. "I hoped to get a better result for everyone than 5th: it’s not bad but we were definitely aiming higher. I think we did everything we could in the final, but 5th was the most we could achieve," said Hansen. "We have to be happy because we did our job the best we could under the circumstances, but we also have to go back and do our homework to improve for the future."

Timmy Hansen's teammate, Sébastien Loeb rues his start line positions at the French round of the World RX championship. "With the position that I had on the start line in each race this weekend, it was always going to be difficult and that proved to be the case," said Loeb. 

"We ended up with 6th in the end, which is actually not too bad all things considered because at one point we were 12th after qualifying," he adds. "It’s not the result we wanted but we have to accept it for what it is and move on."

The team’s Junior, Kevin Hansen, also showed plenty of speed, going as far as the semi-final.

“It was a strong weekend: we struggled a little bit during practice, but we came back really well," Hansen explained. "We had some great races and showed really good pace, but I couldn’t quite keep it all the way to the end."

The young Swede believes that he achieved the maximum on Sunday at the World RX of France. "I think to be just outside the final though, with all the factory cars there, was the maximum we could do," said Hansen. "So I was happy with my performance for that reason but of course we still wanted to be in the final! I know I’m still young and we still have plenty to learn."