Reigning five-time world champion Sebastien Loeb of France made it four wins in four races this season when he won the Rally of Portugal, his 51st career victory.
It was Loeb’s second win in Portugal, following his 2007 success, and marks his fifth consecutive race victory after triumphing in Great Britain at the end of 2008 and then winning in Ireland, Norway and Cyprus at the start of this season.
“We really enjoyed ourselves this week, in stages that were technical and difficult in front of a good crowd,” said Loeb after equalling his countryman Alain Prost’s mark of 51 victories in Formula One.
It was the Frenchman’s fourth straight win since the start of the season, giving him 40 points and a 10-point lead over Hirvonen.
Citroen’s Dani Sordo finished third, 1:45.40 back, and remains third in the standings with 23 points. Petter Solberg of Citroen and Ford’s Henning Solberg rounded out the top-five.
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