05/07/2012 15:59
Rally champion Sebastien Loeb has added to his trophy cabinet by securing a gold medal in the X Games Los Angeles on his first trip to the US.
Driving the Citroen Ds3 XL, the motorsport star took first place in the Rallycross event, setting the fastest overall time in the heats before cruising to victory in the showpiece finale.
The event has helped to boost the US profile of the race ace, who is already a huge star on this side of the Atlantic Ocean.
However, the event also saw Marcus Gronholm hospitalised after a crash, something which tarnished the memory of Loeb.
"It was a great end to the weekend and obviously, I'm really pleased to win the gold medal, but I must admit I'm finding it hard to really enjoy it when my 'best enemy' Marcus Gronholm is in hospital after his crash," said Loeb.
"We were both very much looking forward to racing against each other here and it's a shame that it didn't happen."
Loeb also revealed that he was confident going into the event and claimed this played a large part in his success, saying: "I knew that if I had got away well at the start, I'd be almost certain of winning. I came here hoping I'd win and that's exactly what happened."
The feat was hailed by Yves Matton, Citro�n Racing Team Principal, who said a win on a new surface further enhanced the credentials of both Loeb and the Citroen racing team.
He thanks Loeb and the rest of the team for all the hard work that went into ensuring the US event was a complete success.
"As everything was new to us, we made sure we were very thorough in our preparations," he added.
With the WRC season now past the half-way point, Loeb is the clear leader with a 32 point gap over his team-mate Mikko Hirvonen.
Posted by Sebastian Turkenburg