LOEB BACK ON TOP.(Competition)

Frenchman Sebastien Loeb drove back into contention for the World Rally Championship title with a flawless win in Mexico, despite concerns about his engine, which was changed at the last minute before the rally started.

Citroen consulted the FIA and believed that it was within its rights to change the engine without incurring a penalty after it developed a fuel-injection problem. However, the event stewards disagreed and handed Loeb a five-minute penalty. The penalty was canceled after Citroen reinstalled the original engine, causing rivals to question the decision-making process.

Loeb is one point behind the championship leader, Ford's Mikko Hirvonen, who finished fourth in Mexico after a series of tire punctures.

Swedish Rally winner Jari-Matti Latvala led by 10 seconds on the opening day. Loeb could do little to catch the young Finn, but the story was different on day two for Latvala, who, by virtue of his lead, was first on the road and had to deal with loose gravel.

Loeb was soon past him, and less than a mile into special stage 13, a pipe split between the turbo and the intercooler on Latvala's Ford Focus, robbing him of boost. He ended the day third, which is where he finished overall.

Subaru driver Chris Atkinson finished second, his best career result. The Impreza ran a new suspension setup, which translated into markedly improved performance (Competition, Feb. 25). However, it didn't benefit Petter Solberg, who retired on day two with a broken driveshaft.

Other retirements included both cars on the new Suzuki team. Team principal Nobuhiro "Monster'' Tajima promised an urgent investigation after the two SX4 WRCs went out with engine problems after the first loop of stages.