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Sebastien Ogier to retire at the end of 2020


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#1 Viryfan

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 09:35

 

Lorsqu'il avait annoncé la signature de son contrat de deux saisons (2019-2020) avec Citroën en septembre 2018, Sébastien Ogier avait précisé que c'était le dernier de sa carrière, et qu'il arrêterait le rallye ensuite. Le sextuple champion du monde l'a confirmé dans une interview pour Yahoo Sport avant le début du Rallye de Finlande jeudi.

« Ma carrière s'arrêtera fin 2020 chez Citroën, affirme-t-il. Après, j'aurai envie de passer à autre chose. Etre plus à la maison, être le meilleur père possible, être plus présent auprès de mon fils. Et des projets de reconversion, il peut y en avoir plein. Reprendre des études d'économie, l'écologie aussi me touche même si je fais du sport auto depuis des années. Je suis sensible au sort de la planète. Le golf également, j'ai commencé il y a peu de temps, et c'est addictif... Et puis aussi certainement encore un peu de sport auto, mais moins contraignant qu'aujourd'hui. »

 

https://www.lequipe....en-2020/1045223

 

I guess we wil see him in Extreme E.

 

Also it might give a different spin to the silly season as Ott Tanak is still a free agent.



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#2 Spillage

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 09:58

So how good is Ogier? I don't follow rallying closely enough to know. On paper his achievements are extraordinary, but it's odd that he followed a period of total Loeb dominance. Is the standard of competition a bit lacking?

#3 Vesuvius

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 10:05

So how good is Ogier? I don't follow rallying closely enough to know. On paper his achievements are extraordinary, but it's odd that he followed a period of total Loeb dominance. Is the standard of competition a bit lacking?


He was good, not the fastest anymore (as there are Tänäk and Neuville that are faster and Rovanperä will arrive to WRC soon as well.)
After Loeb and Grönholm retired, the quality of drivers dropped and Ogier dominated it pretty easily, until new stars raised.Ogier has gotten last 2 titles mainly with luck and consistent performances, not being the fastest anymore.

#4 OvDrone

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 10:08

The competition at the moment is as strong and fierce as it's ever been. And Ogier could keep up with Loeb on a regular basis even back in 2011 when they were controversial teammates. He is one of Rallying's all time greats, and as a big Loeb fan, I am happy that he ain't gonna match Loeb's records.

 

I warmed up to him when he went to M-Sport and those two seasons there really cemented his legacy. Also that crazy season in a WRC2 Skoda. If he wins another one with Citroen that would be amazing.

 

...

 

But I'm a Neuville fan, so please don't.


Edited by OvDrone, 01 August 2019 - 22:16.


#5 jcbc3

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 10:17

lol - OvDrone, that could have been my posts word-for-word.



#6 AlexLangheck

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 10:34

Retiring to me means full stop. End of his motorsport career. It's not retirement if he moves to another series......



#7 noikeee

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 10:35

Only thing I'd add is I think he's still the best, just not the fastest.

 

He just managed to win a title for M-Sport ffs, against full-blown factory efforts, he's always somehow leading the championship no matter what machine he's on. I think his career will be seen as just about a little short of as good as Loeb's, but simply the fact he even got into that discussion is extraordinary.



#8 f1paul

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 10:37

Ogier is one of WRC's greats doesn't get much coverage with Autosport and on this forum unfortunately.

 

To win 6 titles in a row is unbelievable in a sport with so many variables and where it can go wrong so easily with the smallest of mistakes or misfortune putting you out of the whole event. His consistency is what has given him his two recent titles really.

 

He capitalised on mistakes from Tanak and Neuville or their respective teams to snatch the championship away in 2017 and 2018. As Vesuvius said above, he's not the outright fastest anymore but is still the benchmark championship campaigner because in my opinion he had nowhere near the best car in 2017 and 2018 yet still won through consistency.

 

The same can be said for 2019 so far, not the fastest but he is still well in championship contention and if he can somehow win the championship this year, that will be 3 different teams he's won the championship for, as well as 7 in a row. He is every bit as good as Loeb IMO, and underrated in the motorsport world.



#9 sopa

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 10:41

 I think his career will be seen as just about a little short of as good as Loeb's, but simply the fact he even got into that discussion is extraordinary.

 

I think you could argue Ogier is every bit as good as Loeb. The difference is that simply Ogier won't be around for that long, hence fewer titles.



#10 Myrvold

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 10:47

Please do a translation of OP :)

#11 noikeee

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 10:51

I think you could argue Ogier is every bit as good as Loeb. The difference is that simply Ogier won't be around for that long, hence fewer titles.


I didn't mean in terms of statistics, I think Loeb was the slightly better driver, you could see it when they were teammates, although Ogier was obviously not at his best yet, but I think Ogier has the odd 1 or 2 mistakes extra per season Loeb didn't. Also Loeb was more dominant against his peers whereas Ogier now has Tanak etc.

Still an absolutely incredible driver the same, though.

#12 sopa

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 10:57

I didn't mean in terms of statistics, I think Loeb was the slightly better driver, you could see it when they were teammates, although Ogier was obviously not at his best yet, but I think Ogier has the odd 1 or 2 mistakes extra per season Loeb didn't. Also Loeb was more dominant against his peers whereas Ogier now has Tanak etc.

Still an absolutely incredible driver the same, though.

 

I don't think Loeb was that bullet-proof. He won the 2009 championship barely by a point from Hirvonen, in a season, which included a couple of mistakes. Also I think Tanak is way quicker than someone like Hirvonen, who was Loeb's main rival for a few years after Gronholm's retirement.



#13 Vesuvius

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 11:06

I don't think Loeb was that bullet-proof. He won the 2009 championship barely by a point from Hirvonen, in a season, which included a couple of mistakes. Also I think Tanak is way quicker than someone like Hirvonen, who was Loeb's main rival for a few years after Gronholm's retirement.


Hirvonen in his prime was ok, but definately Tänäk is quicker then he ever was. Grönholm was Loeb's greatest rival and him I rate higher than Tänäk.

Ogier's WRC career isn't that much sorter than Loeb's really. Loeb drove 10 full WRC seasons ( several few race seasons, not as fulltime rallydriver) and this is Ogier's 11th WRC season (2 first were mainly on Citroen junior team, few races on main team).

#14 Shockabuku

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 11:08

Please do a translation of OP :)

 

If you click on the link under the quote, your browser should offer to translate the page that the OP quoted from.



#15 ANF

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 11:17

He's 35. I googled it for you.

#16 Viryfan

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 11:27

Please do a translation of OP :)

 

He is going to mainly focus of family life.

 

Maybe going back to school in economics and try to do his bit for environnement (hence Extreme E).

 

He may do racing at much lighter load than he is doing currently.



#17 Muppetmad

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 11:39

Please do a translation of OP :)

 

When he had announced he had signed a contract for two years (2019-2020) with Citroen in September 2018, Sébastien Ogier had clarified that they were going to be the last of his career, and that he would then stop rallying. The sextuple world champion confirmed this in an interview on Thursday for Yahoo Sport before the beginning of Rally Finland.

 

"My career will end at the end of 2020 with Citroen", he maintained. "Afterwards, I will want to go on to something else. To be at home more, to be the best father possible, to be there more with my son. And [as] for projects elsewhere, many are possible. [Besides] taking up economic studies again, ecology touches me also, even if I have been doing motorsport all these years. I am conscious of the fate of the planet. Golf equally, I began [playing] a little while back, and it's addictive... And then also certainly a bit more motorsport again, but less restricting than today".

 

...my very quick (and in places slightly liberal!) translation.


Edited by Muppetmad, 01 August 2019 - 11:39.


#18 messy

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 13:05

His achievements have been stunning over the years, but I think he’s a fading force now. It seems ridiculous to say that given that he’s actually won the last two WDCs but I think Neuville and Tanak have well and truly got him beat these days and his titles have had a bit of luck about them the last two seasons. Hyundai’s implosions and Toyota’s reliability gremlins, and Ogier comes through the middle with a run of seconds and thirds. Great talent to do that, though. Especially in rallying.

I don’t think history will be as kind to him as it has with Loeb. His dominance is hard to separate from the all-round brilliance of the VW and (again, it probably sounds silly to say it given his world titles in each year) he’s been found out slightly since he left VW - he’s not got the raw pace of some of the others and actually has made quite a few errors in the last year and a bit and has had luck on his side. I think when he joined M-Sport and was quite clearly outpaced by Tanak that was maybe the start of finding out Ogier was human after all.

#19 sopa

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 14:06

I don’t think history will be as kind to him as it has with Loeb. His dominance is hard to separate from the all-round brilliance of the VW and (again, it probably sounds silly to say it given his world titles in each year) he’s been found out slightly since he left VW - he’s not got the raw pace of some of the others and actually has made quite a few errors in the last year and a bit and has had luck on his side. I think when he joined M-Sport and was quite clearly outpaced by Tanak that was maybe the start of finding out Ogier was human after all.

 

On the other hand Ogier left the VW comfort zone, or put it this way - he was forced to leave. Loeb drove the whole of his WRC career in Citroen and never proved himself outside. While to an extent Ogier has been found out outside VW, we don't know, what Loeb could have done outside Citroen.

 

But Ogier was impressive already in Citroen. In 2011 while they were team-mates I think he was just as quick as Loeb. The difference between them in the end was just about one DNF. And this despite Citroen favouring Loeb, which motivated Ogier to leave, essentially take a year off, and join VW.



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#20 Viryfan

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 14:16

On the other hand Ogier left the VW comfort zone, or put it this way - he was forced to leave. Loeb drove the whole of his WRC career in Citroen and never proved himself outside. While to an extent Ogier has been found out outside VW, we don't know, what Loeb could have done outside Citroen.

 

But Ogier was impressive already in Citroen. In 2011 while they were team-mates I think he was just as quick as Loeb. The difference between them in the end was just about one DNF. And this despite Citroen favouring Loeb, which motivated Ogier to leave, essentially take a year off, and join VW.

 

 

Also Ogier became WDC with a real privateer effort which Loeb did not try to adventure (the kronos effort was not a proper privateer effort) .

 

And Ogier might join Juha Kankkunen as becoming WDC with three different brands while Loeb sayed in Citroen with probably one of the best ever engineer in car racing (Xavier Pinon Mastellan who won WRC,WTCC and Formula E as engineer)


Edited by Viryfan, 01 August 2019 - 14:17.


#21 BRG

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 15:16

Once upon a time, rally drivers didn't really reach their best until they were in their mid or late 30s.  Now they are retiring at that age after a dominant career.  The world has been turned upside down.

 

Ogier is extremely good.  Like Loeb, he has the ability to be consistently fast without binning it, and like Loeb, he understands that what matters is being in the lead at the end of the rally, not being heroic on special stage 1.  Unfortunately, he will always be in the shadow of Loeb as the apprentice who succeeded the master. 

 

Maybe if he had followed Loeb's example of saying very little of any consequence, instead of bleating about the running order at every opportunity, he would be more loved.



#22 Myrvold

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 17:31

If you click on the link under the quote, your browser should offer to translate the page that the OP quoted from.


Not on my phone.

#23 Vielleicht

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 17:32

I guess we wil see him in Extreme E.

 

Retiring to me means full stop. End of his motorsport career. It's not retirement if he moves to another series......

 

His Extreme E role at present is ambassador/advisor. I can see him building a second career as a key person in making Extreme E happen, even if not on the driving side.

 

Here's what he had to say when his involvement was announced:

 

“I am delighted to be a part of Extreme E. The championship is truly unique – there is nothing else like it out there – and I am incredibly passionate about what it is setting out to do.

I was at the Goodwood Festival of Speed last week and saw the car for the very first time. It was awesome to finally see it and I can’t wait to get working with the Extreme E team. The car is something special and it will be a privilege from a driver’s point of view to work on its development from such an early stage.The sporting aspect is compelling with Extreme E and the head-to-head format is always thrilling – it’s like what we see with the Special Stages in rallying, which the fans always love. I will be working hand-in-hand with the series’ organisers and partners to make sure we deliver the best experience for the fans and the most engaging challenge for drivers, too. 

With the racing spectacle will come the ability to raise awareness amongst a huge, global audience of the issues that face many environments around the world due to climate change and human interference. I am sure it can be a powerful tool in driving change and behaviours - and that notion is something very close to my heart.”



#24 Silberpfeil

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 19:00

I‘ve warmed quite a bit to Seb in the last couple of years. To win the WDC with M-Sport not once, but twice was and is an amazing achievement, the fact that the titles were perhaps a bit more down to luck and consistency than outright pace notwithstanding. He also held up really, really well on his DTM guest appearance, which came at a time when the Merc cars were struggling with the amended tyre pressure regulations.

He‘s been slightly less bulletproof this year, which I can absolutely believe is mainly down to the C3 being probably the worst car to drive in WRC at the moment. Then again, Tanak would‘ve had about a 50 point lead over everyone else now had the car held up.

All in all, there‘s no question that he‘s one of the all-time greats, and I am looking forward to seeing what he will do once he gets out of the Citroën for the final time at the end of next year.

#25 OvDrone

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 22:25

Also I made this here 5 years ago for a Guess-which-driver-in-MS-Paint thread while having a bit too much wine.

 

Hh0OTYf.png


Edited by OvDrone, 01 August 2019 - 22:26.


#26 Marklar

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Posted 01 August 2019 - 22:29

Should revive that thread in the summer break^  :lol:



#27 William Hunt

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Posted 02 August 2019 - 00:00

So how good is Ogier? I don't follow rallying closely enough to know. On paper his achievements are extraordinary, but it's odd that he followed a period of total Loeb dominance. Is the standard of competition a bit lacking?

 

No the competition is not lacking, he is imho an exceptional talent just like Loeb was extraordinary



#28 V8 Fireworks

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Posted 02 August 2019 - 02:07

Ogier is one of WRC's greats doesn't get much coverage with Autosport and on this forum unfortunately.

 

 

WRC lost it's lustre after change to 1.6L engines and smaller cars.  :well:

 

The changes in 2018 (IIRC) to make the cars faster and more spectacular was most welcome however, but still not enough to restore the media profile WRC used to have.