Loeb to start Rally of Great Britain in 3rd spot

Eight-time world champion Sebastien Loeb has chosen to start third in the Rally of Great Britain which begins Friday, after finishing fastest in qualifying on Thursday. The 38-year-old Frenchman is coming off victory in the ninth round in Germany last month, and has a commanding 54-point lead over Finnish teammate Mikko Hirvonen who starts his weekend in second spot. Germany's Thierry Neuville opens the day's action in the third Citroen. Norway's Petter Solberg, who has picked up three victories in Wales, and lies third in the overall rankings, albeit 95 points behind Loeb, will start fourth in his Ford. The race, which is mostly run over gravel roads, is expected to be affected by overnight rain which convinced Loeb to choose an early starting position. "There might be a little bit of rain but not so much. When it's raining it's a lot better to be in front. If it's drier then it's not good to be first so we have chosen third," he told www.wrc.com. "We don't always have the perfect weather information but I don't think it will be cleaning so much." Solberg, who was second quickest, opted to take the number four slot in order to keep an eye of his long-time rival. "For sure I was covering what Sebastien was doing. I was thinking he would take number two and I would be number three but when he went three I thought maybe I would go one or two back. I want to beat him, he will be the fastest and that's why I chose number four so I am right behind him". There are only three events left after the Rally of Great Britain as the 2012 season winds down with races in France, Italy and Spain.