Citroen's Sebastien Loeb has a lead of 27 seconds in the Rally of Spain over his teammate Dani Sordo, and 1.04.6 over his championship rival Mikko Hirvonen ahead of today's final stages.
Citroen's Sebastien Loeb has a lead of 27 seconds in the Rally of Spain over his teammate Dani Sordo, and 1.04.6 over his championship rival Mikko Hirvonen ahead of today's final stages.

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Hirvonen's hopes slip as Loeb dominates

Mikko Hirvonen is facing falling further behind in the world championship standings as he will start the final stages of the Rally of Spain from fourth place.

Graham Caygill

October 04, 2008

Mikko Hirvonen is facing falling further behind in the world championship standings as he will start today's final stages of the Rally of Spain from fourth place. The BP-Ford Abu Dhabi driver lost more time to the championship leader Sebastien Loeb and the Finn will have to make up 1min 04.6secs on the Citroen driver if he is to close the eight point advantage. that the German currently has on him.

Realistically Hirvonen is going to lose at least another four points in the title race unless Loeb suffers problems in today's final six stages on the tarmac event and will face having to turn around a double-figure points deficit in the final three rallies of the season. Loeb's teammate Dani Sordo is second, 27 seconds adrift, while the second Ford of Francois Duval is third and 13.2secs ahead of Hirvonen, although the Belgian will almost certainly cede position at some stage today to help the Finn's championship hopes.

Hirvonen has pushed hard on an event Ford were always expected to struggle on, and he admitted that he was frustrated to have lost more time to the Citroen drivers. "We changed the rear differential in service this morning which brought an improvement on the high-speed sections, but it also made the car more difficult to drive." he said. "I have more pace and my times are closer to Loeb and Sordo, but I don't have the killer feeling that I need to challenge because I'm not 100 per cent confident."

Duval said of his day: "The roads twist more today and I like that, so I think that's why my times are closer to Sordo than they were yesterday. The car still feels good, although there is small under-steer in long corners. It was a day of recovery for third driver, Sheikh Khalid Al Qassimi. After a heavy spin and crash into a ditch during Friday's stage six, the Emirati suffered severe damage to his rear differential. Despite having completed the day's competitive action, Qassimi was forced to retire, incurring a 10-minute SupeRally time penalty.

Qassimi moved up from 42nd at the start of yesterday's stages to be 27th going into today's stages. @Email:gcaygill@thenational.ae

The White Lotus: Season three

Creator: Mike White

Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell

Rating: 4.5/5

Going grey? A stylist's advice

If you’re going to go grey, a great style, well-cared for hair (in a sleek, classy style, like a bob), and a young spirit and attitude go a long way, says Maria Dowling, founder of the Maria Dowling Salon in Dubai.
It’s easier to go grey from a lighter colour, so you may want to do that first. And this is the time to try a shorter style, she advises. Then a stylist can introduce highlights, start lightening up the roots, and let it fade out. Once it’s entirely grey, a purple shampoo will prevent yellowing.
“Get professional help – there’s no other way to go around it,” she says. “And don’t just let it grow out because that looks really bad. Put effort into it: properly condition, straighten, get regular trims, make sure it’s glossy.”

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