However, the Finnish driver insisted this is not the case and explained the leading position was partially lost due to his tires, which suffered a higher wear than the Citroen's.
“My rear tires are completely finished - I tried really hard,” he said. “We had a lot more tire wear than the Citroens. I’m missing lots of studs. This is definitely not what I wanted to do. Now we have a lot to make up. It’s going to be a big fight tomorrow.”
Sebastien Loeb refused to comment the speculations but admitted that starting second might represent a minor advantage during the current track conditions.
“It’s really good fun to drive like this,” said the Citroen Total team leader. “I pushed really hard, took some risks sometimes, but we’re here okay and in a good position for tomorrow. If I had a choice I would prefer to be second on the road but I really don’t think it will make a big difference.”
BP Ford Abu Dhabi Team Focus RS WRC driver arrived third, 23.6 seconds behind Hirvonen, being followed by Loeb’s team-mate Dani Sordo. After an enthusiastic start in his eight-year-old Xsara, Petter Solberg came only fifth, 22.9sec behind Sordo.
"We had a good morning and things were fine on the first stage this afternoon but I was the only car to take just one spare and that turned out to be a very stupid decision!” he said. “We lost a lot of studs. It’s unfortunate but that’s how it is - we will keep pushing.”
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