M-Sport title changed perceptions of me

Los Angeles : Sebastien Ogier says winning the 2017 World Rally Championship title with privateer outfit M-Sport has brought him more recognition than any of the four crowns he scored with Volkswagen Motorsport.

Though Ogier underlined that all five of his WRC titles meant an equal amount to him personally, he said the underdog nature of his 2017 achievement had prompted a different reaction to his VW successes.

“It’s very satisfying to be able to win in this condition,” said Ogier.

“You never achieve these things alone, you need a big team around you.

“Often people think it’s easy to win with the best team. It’s not easy even if you have the best car and the best team, you still have to do your job.

“But it’s even harder if you start with the smallest team and the smallest budget.

“That makes the challenge even bigger so I guess we got more recognition winning this way and that makes it very satisfying.”