Sebastien Loeb began his defence of his World Rally Championship crown in the best possible fashion with a convincing victory in the opening rally of the 2005 season in Monte Carlo. This was Sebastien’s third successive win in Monte Carlo and he achieved the hat-trick in style, leading from the start in his Citroen, and continuing his impressive form from last season.

He beat Ford’s Toni Gardemeister, who recorded a career-best result after Finnish compatriot Marcus Gronholm crashed. This was the perfect rally for us," Sebastien said after the victory. “Very much like last year. It was a very tricky event, lots of drivers made mistakes, but fortunately we didn't and it is very motivating to start the year with 10 points." - 23 January 2005