Sébastien Loeb, Daniel Elena and the Citroën Total World Rally Team extended their unbeaten run since the start of the 2009 World Rally Championship by securing their fourth win from four – and their 51st world class success – today in Portugal.

Dani Sordo and Marc Marti were also on form in the Algarve where they notched up their second podium finish of the year to put Citroën further clear at the top of the provisional Manufacturers' standings.

Following two relatively long legs on Friday and Saturday, the third and final day of the 2009 Rally de Portugal was much shorter and featured two visits to a loop of two stages near Loulé. It then finished in the same way as the event had started, with the closing super-special in the Estadio Algarve.

In spite of the handicap of running first on the road, Sébastien Loeb and Daniel Elena kicked off Sunday's action with two fastest times: "We were in the same situation as we had been on Day 1.

Even so, despite having to sweep a clearer line through the dust for Mikko [Hirvonen], we were a little bit faster than him. Yesterday, when he was having to do all the roadsweeping, we were much quicker. If you take all that into account, it suggests that we had the edge in identical conditions. That's a very promising pointer for the next few rallies, but we've still got the job in hand to finish off first…"

Dani Sordo and Marc Marti had to contend with the problem of hanging dust but were still third: "Today isn't much fun for us because we've got little to gain and potentially everything to lose!

Even with the cars starting every two minutes, the dust just isn't clearing. We also suffered from dust getting in our C4 after the sill was slightly damaged by a stone. The sun was very low this morning, too, so we really weren't able to see much and I took special care not to make a mistake…"

After the 30-minute service halt, the two Citroën C4 WRC crews returned to the undulating Algarve hills for a second attempt at the same two stages. The overriding aim of Sébastien Loeb and Dani Sordo was to hold on to their respective positions, which saw them drive defensively, even if that meant dropping a handful of seconds.

The two Citroën drivers were then the stars of the show on the final test in front of an enthusiastic, packed-house crowd at the Estadio Algarve where Sébastien and Dani respectively got the better of Mikko Hirvonen and Petter Solberg.

"Today's result takes our score to four wins from four rounds, which is the best start to a season we have ever made," remarked Sébastien Loeb after the podium ceremony. "As ever, it wasn't an easy weekend.

We made a small error on Day 1 which forced us to push hard to make up for lost ground, but the second leg went perfectly for us and we were able to control from in front this morning.

It's good that Ford chose not to play a tactical game on Friday afternoon. We preferred to play it straight on Saturday, too, and it's nice to have won that way."

Dani Sordo finished in third place and was happy to have mixed it with the front-runners over the three-day event: "As soon as it became clear that I wouldn't be able to catch Mikko today, I decided not to take any risks. I felt very comfortable with my car throughout the rally, and that's a good omen for the rounds which come next."

Rally de Portugal (April 2-5, 2009) Results

1.  S Loeb/D Elena                         FRA              Citroen C4                3hr 53min 13.1sec
2.  M Hirvonen/J Lehtinen                 FIN               Ford Focus RS         3hr 53min 37.4sec
3.  D Sordo/M Marti                         ESP             Citroen C4                3hr 54min 58.5sec
4.  P Solberg/P Mills                       NOR             Citroen Xsara             3hr 55min 57.7sec
5.  H Solberg/C Menkerud                NOR             Ford Focus RS          3hr 58min 59.4sec
6.  M Østberg/O Unnerud                 NOR             Subaru Impreza         3hr 59min 33.9sec
7.  F Villagra/J Diaz                         ARG             Ford Focus RS          4hr 06min 12.6sec
8.  K Al Qassimi/M Orr                    UAE              Ford Focus RS          4hr 11min 34.8sec
9.  A Araújo/M Ramalho                  POR              Mitsubishi Lancer       4hr 15min 31.6sec
10 M Prokop/J Tománek                  CZE              Mitsubishi Lancer       4hr 16min 38.7sec

Drivers                                                
1.  S Loeb                        40pts                
2.  M Hirvonen                   30pts                
3.  D Sordo                       23pts                
4.  P Solberg                     14pts                
5.  H Solberg                     14pts                
6.  M Wilson                        8pts       

Manufacturers  
1.  Citroen Total                      64pts
2.  BP Ford Abu Dhabi            40pts
3.  Stobart VK M-Sport Ford    27pts
4.  Citroen Junior                    11pts       
5.  Munchi's Ford                   7pts