Adrien Fourmaux would relish the opportunity to work with countryman Sébastien Loeb should he sign for M-Sport Ford in the World Rally Championship next season.
Neither Fourmaux nor Loeb have been confirmed as M-Sport drivers, but Fourmaux is understood to be remaining with the team while Loeb is also expected to appear on select rounds of the 2022 season in a Puma Rally1 Hybrid.
Fourmaux admitted to DirtFish that he “doesn’t know” if Loeb has a deal for next season, but he hopes the nine-time world champion does join him at M-Sport as he’s sure Loeb can “bring some interesting things for the team and for me”.
“I’ll try to be close to him just to have his experience and his feeling with the car and how to be the fastest,” Fourmaux said.
“It’s not only on the stages, we have a lot of work to do outside. And it would be interesting to work with him.”
Fourmaux has called upon Loeb’s expertise before, albeit not when they were both competing. Ahead of this year’s Safari Rally Kenya – where Fourmaux achieved a career-best result of fifth and scored M-Sport’s only stage win of 2021 – Fourmaux called Loeb for some advice on how to tackle the event.
“We are on the phone sometimes, so it’s quite good, it’s interesting,” he said.
“[The] first time I called him really was in Kenya, because he did Kenya before and I asked him what was his advice for the rally.
“It was all these types of things where I’m like ‘heya, can you just give me all the information’. So we started that, and on the rallies also.
“For sure he has a lot of experience and can help just for the set-up of the car and to know what direction we need for Monte so it’s definitely a good thing if he’s coming.”
If Loeb does enter the Monte Carlo Rally as expected, he will do so with Isobelle Galmiche alongside him as his previous co-driver Daniel Elena announced his retirement from the WRC on Sunday – bringing an official end to the partnership that won nine titles and 79 world rallies.
Loeb tested M-Sport’s Puma for the second time last week with Garniche, who he had previously teamed up with for tests during his Citroën days. Fourmaux and M-Sport’s two confirmed drivers Craig Breen and Gus Greensmith were also at the test.
Asked recently by DirtFish if talks with Loeb have progressed, M-Sport team principal Richard Millener said “there’s plenty of talks but not much to talk about at the moment”.
“I think it’s something we’re still working on obviously, but unfortunately, [we are] not at the minute in a position to say anything official about it,” he added.
