MOTOR racing chief Max Mosley has insisted Citroen will not be punished for turning the World Rally Championship finale into an anti-climax by telling Sebastien Loeb to back off.

Mosley - president of the sport's governing body, the FIA - claims the situation is not the same as in Formula One where team orders are banned.

Loeb's hopes of winning the drivers' crown were hit after he was told not to take too many risks in his battle with Subaru's Petter Solberg on the Wales Rally GB because the French car company wanted to be sure of winning the manufacturers' title.

But Mosley, on a flying visit to South Wales at the weekend, said: "It is not the ideal, but there are two competitions going on. They can win the one but not the other, so it's their decision.

"Even if we didn't like it we couldn't do anything about it, but it has taken something away from the rally. It has made it an anti-climax.

"But there is no analogy with F1. It is one manufacturer against another in a clear situation, and you can't object to that. All they told Loeb is to make jolly sure nothing happens to you.

"If he gets the chance to win the rally they will allow him to do so - but they want to make sure he finishes. That's not quite the same as one or two things we have seen in F1."

Solberg trails Loeb by one point but looks on course to grab the victory he needs tomorrow to claim his first drivers' title.

The Norwegian anyway insists Citroen boss Guy Frequelin, whose team lead Peugeot by five points, was playing mind games when he said Loeb had been told to back off yesterday after team-mate Carlos Sainz crashed out.

Sainz was also in title contention, although the rare prospect of a four-man shoot-out was scuppered when Britain's Richard Burns was ordered to miss the rally after collapsing at the wheel of his Porsche before the event.

"It is very unfortunate that one week ago we had four people capable of winning the championship but we lost one of them for medical reasons and another for something completely unrelated," added Mosley.

"You only get that situation once every 20 years going into the last rally.

"A lot of people say the new points system is unfair because you can win the championship without winning a rally. That is a perfectly valid criticism, but the other issue is it makes it more probable that you go to the last race like we did in F1."

Burns has not won a rally this year compared to the three enjoyed by Loeb and Solberg but he was still in contention because of his consistent podium finishes. Second place earns eight points now instead of six.