BIRKENFELD, August 16, 2008 (AFP) - Frenchman Sebastien Loeb was in cruise control on the second day of the Rally of Germany here Saturday, opening up a massive 50-second overall lead over championship rival Mikko Hirvonen.

Loeb, in a Citroen C4, was dominant in the 10th stage, a difficult run through a military zone, beating second-place team-mate Dani Sordo by over three seconds.

'It was a clean run, I pushed at the start but in the middle I eased off because I didn?t want to take too many risks,' said Loeb, unbeaten on this course since 2002.

'Overall, the morning has been fine: the car is perfect, I have a good rhythm - it?s going okay.'

But it was disappointment for Hirvonen, whose Ford Focus could not keep up with the high-flying Citroens on the day, as the Finn trailed home in third, 11.6secs off the leader.

The result means Hirvonen, who holds a delicate one-point lead over the Frenchman in the championship, drops to 50.3 seconds overall behind Loeb - seriously denting his chances of winning the race.

'It?s not so good,' said Hirvonen. 'It felt okay, but we lost a lot of time and I don?t know where.'

Spaniard Sordo, fourth in the drivers' standings, was happy with the performance of his car and the two top spots for Citroen.

'The car feels much better than it did yesterday, it?s my car again now,' he said. 'Seb is a long way ahead, but for me keeping Mikko behind is the most important job. It?s important for the championship.'