It was around 11pm Saturday evening when Freddy Loix slowly drove his Peugeot 207 S2000 up the ramp and towards the podium of the Belgium Ypres Westhoek Rally. The Belgian accomplished a fifth victory at his home event, thereby establishing a brand new record.

"This victory, I wanted it more than ever," Loix said. "Maybe as a form of revenge on the bad luck that disturbed my first two IRC participations this year, but mostly to thank the kids who gave me so much fun as I drove for two days at the wheel of a car bearing a joyous and enthusiastic livery."

Starting a rally with a strange-looking car was already an event in itself; that the car delivered a perfect race result made it unique.

The idea behind the look came from the Peugeot Belgium-Luxemburg Team itself, when it asked Belgian schoolkids aged 8 to 12 to enter a contest with the purpose of decorating the 207 S2000 trusted to Freddy Loix and co-driver Robin Buysmans for Rally Ypres.

Over 750 entries came in, and a different design was chosen for each side of the car. On the eve of the start, the team invited both winners – and their classmates – to come and see the real-life result of their work.

"At first, I was a bit skeptical," admitted Loix. "But when I saw the beauty of the car, the variety and the quality of the hundreds of drawings that came in, and even better, the joy that emanated from all these kids' faces, I said to myself 'I can't lose.'"

"Firstly, I couldn't afford to damage their work by going off-road. Additionally, I absolutely had to win," he had decided. "It was a question of respecting their work... and rewarding them."

Friday, the Belgian driver set the multicolored car at the top of the standings right from the outset, and never left the top spot.

"I had to hit hard right from the start," said Loix. "I built a gap as quickly as I could and when I could afford to, I managed my lead. For me, it really was a perfect race."

Still thinking of the kids, Freddy Loix could not help but speak of their effect on him over the course of the event.

"It's one of the best days of my life," he frankly declared. "The kids brought me serenity."

"I dedicate my victory to the hundreds of schoolchildren across all of Belgium who participated in the contest... and to the thousands of kids who supported me on each route of the rally."