Hyundai Motorsport has
scored a fantastic
podium with Thierry Neuville/Nicolas Gilsoul finishing second and playing a
key part in an exhilarating battle for Rally Sweden victory - Hayden
Paddon has secured his best ever WRC result with fifth place in the #8
Hyundai i20 - WRC, in his first of 12 events with the team in 2015, taking 10 Manufacturer points - Kevin
Abbring completed his debut event in the #20 Hyundai i20 WRC,
finishing just outside of the top ten in
11th, and scoring a Manufacturer point for Hyundai Motorsport N.
The Hyundai Motorsport team will step onto the WRC podium for the fourth time in its short history
as Thierry Neuville (#7 Hyundai i20 WRC) stormed to second place in
Rally Sweden, round two of the FIA World
Rally Championship.
The result sees Hyundai Motorsport consolidate second in the
Manufacturers’ Championship with 55
points, while Neuville also took two
Power Stage points for finishing
second in the final stage of the rally.
He resides second in the Drivers’ Championship
on 30 points.
The team has been in the thick of the action
from the outset of the 21-stage
rally, with Neuville firmly among
the pace setters all weekend. The
victory fight went right down the final Power Stage with 4.6 seconds
separating the trio of contenders heading into the last 15.87km stage.
Neuville took the
first stage win of the season for the team on Friday and was placed second at the end of the opening
day. He then added a further two stages wins in Saturday’s SS15
(Fredriksberg 18.15km) and
SS18 (Vargåsen) to sensationally take the lead as the penultimate day came
to an end. In Saturday’s final
stage, he also jumped 44m to break the
legendary Colin’s Crest Award record. The Belgian adopted a measured approach
to Sunday morning’s stages to ensure he
kept fully in the hunt for the victory
right to the end, and the runner-up position was
well deserved.
Neuville said:
“What a rally this has been! We have not had such a close battle for the
victory for a long time and it has been
great to be a part of such a thrilling finale. Nobody really expected us to be challenging for the
win here, so it has been a brilliant
performance. Of course, I pushed hard to
get the win, taking quite a few risks, and I
could honestly not have done
more. A second place is still a very
nice result for me and for everyone in the team, who have worked hard.”
Hayden Paddon
(#8 Hyundai i20 WRC) has had a
strong start to his second season as part
of the Hyundai Motorsport
line-up. Fifth place is the New Zealander’s best result in the World Rally
Championship, one place higher than his
previous best with the team (2014 Rally
Australia). Alongside co-driver John Kennard, Paddon has adapted his driving style this weekend to
suit the characteristics of the #8
Hyundai i20 WRC and the unique challenges posed by the wintry Swedish stages. His fifth place secures
10 manufacturer points as part of the Hyundai Shell World Rally Team.
Paddon commented:
“It’s been a good rally for us overall
and very important to gain the experience in these demanding winter conditions.
After finishing Friday’s stages in sixth overall, we’ve looked at cementing
that position and building up a buffer. We have had to work a lot on adapting
the driving style to the set-up of the car and to the special requirements of
these stages. I am pleased with how
we have tackled this rally
and the
improvements we’ve made.
We’ve definitely had
some good
moments – as well as
some struggles – but to finish in the
top five is a really good result and
scores some important points for the team in the Manufacturer’s Championship. I think we’ve
achieved all we could and it’s definitely a good base on which to build for Mexico.”
Rally Sweden
weekend has been a valuable learning curve for Kevin Abbring (#20 Hyundai i20 WRC) as he acclimatised to the
#20 Hyundai i20 WRC car,
and the rigours of
a full World Rally
event. Scoring 11th in his debut event for the Hyundai Mobis World Rally Team is a great result for the
young Dutchman. The added complication of
Sweden’s unforgiving snowy and
icy conditions means that Abbring and his British co-driver
Seb Marshall can reflect on a highly
positive event overall.
Kevin Abbring
said: “This is an event I certainly
won’t forget in a hurry and I am really
happy to have finished my first
event in the Hyundai i20 WRC. It
has been an incredible
experience and a real privilege to
have tackled these tough Rally
Sweden stages. They
definitely demand respect. I
have built my confidence
throughout the weekend and
thoroughly enjoyed myself.
We’ve had a few
moments, which is to be expected in our
first event on these conditions, and we lacked rhythm in the pace notes in
places, but there are so many positives to take away.
The team has been exceptional and have helped me and Seb to find our
feet quickly. I can’t wait to get back
behind the wheel of the car in my next WRC event.”
For the Hyundai Motorsport team, Rally Sweden has been an
excellent event with competitive performances from all three cars. The progress made by the team compared to the same event one year ago is testament to the hard work
put in by the entire team, both
at the rally and back at the team’s
Alzenau factory. Today’s second place
marks the fourth WRC event with a
podium (Mexico, Poland and Germany 2014)
and the first event of
the season with a three-car
finish. The team can also reflect on three stage wins this weekend,
as well as leading the rally, all of which makes for an event to remember!
Team Principal
Michel Nandan commented: “This podium is
a great result for
everyone at Hyundai Motorsport. Our performance level has been
encouraging although, at the same time, it is important for us to recognise
that there is still a lot of work to do. Thierry has been on exceptional pace
this weekend and this
second place has been
very well earned.
Obviously, we benefitted
from the misfortune of Andreas in
the Power Stage but that is not to take anything away from Thierry’s
performance, which was superb. We’ve
been in the mix all weekend and to be
part of a spectacular finale is very
special. A podium, two Power
Stage points and second
place in both Manufacturers’ and Drivers’ Championships
makes for very nice reading!
“Hayden has also
registered his first top
five finish with the team – in
his first WRC event of the season – a
highly commendable result. Kevin has
also exceeded our expectations here with a mature rally. He has kept his head
down, worked hard and delivered a classified finish just outside of the top
ten. I would like to extend a huge
thanks to the entire team – both in
Sweden and back at Alzenau. It’s not been a straightforward rally and they have shown
an immense professionalism of
which we can all be very proud.”
Overall
Classification after Day Three
1. S. Ogier / J.
Ingrassia (Volkswagen Polo R WRC)
2. T. Neuville / N. Gilsoul (Hyundai i20 WRC) +6.4
3. A. Mikkelsen / O. Floene (Volkswagen Polo R WRC) 39.8
4. O. Tanak / R. Molder (Ford Fiesta RS WRC) +2:26.0
5. H. Paddon / J.
Kennard (Hyundai i20 WRC) +3:31.5
6. E. Evans / D. Barritt (Ford Fiesta RS WRC) +3:53.0
7. K. Meeke / P. Nagle (Citroën DS3 WRC) +4:05.8
8. M. Prokop / J.
Tomanek (Ford Fiesta RS WRC) +4:26.0
9. Y. Protasov / P. Cherepin (Ford Fiesta RS WRC) +5:32.2
10. M. Østberg / J.
Andersson (Citroën DS3 WRC) +6:50.9
11. K. Abbring / S.
Marshall (Hyundai i20 WRC) +7:55.6
2015 FIA World Rally Championship for Drivers’
Standings
S. Ogier 53 points /
T. Neuville 30 / A. Mikkelsen 30 / J.M. Latvala 19 / M. Østberg 14 / E. Evans
14 / O. Tanak 12 / H. Paddon 10 / K.
Meeke 10 / D. Sordo 8 / M. Prokop 6 / S. Loeb 6 / K. Abbring 1
2015 FIA World Rally Championship for Manufacturers’
Standings
Volkswagen Motorsport 68 points / Hyundai Motorsport 55 /
M-Sport World Rally Team 32 / Citroën
Total Abu Dhabi World
Rally Team 20 / Volkswagen
Motorsport II 15 / Jipocar
Czech National Team 10 / Hyundai Motorsport N 1 / FWRT SRL 1
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