“The tide has turned” for Hyundai in Türkiye

Thierry Neuville lost big Rally from Türkiye. While he was leading the event at the start of the second stage while battling with Sébastien Ogier (M-Sport), the championship leader retired after the first special of the day, victim of a broken front left suspension.

“I'm devastated that I had to give up today, recognizes the pilot Hyundai. We started the day with a positive mindset, but I felt like I had a flat tire 8km from the end of the first run. The car was becoming slow to turn. The hood suddenly started moving and the shock absorber went through it. We knew then that we had big problems. We finished the stage and tried to repair the car, but we couldn't continue. »

In his misfortune, Thierry Neuville saw his direct rival Sébastien Ogier also dismount after going off the road in SS11. But it is now Ott Tänak (Toyota) who could constitute the biggest threat for the Belgian if the Estonian signs a 3rd consecutive victory now that he is in control of the rally.

“I'm really disappointed but that's part of the game and the rally, especially in conditions like the ones we had today. All we can do is come back on Sunday with the aim of scoring as many points as possible in the Power Stage.", adds the vice-champion.

His teammate Andreas Mikkelsen also suffered as he lost the lead in the race following a differential problem which dropped him to a distant 5th place.

“It goes without saying that we are very disappointed, comments the Norwegian who was hoping to secure his first victory since the 2016 Rally Australia. We had built a solid lead before the break and I felt like I had things under control. We almost immediately felt that there was a problem with the front-right transmission at the start of SS11. We knew that it would no longer be possible to fight for the lead of the race with only rear-wheel drive. We can still hope to bring important points back to the team. That said, I really think we could have won this event. »

Hayden Paddon is the only survivor of the Hyundai clan. The New Zealander is in 3rd place behind the Toyotas of Ott Tänak and Jari-Matti Latvala and is aiming for his first podium of the season.

“The tide has turned, that’s for sure, declares Michel Nandan, Team Principal of Hyundai Motorsport. Having two crews lose outposts due to technical issues is more than a human can handle in a day. We console ourselves with Hayden’s 3rd place. Who knows what can still happen with 4 more stages to go, including the Power Stage? »