Sordo “: To speak of disappointment would be an understatement”

Hyundai was fighting for victory in Rally of Catalonia with Dani Sordo who occupied second place, 14 seconds behind Kris Meeke (Citroën). The Spaniard saw his hopes of success at home dashed when he retired on SS12 after hitting a stone which damaged the steering of his i20 WRC.

“To speak of disappointment would be an understatement, recognizes Dani Sordo. We rode well and were on our way to a podium this weekend. I felt confident and fast after climbing to second place. But we hit a stone on SS12, which ended our day. I was totally surprised and the impact was significant enough to damage the wheel and suspension. We will try to get back into the rhythm tomorrow but we know we could have had a very good result here. »

The misfortunes would continue for Hyundai Motorsport as Andreas Mikkelsen also dismounted after hitting the same stone as his teammate. The Norwegian had slipped to sixth place after being in the lead during the first stage held on gravel.

“This day was a learning experience for us, but we clearly didn't want to end it this way, comments the Norwegian. The first pass was difficult. I was hoping to find a good pace but I suffered from significant understeer. However, asphalt requires a very precise approach and I am not yet well accustomed to the i20 WRC to get its full potential. It’s encouraging to have been able to move within a few seconds of the leaders on the first asphalt stages. We tried to make progress this afternoon, but we hit the same rock as Dani on SS12, which damaged the car and forced us to stop. We will continue learning tomorrow. »

Mikkelsen and Sordo with broken steering in SS12 #WRC @RallyRACC pic.twitter.com/tQUHqaQHyV

— WRC (@OfficialWRC) 7th October, 2017

This disappointment is a hard blow for Hyundai which sees M-Sport get a little closer to the Constructors title.

“It’s a really bad day, what more can we say? admits Team Principal Michel Nandan. Luck was not on our side. It started with problems with Thierry's car (Neuville) this morning and it ended in SS12 with the retirements of Dani and Andreas. It seems they hit the same stone that was hidden behind a bush on a bend. »

Hyundai can still pin its hopes on Thierry Neuville, but the Belgian lost time this morning following a hydraulic problem dropping him to eighth place before he was able to move up to fifth position at the end of the day.

“Thierry's problem was due to the breakage of a hydraulic pressure pipe leaving him without paddles and without a central differential. He didn't lose much time in the stage, but he clocked in late after trying to identify the problem. We know that anything can happen on the last day, especially without assistance. We’re going to keep putting the pressure on.”, assured Michel Nandan.