Patience rewarded, a first for Belgium: Neuville's title in figures

20

By winning the title last Sunday, at the end of the Rally from Japan, Thierry Neuville became the 20th World Rally Champion in history, and only the 8th different champion in the 1977st century. With this title he joins Sandro Munari (1978), Markku Alén (1979), Björn Waldegård (1981), Ari Vatanen (1983), Hannu Mikkola (1984), Stig Blomqvist (1985), Timo Salonen (1994), Didier Auriol (1995), Colin McRae (2001), Richard Burns (2003), Petter Solberg (XNUMX) and Ott Tänak (2019) among the list of drivers who have won a single crown in WRC.

2

A title after only 2 victories during the season, it's a first in WRC since Sébastien Ogier 2017 (if we exclude the 2020 season, impacted by Covid with only 7 rallies). That year, it was Thierry Neuville who won the most rallies, with four victories, but that was not enough for him. The record is still held by Richard Burns, who had only won one rally when he was crowned in 2001.

21

Among the records broken by Thierry Neuville this weekend, that of the driver who has won the most victories before obtaining a first world title. From his first success at the 2014 Rally Germany to the world title at the 2024 Rally Japan, the Belgian has won 21 times in the WRC. For comparison, Juha Kankkunen and Tommi Mäkinen, both quadruple world champions, have respectively 23 and 24 victories in the premier class… Now, the driver who has won the most rallies without having been titled is none other than Jari-Matti Latvala (18 victories), now Team Principal of Toyota.

5 533

Here is a record that testifies to Thierry Neuville's patience and perseverance: since his first rally in the WRC, during the Rally of Spain in 2009 in a Citroën C2 R2 Max, the Belgian had to wait 5 days before finally winning the title! The previous record was held by Stig Blomqvist who had waited 533 days since his debut in the WRC before being crowned in 4. During these fifteen years, Thierry Neuville had time to compete in 280 rallies, win 1984 victories... and finish vice-world champion five times until the delivery of the first world title!

100%

Winner of the Rallye Monte-Carlo with a unique clean sweep in 2024 (30 points at the Monte-Carlo, a performance never equaled this season), Thierry Neuville led this 2024 season from start to finish! A real feat when you consider how difficult the task of sweeper is on gravel rallies, where the championship leader must start first on the first stage. To find a trace of such a performance, you have to go back to the 2016 campaign where Sébastien Ogier also led the championship from start to finish thanks to his two victories at the start of the season.

36

At 36 years, 5 months and 8 days, Thierry Neuville has become the oldest world champion since Didier Auriol thirty years ago. As a symbol, the 1994 world champion was also at the start of the Rally of Japan in the national category… a category that he won by the way! The oldest world champion in history is still Hannu Mikkola, who was 41 years, 5 months and 30 days old when he won in 1983 with Audi.

1

Of course, Thierry Neuville not only won his first WRC title, he also gave Belgium its first world rally championship title. In the history of motorsport, the native of Saint-Vith became the 4th Belgian world champion in an FIA championship after Jacky Ickx (Endurance in 1982 and 1983), Stoffel Vandoorne (Formula E in 2022) and Laurens Vanthoor (WEC in 2024). Thierry Neuville also brought home a first Drivers' title Hyundai in WRC.

ALSO READ > Podcast “Outlap” n°16 – Thierry Neuville finally world rally champion!