Arthur Pelamourgues after Monte Carlo: "We didn't expect to achieve such a result."

After your victory in WRC3 last year, you have just achieved a podium finish in WRC2 at Monte Carlo (P3): which of these two performances is the most satisfying in your eyes?

This year's, definitely! Last year was a major discovery, and we honestly thought we couldn't get any better in terms of discovery. It was our first rally en WRC, only the second with the car, I think we achieved a great performance but to be completely honest, we were not sure of the quality of the competition we were facing and therefore, of the true meaning of this performance.

Yet, you had beaten the future WRC3 2025 World Champion Matteo Fontana!

That's true, but this year, on the contrary, we knew from the outset that the level of competition was much higher in WRC2. Therefore, this third place has a special flavor, even if it's hard, frankly, to realize: this performance doesn't reflect at all the objectives we had set for ourselves! We mainly wanted to play it safe, not make any mistakes, rack up the kilometers, and reach the finish line. We certainly didn't think we'd be able to pull off a stage win and get on the podium!

We had to wait until the very end of the rally to find out your final position. Tell us about your experience...

It was quite stressful indeed! The weather conditions alone were enough to keep us on our toes… After each stage, the pressure eased, only to rise again immediately because we knew the next one would be even worse… Once we crossed the finish line of the penultimate stage, we saw marks on the ground and knew they weren't from a Rally1 car, because we would have known that before the start with the live broadcasts. Further on, I saw Eric Camilli and Thibault de la Haye stopped, but we didn't know they had a problem. We arrived at the regrouping point, and there, they explained that we would be starting first in the Power Stage!

How did you manage this last-minute stress?

Things escalated quickly. Since we were initially supposed to start an hour later, our course openers, Germain Bonnefis and Bastien Dumas, hadn't been able to anticipate it. I called Germain and asked for clear instructions to ensure at least a two-minute buffer. But as we were leaving the regrouping area, we ran into Eric and Thibault, who were going to be able to check in on time. Since they were going to start the stage an hour later than us, we quickly did the math and realized that, on a normal basis, it would be impossible to hold them off: the conditions they were going to encounter would certainly be much more favorable than ours. But we also thought that their car might be damaged: therefore, and in any case, we had to run a clean and focused stage so we wouldn't have any regrets. Which we managed to do, while also pushing a bit on the descent towards Moulinet. Even Bastien Pouget, next to me, was stressed, something that never usually happens!

Before that, you experienced intense heat during the rally and you were able to count on Anthony Puppo's support to get going again.

Before the rally, Jérémy Brissiaud, the boss of Fun Meca Sport, had called Anthony Puppo, who also has a Hyundai i20N Rally2, asking if we could possibly call on him during the weekend if needed. Anthony lives nearby, he agreed… but we didn't expect it would be to ask him to lend us a door! I especially regret my reaction after that heatwave: I pushed so hard that we lost three minutes in the next three stages. Infuriating, considering we finished four minutes behind Léo Rossel… At least we have a story to tell about the door bearing Anthony's car livery! Thanks again to him for his quick response.

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Specifically, what feedback have you received from Hyundai regarding this performance?

So far, there's no concrete feedback, but discussions have already begun. I have no doubt it will happen, as that was precisely the plan with Hyundai Customer Racing. It was already fantastic to be observed during this rally; it put a bit of pressure on us, but that's part of the game. I think, or at least I hope, that our performance has piqued their interest: we'll see where all this leads.

Ideally, can we expect you to compete this season at least in the events you already participated in last year in WRC3?

It's still very unclear. Just being able to start the Monte Carlo Rally was already quite an achievement for us… Ideally, we'd love to return to the rallies we already know while also discovering new ones, and of course, in WRC2. We could also consider some French Cup rallies… We don't know any more at the moment and we hope things will become clearer soon.