Will Ott Tänak leave Hyundai for M-Sport?

When he led Hyundai Motorsport, Andrea Adamo had been smart. As early as March 2021, he had signed long-term contracts with Ott Tänak et Thierry Neuville. The Italian had thus secured the services of his two big names to prepare the transition to hybrid. However, things did not go as planned. The Turinese was forced to take a step back, the development of the i20 Rally1 stalled and the organization was slow to get set up. The crews operating the Korean have experienced a lot of difficulties since January and the recent victory of the Estonian in Finland cannot make us forget the work that the team must accomplish on the car, but also internally.

In this atmosphere and while the prospects for improvement are uncertain, the idea that Ott Tänak could leave this rocking ship has grown in Jyväskylä. If he has a contract, the pilot has undoubtedly arranged means of exit in order to protect himself from any unpleasant surprises, particularly in terms of results. Seeing it change colors would not be surprising.

Tänak, the return home?

World champion in 2019 with Toyota, hadn't the Baltic slammed the door to join Hyundai? With hindsight, the relevance of this choice still raises questions, but the way in which Ott stubbornly refuses to broach the subject is worth more than a long speech. Is he ready to turn everything upside down again? Condemned to immobility by the absence of a seat, the theme of the transfer market promised to be treated in 2 lines announcing a status quo for 2023. Will the Baltic dynamite everything? Having maintained very good relations with Malcolm Wilson since his Fiesta period, will Ott join M-Sport ? Does he lack enough confidence in Hyundai's long-term project to decide to give up a comfortable contract?

Before this comes to fruition, there are still significant obstacles. So far, the Puma has only performed well with Sébastien Loeb and its reliability remained uncertain. What interest would Tänak have in moving from a Rally1 which is making progress in this area to one where much remains to be done? If discussions exist, the money on the table is certainly the crux of the problem. How much is Ford willing to spend to maintain the level of development of the Puma? Can Malcolm offer a salary close to what Tänak earns today? Is he himself ready to sacrifice part of his income to try to find himself behind the wheel of a car supposed to allow him to aim for a 2^e title ?

If this transfer were to take place, it would be excellent news for the WRC of which the three teams would all have one (or two) potential champions. How much chance is there of this coming to fruition? The progress of the rally of Ypres will perhaps provide some answers?

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