Метка: Thierry Neuville

Consistency Neuville’s first focus as maiden WRC title looms at CER

Опубликовано от ASPPA IMAGES ANO


Thierry Neuville insists his first focus is on delivering a «consistent run» at this week’s Central European Rally as the Hyundai driver closes in on a maiden World Rally Championship crown.

Neuville heads into the WRC’s penultimate round, spread across the asphalt roads in the Czech Republic, Austria and Germany, with a 29-point lead over nearest rival and team-mate Ott Tanak.

The Belgian will secure a first WRC title if he can extend the margin beyond 30 points this weekend, with only one round of the season remaining in Japan next month.

The odds appear to be in Neuville’s favour who won the Central European Rally last year and will start this year’s edition with the advantage of opening the road as championship leader.

Last weekend Neuville aided his preparations for the rally by participating in the Herbst Rallye in Austria, where his Hyundai i20 N Rally1 was one of the course cars.

While the prospect of a career-defining world title is edging closer, Neuville says his main focus is to ensure he performs consistently this week.

«Last year we had a great victory at the very first Central European Rally. We know we usually perform well on tarmac and winning in Germany was super cool for the whole team,» said Neuville.

Thierry Neuville, Martijn Wydaeghe, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1

Thierry Neuville, Martijn Wydaeghe, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1

Photo by: Vincent Thuillier / Hyundai Motorsport

«Despite difficult conditions, we performed well But because of the stage changes we need to do some video work, so we will be studying those as much as possible to get a good feel of the new areas.

«The main goal is to manage our championship so we can take as many points as possible. Of course, we would like to get that title in our pocket, but our first focus will be having a consistent run.»

Neuville’s Hyundai team will however be eager to issue a response to Toyota’s Rally Chile performance that reduced the deficit in the manufacturers’ title race to 17 points.

«We need to maintain our lead in all three championships, and a clean performance at Central European Rally is essential in eventually bringing them home,» said Hyundai team principal Cyril Abiteboul.

«Thierry won here last year, and we know how strong he is on the tarmac, so anything is possible across the weekend. As well as the push for the drivers’ and co-drivers’ titles, we also have the fight for the manufacturers’, and we have three strong crews fighting for that too.

«We want to leave CER having taken advantage of our road positions and made the most of the weekend – something we could not do in Chile.»



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Neuville is “not safe yet” in WRC title fight

Опубликовано от ASPPA IMAGES ANO


Ott Tanak says Thierry Neuville is “not safe yet” after taking a nibble out of his Hyundai team-mate’s World Rally Championship lead at Rally Chile. 

The 2019 world champion outscored Neuville by five points last weekend to reduce the deficit in the title race to 29 points with two rounds of the seasons remaining in Central Europe and Japan, and 60 points on the table. 

In what proved to be a difficult rally for Hyundai, Tanak managed to improve his i20 N through several tweaks across the event to lead the rally on the Friday without scoring a stage win. 

The Estonian eventually finished third behind Toyota duo Kalle Rovanpera and Elfyn Evans as the Japanese brand eroded Hyundai’s manufacturers’ championship lead from 35 points to 17. 

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While Neuville remains the favourite to lift a maiden WRC drivers’ title, Tanak says the fight is not over.    

“Obviously it is a very big gap but let’s say Thierry is not safe yet,» said Tanak when asked about his championship hopes. 

“We were maybe a bit lucky that Seb [Ogier] hit trouble on Friday and other than that there was nothing we could do against the Toyotas. We gave our maximum and scored everything we could.

Thierry Neuville, Martijn Wydaeghe, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1

Thierry Neuville, Martijn Wydaeghe, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

“They [Toyota] have bounced back, but let’s see. Now we go to tarmac and we should have good road position for that. Definitely the fight is not over yet, and we need to work hard for it.”

After initially struggling in seventh after opening road on Friday, Neuville declared himself happy with his recovery to fourth, limiting the damage to his points advantage.

But the Belgian is hoping to wrap up the championship sooner rather than later to end his internal fight with Tanak and focus on helping Hyundai fend off Toyota in the manufacturers’ title fight. 

“Obviously some drivers made mistakes early in the race, and from that point again our plan and strategy had to be adapted, and we mainly focussed on Ott,» said Neuville.

“We have done what we needed but we need to make sure we get things [the drivers’ title] done quickly as there is still a manufacturers’ championship to fight for, and we should ensure that for Japan we can fight as we should for that title. It is important not to have an internal fight and be ready to beat Toyota.

“We lost 18 points [to Toyota], and for sure there is a fight between me and Ott which is ongoing and nobody will take the biggest risks, but we lost some important points against Toyota. 

“They [Toyota] will bring many cars and will also do that in Central Europe and we need to have a good approach and strategy as a team to make sure we don’t lose the manufacturers’ championship.” 



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Acropolis WRC victory a “big release of pressure” for Neuville

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Thierry Neuville believes his Acropolis Rally victory is a significant moment and a «big release of pressure» in his pursuit of a maiden World Rally Championship title.   

Neuville clinched his second win of the season after coming through one of the most demanding events in recent WRC history where eight of the nine Rally1 cars hit trouble. 

The Hyundai driver recovered from an engine issue on Friday to clinch victory and lead a 1-2-3 for Hyundai following a dramatic final stage, where his main title rival and Toyota driver Sebastian Ogier rolled.

Ogier was able to reach the stage finish after completing a quick repair on his GR Yaris to claim 13 Saturday points. But the eight-time world champion has dropped to third in the championship standings behind Ott Tanak, who now trails Neuville by 34 points with three rounds remaining. 

Hyundai locked out the podium as Ogier’s accident promoted Dani Sordo to second and Tanak to third.   

Reflecting on his first win since the opening round in Monte Carlo in January, Neuville told Motorsport.com: “I felt a big release of pressure. It was a demanding race, there’s no secrets you have seen it has been challenging for everybody. 

«Obviously at some point since yesterday morning we were in a position where we couldn’t afford a mistake, we couldn’t afford a puncture but we just had to keep it going and it wasn’t easy, but we have made it work. 

Thierry Neuville, Martijn Wydaeghe, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1

Thierry Neuville, Martijn Wydaeghe, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1

Photo by: McKlein / Motorsport Images

“We kept very calm and I felt like I had the tools to do it and I felt comfortable in the car, there was no mistake, nothing. I was pretty sure we could do it. 

“It’s a big moment, of course, if you can increase the championship lead by seven or eight points, it’s fantastic, so there’s nothing to add to that. 

“It is a great weekend for the team and I’m so happy as well to see Dani and Ott on the podium with me and, it’s a good step for both championships.» 

The Power Stage outlined the brutal nature of this year’s Acropolis Rally as Takamoto Katsuta, Tanak and Ogier — before his crash — all suffered punctures.

“It’s been a very hard [rally] and honestly speaking today’s Power Stage shouldn’t be the last stage of the rally. It’s destroying the cars. It’s not a stage to be honest,” added Neuville.

“We have said it already in the past. It’s getting repaired every year and it’s getting worse and worse and it has been a no-go this time.”

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Neuville should «stop crying» and learn how to open the road

Опубликовано от ASPPA IMAGES ANO


Sebastian Ogier says World Rally Championship leader Thierry Neuville should “stop crying” and “learn driving first on the road” following an eventful opening day at the Acropolis Rally.

Ogier’s comments aimed at the Hyundai driver arrived after the eight-time world champion won three of the day’s six stages, starting second on the road, behind Neuville, having now emerged as the Belgian’s main title rival, just 27 points adrift.

Competing in a partial campaign this season, Ogier will now contest the remaining rounds of the season to boost Toyota’s manufacturers’ title hopes, and in the process challenge for a ninth drivers’ crown.

The Toyota’s driver pace on Greece’s rough gravel roads put him into the lead of the rally at midday service over M-Sport-Ford’s Adrien Fourmaux with Neuville in fifth after the latter’s i20 N Rally’s engine was reduced to three cylinders.

It cost him valuable time but Fourmaux’s demise after stage four handed the Frenchman an 11.7s advantage over Hyundai’s Ott Tanak.

Ogier appeared on course to end Friday with the rally lead before his GR Yaris suffered a similar turbo failure that befell his team-mate, Elfyn Evans, on the opening stage.

As a result, Ogier dropped to fourth overall, 2m26.4s from the leader Tanak and 1m41.2s behind Neuville.

Ogier has in the past been vocal about the disadvantages of opening the road, but this season it is long-time points leader Neuville who re-ignited the debate in Latvia having led the championship since the opening round in Monte Carlo.

Sébastien Ogier, Vincent Landais, Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT Toyota GR Yaris Rally1

Sébastien Ogier, Vincent Landais, Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT Toyota GR Yaris Rally1

Photo by: Toyota Racing

When asked about the turbo issue suffered by Evans and if the team had though to change the component on his car at midday service, Ogier offered some strong words towards his title rival.

«From my side I didn’t know [about Elfyn’s turbo issue] I just drove my race normally and was feeling quite good in the car until this moment and we did the best job we could,» said Ogier.

«We proved that the championship leader is not that fast honestly because he was first on the road and we were second on the road and we took 45 seconds in four stages, maybe he should stop crying and learn driving first on the road.”

Toyota is yet to understand the cause of Ogier’s turbo problem but it could be similar to the issue suffered by Evans, who was forced to complete the final section of the opening stage and the following two morning tests in road mode. The Welshman, who also picked up a puncture in stage one, lost almost 10 minutes altogether.

Elfyn Evans, Scott Martin, Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT Toyota GR Yaris Rally1

Elfyn Evans, Scott Martin, Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT Toyota GR Yaris Rally1

Photo by: Toyota Racing

“With Elfyn we know what is the root cause but with Seb at the moment we are assuming it is something similar, but until we get the parts we can’t say for sure. It looks like an issue with the turbo charger,” said Toyota technical director Tom Fowler.

“It’s a huge disappointment because clearly it is a rally after Finland where we have a really strong performance in the car, and in Finland we didn’t capitalise on that, and it looks like here we are not going to capitalise on the potential performance both the car and the drivers have.”

Team principal Jari-Matti Latvala is unsure if the failure is down to a faulty batch of components, but did reveal that the team were unable to change the turbo on Ogier’s car as a precaution at midday service as delays to the opening stages caused by accidents.

“This morning we were able to change the turbo for Elfyn Evans but we couldn’t change for Seb because of the time limit,” said Latvala.

“We were supposed to have a flexi service but because the stage was delayed on SS1 and SS2 it meant the organisers had to cut the flexi service away.

«Instead of having 12 mechanics working on one car we had six guys working for one car and we had other things to change. We had time for Elfyn but we didn’t have time for Seb and then it broke down.

“Of course Hyundai is in a strong position [1-2-3] going into Saturday, we need to stay patient because things can happen. If we have problems they may have problems you never know. But with this heat and this roughness it is asking a lot from the car.”

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Hyundai’s 2026 WRC decision likely to shape Neuville’s long-term future

Опубликовано от ASPPA IMAGES ANO


Thierry Neuville says his World Rally Championship future beyond 2025 will likely be determined by Hyundai’s WRC plans as he doesn’t see himself “going on with another brand”.

The WRC points leader has signed a new one-year extension that will take him into a 12th season with the Korean marque.

However, the Belgian’s WRC future beyond 2025 is unclear with Hyundai yet to confirm its commitment to the WRC for 2026, amid speculation the brand could leave the championship and join the World Endurance Championship.

Neuville has previously stated a desire to sign a two-year deal but it appears Hyundai’s uncertain future has resulted in only a one-year extension. The 36-year-old, while happy to secure his future for another season, admitted that there were even some initial worries about securing this new contract.

“It is great news. I’m very happy to continue my preferred sport with the passion and the enthusiasm I still have, so I’m looking forward to it,” Neuville told Motorsport.com.

“Obviously the fact that the contract is signed is a good point and I don’t need to worry about that anymore.

“At some point, sure, I think we were all worried. However, now it’s official, we’re going to continue, and I think it’s also important news for the team members as well.”

Podium: Thierry Neuville, Martijn Wydaeghe, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1

Podium: Thierry Neuville, Martijn Wydaeghe, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1

Photo by: Austral / Hyundai Motorsport

When asked if there was an option of a two-year deal, he revealed that there is the possibility he could be with the team longer than his new terms of his new agreement.

“We don’t go into more details, but opportunities will be there, but it will not depend on us, so I believe that we will have to see what the future of the team is. We could be there for longer,” he said.

Pressed on if he had started to think about his future beyond 2025, he replied: “Not at all, because, like I said, there might be opportunity for more. At the moment, it’s too early to know what will be the future of the teams in WRC and the category itself. So I believe that it’s too early to know.”

However, given the uncertainty around Hyundai’s WRC future beyond 2025, Neuville said that the brand’s decision whether to stay or leave the WRC could ultimately decide the future of his own rallying career in the top flight.

“Obviously, for me it wouldn’t be a disaster not to be there anymore after so many years, but on the other hand, if obviously Hyundai retire it would probably be a point for me to retire as well. I have done so long with them and I have enjoyed that time. At the moment I don’t see myself going on with another brand, but who knows?”

Neuville has previously shown interest in competing in categories outside of the WRC, having raced in TCR Germany in 2019. While he revealed that at some point he could consider an alternative to rally, the WRC is where he wishes to compete in the near future.

“At some point [I could consider Rally Raid or circuit racing], but honestly speaking, if I do something I want to do it professionally. At the moment where I can make the best of is still in WRC. It’s where I’m the best and where the team needs me the most. So, that’s the place to be at the moment,» he said.

Thierry Neuville, Martijn Wydaeghe, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1

Thierry Neuville, Martijn Wydaeghe, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

Looking ahead to next season, Neuville will drive a heavily upgraded i20 N Rally, thanks to the deployment of homologation jokers, as the team aims to resurrect some of the plans it had for its new car project that was abandoned amid the 2025 FIA technical rules U-turn earlier this year.

Neuville has already begun testing some of the updates ahead of their 2025 debut.

“The target of the team to be competitive next year. So I think if they carry on with signing fast drivers it’s because they want to be competitive and that is why they have decided to put some jokers on the car,” he added.



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Neuville signs new Hyundai deal to join Tanak for 2025 WRC

Опубликовано от ASPPA IMAGES ANO


Thierry Neuville has signed a one-year contract extension to remain with Hyundai, alongside Ott Tanak, to contest the 2025 World Rally Championship.

The current WRC points leader had entered into the final year of his current deal with the Korean marque this season, before reaching a new agreement that will take the five-time title runner-up into a 12th year with the team in WRC.

Neuville will once again continue alongside co-driver Martijn Wydaeghe, while Hyundai has exercised an option on 2019 world champion pairing Tanak and Martin Jarvoeja for next year. Tanak scored victory in Sardinia this year in his second spell with the team after spending 2023 driving for M-Sport-Ford.

Neuville joined Hyundai in 2014 when the car maker embarked on its second stint as a factory team in the WRC. The Belgian scored his and Hyundai’s first outright WRC win in Germany in their maiden season — the win is one of 20 Neuville has scored for the Alzenau outfit.

The 36-year-old told Autosport last year that he would like to sign a two-year deal to take him into 2026. However, Hyundai’s future in the WRC beyond 2025 is yet to be confirmed amid speculation the marque could leave the championship, amid expected plans to join the World Endurance Championship in 2026.

“I am very happy to extend my contract with Hyundai Motorsport for the 2025 FIA World Rally Championship season,” said Neuville on the eve of this weekend’s Acropolis Rally in Greece.

“There are not many partnerships in motorsport that have spanned as long as ours, but since 2014 we have achieved great success together.

Thierry Neuville, Martijn Wydaeghe, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1

Thierry Neuville, Martijn Wydaeghe, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

“I’ve said before that this team has become a second family to me, and our ambition and motivation has only grown year after year. It would be a great honour to win our first drivers’ title with them at the end of this season, and to carry that forward into a 12th year together. I can’t wait to see what the future holds for us.”

Hyundai team principal Cyril Abiteboul added: “We are pleased to confirm Thierry Neuville alongside Ott Tanak for our 2025 FIA World Rally Championship campaign.

“The decision to maintain this competitive pairing at Hyundai Motorsport underscores our commitment to the series in 2025, where we will once again be targeting all three championship titles.

“Thierry has been with Hyundai Motorsport since the very start, proving invaluable to the team both on the stages and in the factory over the past 11 years.

“With him and his co-driver Martijn Wydaeghe now locked in for next season, we have all of the ingredients needed to continue fighting at the very pinnacle of our sport.”

Hyundai is yet to announce who will pilot its third i20 N Rally1 next year. Abiteboul has previously stated that the team is “exploring scenarios” for this entry having chosen to split the car across Esapekka Lappi, Andreas Mikkelsen and Dani Sordo.

M-Sport’s Adrien Fourmaux has however been heavily linked to the drive, although the British squad is eager to keep its lead driver for 2025.

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Neuville sees Ogier as WRC title rival after Finland rollercoaster

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World Rally Championship leader Thierry Neuville sees Toyota’s Sebastien Ogier as his main title rival despite the latter yet to officially commit to the remaining rounds.

The WRC title race has a different complexion after a Rally Finland Neuville described as a «roller coaster of emotions» that has left the Belgian with a 27-point lead in the standings.

That lead is now over eight-time world champion Ogier, who is contesting a part-time campaign this year, which has yielded three wins and three second place finishes from his six rounds to date.

Ogier won last weekend’s Rally Finland claiming 24 points [18 on Saturday, five on Super Sunday and one on the Power Stage] which helped the Frenchman climb above full-timers Toyota’s Elfyn Evans and Hyundai’s Ott Tanak in the championship standings. Evans and Tanak both left Finland empty-handed after crashes and are now 36 and 31 points behind respectively.

Ogier has been asked by Toyota to drive the remaining events — Greece, Chile, Central Europe and Japan — with the Frenchman, who said he is yet to get a «feeling» for a ninth world title push, expected to make a decision in the next two weeks.

Neuville however has sights already fixed on Ogier as his title rival.

When asked who his main rival is after Finland, Neuville said: «Number two, which is Mr Ogier at the moment.

«He may not feel it [like pushing for a title] but he has been there on the last rallies and he’s fighting for every single point. For sure [I’m thinking about him].»

Thierry Neuville, Martijn Wydaeghe, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1

Thierry Neuville, Martijn Wydaeghe, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

Neuville’s Rally Finland had seemed like a damage limitation exercise as the Belgian struggled to find confidence behind the wheel of his i20 N.

However, shock retirements for long-time leader Kalle Rovanpera and Elfyn Evans on the penultimate stage earned Neuville 24 points, boosted by scoring eight of the 12 points available for Super Sunday.

Despite the challenges he faced with his car, Neuville felt his clever approach paid dividends in the circumstances.

«It was a pure roller coaster of emotions this weekend. We had high hopes, but somehow we realised already in shakedown that things were not working as we would like and it could be a challenging weekend, which it was,» he added.

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«The performance wasn’t great all the time, it was a bit up and down and they were challenging [wet] conditions to drive in. We understood quickly that we had to have a clever approach and focus on bringing home important points.

«Our two team-mates that crashed out on Friday gave us a lot of pressure because the team desperately needed a car in the points, but we constantly managed and changed our approach according to the situation.»



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Neuville pips Katsuta to claim early lead

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World Rally Championship points leader Thierry Neuville snatched the opening stage victory from Takamoto Katsuta to claim an early Rally Finland lead.

Neuville was the last of the Rally1 cars to tackle the Harju super special stage in host city Jyvaskyla and was able to pip Toyota’s Katsuta by 1.1 seconds on the mixed surface test.

The stage time arrived following a challenging Thursday morning shakedown at the famous gravel rally for the Belgian.

“It’s a good start, but the real stuff starts tomorrow,” said Neuville. “We are looking forward, it was a difficult shakedown for us this morning and we had some problems with the car.”

Hyundai’s Ott Tanak was third fastest, 0.2s adrift of the outright pace, while Toyota’s Sebastien Ogier, making his first Finland start since 2021, was fourth quickest. Reigning world champion Kalle Rovanpera rounded out the top five.

“This is always a tricky stage to start the rally and it felt narrower in places — I just wanted to get it done, we are through and tomorrow the rally starts,” said Rovanpera.

Kalle Rovanperä, Jonne Halttunen, Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT Toyota GR Yaris Rally1

Kalle Rovanperä, Jonne Halttunen, Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT Toyota GR Yaris Rally1

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

Adrien Fourmaux led M-Sport-Ford’s charge in sixth (+3.0s) ahead of Hyundai’s Esapekka Lappi (+3.1s), who was lucky to avoid clipping a tyre wall with the right rear of his i20 N. Toyota’s Elfyn Evans was eighth (+3.2s) ahead of Rally1 rookie Sami Pajari (+4.6s).

“Very special moment, always nice atmosphere here on the Harju stage but I am not sure how much I was enjoying it due to the conditions, 500 horsepower and the power but there we go — we are excited for tomorrow,” said Pajari.

M-Sport’s Gregoire Munster completed the top 10 (+8.2s).

WRC2 title contender Oliver Solberg led the way in the second tier posting a time 1.1s faster than Estonia’s Georg Linnamae, while Toyota WRC team principal Jari-Matti Latvala, making a one-off outing, was third (+2.1s_ driving a Rally2-spec GR Yaris.

“That’s weird, I just took it easy, I didn’t warm my tyres enough at the start and I was way too careful on the first bit, but the second lap was decent,” said Solberg.

The rally now continues on Friday with nine gravel stages awaiting the crews.



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Neuville, Tanak free to fight for WRC title

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Hyundai has reiterated its drivers Thierry Neuville and Ott Tanak are currently free to fight for the World Rally Championship without fear of team orders, according to team principal Cyril Abiteboul.

The Korean manufacturer’s two full-time drivers Neuville and Tanak are split by eight points in the title race after last weekend’s Rally Latvia with five rounds of the season remaining.

Neuville has led the championship since winning the opening round in Monte Carlo in January although his advantage was cut significantly in Latvia after struggling while opening the road at the high-speed gravel rally.

The Belgian had taken a 15-point margin over Toyota’s Elfyn Evans and 21-point lead over Tanak heading into the rally, but events in Latvia has left the top three covered by 13 points.

Abiteboul mentioned before the start of the season that his drivers would receive “absolute parity” from the team, but there would be a point in the season when an internal review would take place where team orders could be implemented.

With the title race so finely poised, Abiteboul expects his drivers to continue to fight each other for the title.

Podium: Winners Thierry Neuville, Martijn Wydaeghe, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1, second place Ott Tanak, Martin Jarveoja, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1, third place Dani Sordo, Candido Carrera, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1

Podium: Winners Thierry Neuville, Martijn Wydaeghe, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1, second place Ott Tanak, Martin Jarveoja, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1, third place Dani Sordo, Candido Carrera, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1

Photo by: Fabien Dufour / Hyundai Motorsport

“Of course, they can fight, and they have to fight. If one of the two is not fighting, it means probably losing a position to our competition from a team perspective or in the drivers’ championship, which we have no reason to do at this point,” Abiteboul told Autosport/Motorsport.com.

“I would say that we would not be shy if there is a necessity to [back one of our drivers in the future], but I don’t think that there is a necessity to right now.

“We’ve done some stuff over the weekend that maybe went under the radar. Esapekka [Lappi] let Thierry go by on Friday and played a team game and that helps. These are the sort of things that we are doing.

“But when it’s so tight, and Elfyn is very close obviously and [Sebastien] Ogier is coming back quick I don’t think there is much you can ask for at this point in the season, so we’ll keep on pushing for giving the best possible condition to these two guys and if something was to occur in the season, we would do it. But it’s obviously not the right moment.”

Although frustrated at being hampered by road position in Latvia, Neuville is refusing to let his desire to score a maiden world title drop.

“We will continue pushing. We’re still first in the championship. The next event [in Finalnd] will be very challenging as well but what can we do?” Neuville told Autosport/Motorsport.com.

“Obviously I would have loved to be first on the Power Stage [in Latvia], but again, the conditions weren’t good enough and on Sunday morning I was spinning a lot of wheels, trying to push the maximum and I was using a lot of the tyres.”

Tanak’s timely haul of 22 points in Latvia despite a myriad of problems, including being delayed by an inflatable promotional arch, has brought the Estonian firmly into the title fight, which he expects will continue until the final round.

“The rally [in Latvia] has not been good. The rally has been full of entertainment, so we’ve been always fighting back,” Tanak told Autosport/Motorsport.com.

“We had a wrong tyre choice in the first stage and then after we struggled with the car, and then we lost the brakes. It’s always been a hard fight, but then Sunday went in our favour [scoring the maximum 12 points].

“We are just playing, and this [title fight] will go until the end of the year so we will see.”

Hyundai also leads the manufacturers’ championship by a point from Toyota heading in Finland next month.

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