NEUVILLE PUTS THE FAVOURITES IN THE BOOK
All winter Thierry Neuville had waited. And waited. Since Rally Spain last October, the Belgian had been forced into the shadows by an incoming World Rally champion. So profound has been the chatter about Ott Tanak joining Hyundai, it felt like the man who made Hyundai his own had been lost.
On the harbourside in Monaco last Sunday afternoon he was, most definitely, found.
Neuville’s maiden Monte Carlo Rally win couldn’t have contrasted more comprehensively with Tanak’s result. By the time Thierry cracked the champagne open, the Estonian was home reflecting on the biggest and fastest crash of his life.
Once more, the World Rally Championship held its breath when the #8 Hyundai speared off the road at high speed on Friday’s second stage. The terrifying accident, which lasted an agonising 14 seconds and ended with a 30-metre drop off a cliff, destroyed the i20 – but mercifully and quite brilliantly kept the crew safe.
Last week was the perfect tonic for those troubled by a winter of relative discontent for the WRC. The 2019 season finished a round early courtesy of the New South Wales bushfires, Chile’s 2020 round was lost to political unrest and, of course, Citroen walked away. But last week’s Monte Carlo Rally offered the best possible start to a new decade in the WRC.
A week out from the
