Hyundai Motorsport is looking carefully to the present, because after the Rally Finland it finds itself leading the Drivers’ Championship with Thierry Neuville – 27 points ahead of the first of its rivals, Sébastien Ogier – and in the Manufacturers’ Championship with 20 points over Toyota with 4 rallies remaining in the season.
In motorsport, however, the summer and in this case the summer break, is always used to define a good part of the plans for the following season. In 2025 the team based in Alzenau will continue to race in the WRC, therefore it needs to define which crews will be with which it will hunt for the world titles next season.
At the moment Thierry Neuville, leader of the World Championship, is out of contract at the end of the year. Ott Tanak, another regular driver, will also see his agreement with Hyundai expire, but the parties will be able to use a clause to extend the partnership for another season.
After many years with Hyundai, Cyril Abiteboul feels comfortable with Neuville’s permanence, as he does with Ott Tanak, thanks to the clause and leveraging the fact that the Estonian feels comfortable in the team.
“There are ongoing discussions,” the team principal and president of Hyundai Motorsport told Motorsport.com. “We are talking about next year with Neuville. He knows the environment, we know him and it’s a winning combination. Why should we change?”
“There is an option for Tanak. And we will talk about it. I think we both enjoy working together, so I think exercising the option to stay together will be something natural.”
At this point, however, it is impossible to ignore what could happen with the third car. Hyundai is currently alternating Andreas Mikkelsen, Dani Sordo and Esapekka Lappi. The Spaniard and the Finn have performed best when they have been used, but in 2025, everything could change.
Hyundai is testing the market because – like the other teams – it has been attracted by the growth of Adrien Fourmaux. The Frenchman from M-Sport returned to racing at the wheel of a Rally1 this year and has already collected four podiums, as well as occupying the fifth position in the Drivers’ Championship behind Neuville, Ogier, Tanak and Evans.
Adrien Fourmaux, M-Sport Ford World Rally Team, Rich Millener, Team principal M-Sport Ford Rally
Photo by: M-Sport
“Our focus now is mainly on the third car strategy,” Abiteboul admitted. “For that I want to explore every possible scenario. I want to be open-minded about what I do and reflect on what we have done this year to understand if we have done the right things and if it will be possible to repeat them for next season.
Fourmaux himself admitted that he has started talking to all the teams in view of next season: “As a driver you have to talk to everyone and I want to race with a Rally1. There are three teams, so you have to talk to everyone.”
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