Hyundai have control of the 2024 World Rally Championship heading into the final two rounds of the season.
Thierry Neuville leads the drivers’ standings by 29 points over his teammate Ott Tanak. With 60 points up for grabs, the Belgian is in a good position to break his duck and secure his maiden WRC title.
Subsequently, with Neuville leading the drivers’ standings, his co-driver – fellow Belgian Martijn Wydaeghe – leads the championship for co-drivers over Tanak’s partner Martin Järveoja. Wydaeghe has been with Neuville since 2021 and the duo have won eight rallies together in that time.
Hyundai lead the Manufacturers’ Championship over Toyota by 17 points, giving them the lead in all three WRC standings in 2024. But as the championship heads back to the tarmac, the Korean outfit is under pressure to keep that advantage.
Cyril Abiteboul says a ‘clean performance’ for Hyundai is ‘essential’ at the Central European Rally
The WRC heads to the Central European Rally this weekend, with stages to be held across Czech Republic, Austria and Germany.
Neuville won the event last year and will be under pressure to wrap up the title here this year given that Tanak wants to fight for the title in the last two races.
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Neuville does not want an ‘internal fight’ for the championship as he is desperate to secure his first title. But it is not just that title that Hyundai need to sew up, and speaking with Autosport, team principal Cyril Abiteboul outlined what is ‘essential’ for the team at the Central European Rally to achieve such feat.
“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,” he said.
“Thierry won here last year, and we know how strong he is on 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.”
Toyota are hunting down Hyundai in the Manufacturers’ Championship
It is not just an internal fight between Neuville and Tanak that Hyundai have to worry about as Toyota have closed the gap in the Manufacturers’ Championship.
The Japanese looked to have forgotten about their title hopes after a disastrous weekend in Greece. But the team’s new approach to just focusing on performing well led to a turnaround at Rally Chile.
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Kalle Rovanpera grabbed his fourth win of the season in a Toyota one-two after Elfyn Evans lost the lead to his teammate in the foggy conditions. Tanak and Neuville’s third and fourth place finishes led to Hyundai’s lead being cut from 35 points to 17.
With just two rallies to go, Toyota will be gunning for the title and will be hoping to stop Hyundai from completing a clean sweep in the 2024 championship.