Wydaeghe promised his driver, Thierry Neuville, that he would buy himself a Porsche 911 car if Neuville could set the fastest time on both runs of the rally’s 9.11-kilometer special stage.
“Martijn told me during recce: ‘Listen, this stage is 9.11 kilometers. If you do two times the fastest time, I’m going to buy my first Porsche 911.’ So obviously, I did what I could. It worked on the first loop and hopefully, fingers crossed, it’s going to work on the second loop as well,” Neuville recounted in Croatia.
With the deed done, Wydaeghe now faces a trip to the car dealership. Or does he?
“It wasn’t very smart to say,” Wydaeghe chuckled to RTBF.
“Because I know he can do it. It helps to motivate my driver, and I’m happy about that. Would it be a nice gift? If I have to buy it myself, then it wouldn’t really be a gift,” he smiled.
Neuville ultimately finished third in the Croatia Rally. He made a driving error on Sunday and dropped out of the victory contention.
However, Neuville still took a decent haul of 19 World Championship points from Croatia and continues to lead the championship, six points ahead of Elfyn Evans.
The World Rally Championship will continue on the gravel roads of Portugal in May.
