Ott Tänak secured the win by a narrow margin of 0.2 seconds after Toyota’s Sebastien Ogier suffered tyre damage on the final stage. In the overall points for the weekend, Hyundai outperformed their Japanese rivals by nine points.
“It was obviously a very emotional finish. It looked like the win would once again escape from our grasp after Ott wisely decided to play it safe on Saturday,” said Hyundai’s team principal Cyril Abiteboul.
“However, the result showed that you can also combine a smart approach to a rally with strong skills and the right momentum at the perfect time, resulting in a great win.”
Hyundai also had a second car on the podium with Dani Sordo finishing third. Tänak’s first win of the season had Abiteboul beaming.
“It was a fantastic moment for him in his return to the team. This was a strong step in the championship, and an excellent team result with Dani on the podium,” Abiteboul remarked.
“He did exactly what we expected of him for the team this weekend, and it was great to see both of them on that podium, underscoring our competitiveness.”
Thierry Neuville, who leads the championship, retired due to a driving error on Saturday. However, on Sunday, the Belgian driver secured the full 12 points.
“Thierry has once again demonstrated his very commanding speed in any road position, including Sunday when the motivation level was very high to make up for the loss and disappointment of Saturday. Obviously, we need to make sure that mistakes are as limited as possible as we expect this championship to continue to be incredibly competitive until the very end,” Abiteboul summarised.
The WRC continues at the end of June on the gravel roads of Poland.
