Currently, in the premier class, a total of three separate sets of points are awarded. Conditional points are given based on Saturday evening’s results, and daily points are awarded on Sunday. Additionally, extra points can be collected from the Power Stage that concludes the event.
What’s unique about this system is that no points are awarded based on the actual final results of the rally. It’s also possible that the winner of the competition may not necessarily take home the biggest points haul.
The worst scenarios did not materialize at Rally Monte Carlo. Hyundai driver Thierry Neuville, who won the round, took home a full 30 points from the weekend. The second-highest number of points was collected by runner-up Sebastien Ogier (24 points), followed by Elfyn Evans in third (21) and Hyundai’s Ott Tänak in fourth (15).
Toyota team principal Jari-Matti Latvala delivered his verdict on the new point system after the event.
“The winner got the most points. In that sense, the new system has proven to be quite effective. Hopefully, it works in other events too, though it has its risks and there might be some small challenges,” Latvala said.
“There was a lot of speculation beforehand. Now we can at least calm the situation for a while. Overall, it didn’t cause any terrible confusion.”
This time, Latvala’s team did not conquer Monte Carlo, even though Sebastien Ogier tried until the end to challenge Neuville. The Belgian prevented Ogier’s tenth by a margin of 16.1 seconds.
“Of course, there’s a bit of disappointment in the air. We led the rally on Friday and almost until the end of Saturday. Then, in the very last moments of Saturday, things started to turn in Hyundai’s favor. Eventually, the win slipped away on Sunday,” Latvala summarized.
“Thierry found a new gear. It’s been seen before that when he gets that kind of confidence boost on Saturday, it’s really hard to stop him after that.”
Neuville and Hyundai also issued a warning to Toyota, which has dominated the WRC in recent years. Latvala assesses that Hyundai is now more competitive.
“They will definitely be strong throughout the season and tough battles are expected. In the last two years, we were able to win with reliability. Now Hyundai is reliable and fast, so the competition is purely down to the driver – who can squeeze out a win, as we saw here. With driving like Neuville’s, victories could be decided this season,” Latvala analyzed.
