The Belgian has not won a single round this season, and with only four third places to his name, the outcome is a huge disappointment for Neuville. Hyundai’s machinery has not been able to match Toyota’s performance this year, but Neuville’s own driving has also lacked sharpness.
The last two rounds have ended in retirements. In Central Europe, Neuville threw it away himself, while in Japan the i20 N Rally1 suffered all manner of technical problems. Neuville now risks ending up in a rather embarrassing club of drivers who have failed to win a single event while defending the World Championship title.
The first driver to reach this “achievement” was Sweden’s Stig Blomqvist, who failed to take a single victory in 1985 after his title-winning season in 1984. That year the championship was won by Timo Salonen, who claimed five rally wins.
Aside from Blomqvist, the only other member of the zero-wins club is Britain’s Richard Burns, who finished without a victory in 2002 after taking the title the previous season.
“We’ve had a tough year, but we will go all in for one final victory for the team – we have nothing to lose,” Neuville sums up.
The brand-new Rally Saudi Arabia is completely unfamiliar to everyone. Early information suggests a highly varied event, with rocky sections alternating with open desert tracks.
“We don’t know too much about the event; we only have some footage of the stages which we can check to get a better idea of the surface and the layout. We won’t get a full understanding until we arrive in Jeddah,” Neuville says.
“It’s hard to say exactly what we will need from the car setup, but with the high risk of punctures, loose stones and rough surface, we need a reliable car and a high ride height for maximum protection.”
The Saudi Arabia WRC rally starts on Wednesday. The event, which finishes on Saturday, features a total of 17 stages covering just under 320 kilometres.
