The Hyundai i20 N star opened his 2024 FIA World Rally
Championship title bid with a sublime performance in the French Alps, mastering
the ice-patched mountain roads to head Toyota Gazoo Racing rival Sébastien
Ogier by 16.1sec.
Neuville shrugged aside early engine issues before launching
an attack on Saturday, overtaking both Ogier and his GR Yaris team-mate Elfyn
Evans to storm into the lead with a slender 3.3sec advantage. A clean sweep of fastest
times in Sunday’s final leg cemented his position ahead of the nine-time Rallye
Monte-Carlo winner.
"I don't have the words, to be honest,” beamed an
elated Neuville after finishing the final stage on the iconic Col de Turini. “It
was just so great this weekend, I felt so comfortable in the car.
“The whole team was doing an amazing job and I think the
whole package was working really well. There are always things to improve so of
course we need to continue working, but we are very happy to win this rally,”
he added.
Ogier led for a single stage on Saturday afternoon, but the
Frenchman could not repel Neuville despite his best efforts. “It's been a nice
battle with Thierry. Well done to him, he has been really fast this weekend,”
he admitted.
Evans held the upper hand after the first two legs but time
ebbed away from him on Saturday, not helped by a hybrid unit problem. He
eventually finished 29.1sec behind his team-mate Ogier.
Ott Tänak placed fourth on his first rally in Hyundai
colours since 2022. Mystery engine problems hindered the 2019 world champion
throughout the rally although a stage win on Saturday morning proved his
potential with the i20 N car.
Adrien Fourmaux equalled his career-best result by finishing
fifth overall in his M-Sport Ford Puma. Behind him was Hyundai’s Andreas
Mikkelsen, with Takamoto Katsuta almost three minutes further back after
sliding off the road on Friday.
Yohan Rossel claimed the WRC2 victory with a last-gasp Wolf
Power Stage push, climbing to eighth overall in the process. He passed Pepe
López in the finale while Nikolay Gryazin rounded out the top 10.
Round two of the WRC takes place on the snow and ice of
Sweden. The series' only pure winter fixture is based in Umeå on 15 – 18
February.