Sure enough, South America didn’t do Neuville any favours, but he emerged with his series advantage intact ahead of the more familiar Tarmac of Central Europe – this month’s penultimate round where Neuville can sensibly think about sealing a maiden world championship. After that is FORUM8 Rally Japan, an event he won in 2022.
“The last two rallies won’t be easy, that’s for sure,” Neuville said. “But hopefully things will be better on Tarmac. Chile was a tough weekend for us, made more challenging by the weather conditions. Friday was really tricky, but by Saturday things started to go a bit better for us in terms of set-up and the profile of the stages, which gave us a bit more confidence and a decent rhythm.
“There was no need to take big risks, we just managed our result. We tried to push a bit more in the [Wolf] Power Stage, but we had fog for a couple of corners that cost us important seconds and a few points but at the end of the day.
“I’m happy with the outcome. Now we can look forward to the Tarmac.”
Thu 03 Oct 2024
Neuville to relish asphalt return
Arriving at last week’s Rally Chile Bio Bío, Thierry Neuville knew the season’s final gravel encounter could be a tough one – the silver lining to the cloud which consumed the table-topping Hyundai was the two asphalt rounds which sat in wait at the season’s end.
Japan
Poland
Turkey