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Hyundai take step back in hunt of elusive Safari win
Chasing its maiden Safari Rally Kenya victory, the Hyundai Motorsport are ready to trade outright performance for improved reliability on the FIA World Rally Championship’s African outing this month.
Former world champion Ott Tänak offered an insight into Hyundai’s strategy for round three later this month, when he told the media he expected to drive a slightly older specification i20 N Rally1.
“We’re going to use the old car,” said the Estonian, who secured Hyundai’s only Safari podium with third place in 2021. “Reliability is the priority [on the Safari] and we know it’s there [with the 2024 car].”
“The championship is not starting in the right way for us,”
Defending world champion Thierry Neuville added more detail to the thinking about not using the new-for-Sweden i20.
The Belgian said: “We couldn’t test enough on rough roads and we know that the other car is strong on that side, so I think the team preferred not to take any risk on that.”
Tänak in action at Safari Rally Kenya in 2024
© Jaanus Ree / Red Bull Content Pool
Hyundai team principal Cyril Abiteboul admitted his squad needed to halt rival team Toyota’s perfect start to the year.
“The championship is not starting in the right way for us,” said Abiteboul. “However, it is clear that we do not need big improvements to turn things around. We need to focus on having clean rally, starting in Safari Rally Kenya, which will be a great opportunity to do better than the previous years there.”
