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2020 FIA WRC Manufacturers' Champions
for the second consecutive year
2020 FIA WRC
Manufacturers'
Champions
for the second
consecutive year
IT’S THIS ONE PASSION
that unites us as a teamExecutive Vice President and Head of Product Division at Hyundai Motor Group
The performance and attitude of Hyundai Motorsport in this most challenging of season has perfectly embodied the character of Hyundai and our N brand. You don’t win a title by luck; it is earned through tenacity, ambition, determination and hard work with a human touch. Congratulations to the team for showcasing and upholding Hyundai’s principles and values in such tough ircumstances. We have already seen the positive effect our WRC activities have on the Hyundai brand with the all-new i20 N set to bring the thrill of rally driving to customers around the world.Vice President and Head of N Brand Management Motorsport Sub-Division at Hyundai Motor Company
Motorsport is the ideal setting to realize and showcase the potential of Hyundai cars to our customers. The achievements of Hyundai Motorsport in WRC represent the essence of out N brand—putting precision, performance and emotion at the core.This year has not only been a challenge to overcome the opposition, but also a challenge for the team in all aspects to be crowned champions once again.
Hyundai Motorsport Team Principal
Monza is so emotional for me and brings back a lot of personal memories. From arriving on Wednesday, I have had so many emotions in my soul. It’s been a tough year; we know how many struggles there have been in the world and I have had to make sure our team - my people - have been supported throughout. To come to Monza and to take our second title is just wonderful and a moment to cherish. Before the Power Stage, I said it was like U2 singing Faraway, So close, well now it’s a beautiful day. This is a result that we will share with the entire organisation and their families, as well as all our crews. Every single member of the team has pushed incredibly hard to get the most out of the situation and to improve our performance. We started strongly in Monte-Carlo a truly special moment for all of us - and since we returned after the summer, we have been very competitive.We knew we had to get the most out of limited events, and we returned to the top of the championship based on merit, performance, perseverance and hard work. I am proud to lead such an incredible team and to fly the Hyundai flag in motorsport. My thanks go to the FIA and the WRC Promoter for their efforts this year in difficult circumstances.
Hyundai Motorsport WRC Driver
A very special season comes to an end; it might not have been the championship that anyone expected at the beginning of the year due to the crisis, but we have achieved our goal to take our second manufacturers’ title. This is a phenomenal result for everyone at Hyundai Motorsport and I am happy to be part of this winning team. The Monza weekend did not go to plan for me and Nicolas after our retirement on Friday, but in the end the title is confirmed. My thanks go to every team member for their hard work and dedication. It’s time to celebrate!Hyundai Motorsport WRC Driver
Our first priority today was to ensure we finished the rally with Dani to make sure we cemented the manufacturers’ title for Hyundai Motorsport. It has been a really difficult rally from the start; we have had to endure some complicated conditions, which continued on this morning’s stages with tricky, rough roads. It was demanding but we achieved our target for the team, and it’s an achievement we can now celebrate together.Hyundai Motorsport WRC Driver
The target all weekend has been to secure the result we needed for the manufacturers’ championship. It has been an incredibly tricky event, but we have come through with another double podium result. For me, it wasn’t important whether it was second or third; we just needed to get the combined result for the team, which we have done. This has been a hard-fought result, not just here in Monza but at all the events since Monte-Carlo. The team has pushed all the way and we can now share a second championship title together.Hyundai Motorsport WRC Driver
Everyone at Hyundai Motorsport thoroughly deserves this result. I have had the privilege to represent the team in two events this year, and I’d like to think our performance in Estonia contributed in a small way to this title. It’s been a huge team effort, though, and that is to be commended in a year like this one. We’ve all pulled in the same direction even when things looked impossible.Hyundai Motorsport WRC Driver
Congratulations to my friends at Hyundai Motorsport for this title. It has been a joy to have been part of the journey for the past two seasons. The podium in Turkey was a great memory for me to take away personally but to win a manufacturers’ title again is a joint result; everyone has played an important role. I am sure there is even more to come for this team in the future.
We're happy that we were able to get this win and incredibly proud to have this whole team. Thank you for your dedication and support.
Head of Product Division Executive Vice President of Hyundai Motor Group
Hyundai Motorsport has truly captured the spirit of Hyundai and our N high-performance brand. The successes they have enjoyed over many seasons have been incredible to watch, and the influence on Hyundai’s road vehicles cannot be un-derestimated. We will now focus on transferring that winning feeling onto customers around the world and to enhance their enjoyment of driving Hyundai vehicles.Hyundai Motorsport Team Director
To win a World Championship is the highest career point of anyone involved in motorsport and it’s certainly a great sat-isfaction for everyone working at Hyundai Motorsport, abso-lutely every single person in the company. Never before this season had everyone in the company been so focused to do well, both in our WRC and Customer Racing activities. Each individual has their unique fingerprint on this result.Hyundai Motorsport WRC Driver
We have continuously developed our car throughout the whole season. I had a consistently fast car on all surfaces, which was one of the key things for our success. I also had strong teammates; Andreas finished fourth in the champion-ship, Dani secured important points during the season and having Sébastien was also very helpful. They all gave me such great support in the drivers’ title battle.Wins in 2018
Hyundai Motorsport finished the season in second place in the WRC Manufacturers’ Championship, as in 2017. Thierry Neuville also finished second in the WRC Drivers’ Championship for the third season in a row and will hope to win his maiden WRC title in 2019.
"It’s been a great season for WRC and we’ve attracted some new fans, so now we have a short break and we can look ahead to another season." concluded Thierry.
Retrospective from 3 victories
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#1 Rally Sweden - 15-18 February
Thierry Neuville won the rally by 19.8 seconds, while Andreas Mikkelsen celebrated his first podium for Hyundai Motorsport by finishing in third place. Rounding off a successful weekend, Hayden Paddon came fifth.
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#2 Rally de Portugal - 17-20 May
In 2018, Hyundai Motorsport triumphed at Rally de Portugal for the first time ever and secured the team’s ninth WRC win overall. Thierry Neuville delivered a masterful performance across the event’s 20 gravel stages for his second victory of the 2018 WRC.
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#3 Rally Italia Sardegna - 7-10 June
Belgian Thierry Neuville scored a clean sweep of stage wins and beat title rival Sébastien Ogier by 0.7 seconds at Rally Italia Sardegna, in one of the closest finishes in WRC history. The Hyundai Motorsport driver began the day with a 3.9-second deficit but won all four of Sunday’s stages.
The Best Season Ever
Hyundai Motorsports Team finished the 2017 WRC Season with the best results of all time. Recording four wins in the 2017 season alone, Hyundai now holds a total of seven victories since its WRC debut.
In 2018, Hyundai Motorsport Driving Team and the new i20WRC Racecar demonstrated a great amount of synergy with potential, raising hopes for continued performance in the upcoming season.
Extraordinary Performance
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A Record-Breaking Year
Hyundai finished second place in the Manufacturers' Championship with a record-breaking total of 345 points. This was the result of the Team’s excellent performance with 4 victories, 8 podiums, and 91 stage wins.
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Neuville The Ace
With a total of 4 victories, Neuville is the lead driver with the highest number of wins and also holds the record for the largest number of stage wins. This shows Neuville’s ability as a talented driver and confirms the excellent performance of the i20 WRC Rally Car.
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Andreas Mikkelsen Joins the Team
Hyundai recruits Andreas Mikkelsen, the Norwegian rally driver from Volkswagen which was the winning team in 2016. With the addition of Andreas Mikkelsen, Hyundai World Rally Team’s driver lineup has been diversified and upgraded.
Ranked #2 Overall in 2016
In 2016, the Hyundai Motorsport Team finished second in the manufacturer category with 12 podium finishes, including 2 in the first place. This was a huge development compared to just 1 first-place finish and 4 podiums in 2015.
The Hyundai Motorsport Team, which unveiled the i20 WRC race car based on the new i20 in 2016, will take another leap forward towards winning the competition with a new race car based on the new i20 coupe in 2017.
A Dynamic 2016 Season
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Hayden Paddon's first victory in the Rally Argentina
Hayden Paddon brought the Hyundai Motorsport Team its first victory during the 2016 season. It was a meaningful race not only because it was the team's first victory of the season, but also because it was Hayden Paddon's first individual WRC win. He showed a strong performance on dirt roads and left the Rally Argentina without any regrets, leaving him only to look eagerly towards achieving even better.
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Thierry Neuville wins Rally Italy to End the slump!
Despite a slump in the beginning of the season, Thierry Neuville won the Rally Italy mid-season and took the podium 5 times after that. He ultimately took 2nd place overall in the individual standings.
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Danny Sordo Reluctantly settles for 2nd place in Spain
Responding to the overwhelming support from his home fans in Spain, Dani Sordo led the race mostly in 1st place, but after losing the lead in stage 14, he had to settle 2nd place. Nevertheless, Thierry Neuville brought the silver lining by rallying into 3rd, giving the team a double podium in this exciting race.
Hyundai MotorsportSteps up its Game in the Second WRC Season
Hyundai establishes its presence in the second WRC season. Hyundai Motorsport established itself as a genuine contender after securing a historic 1-2 finish and two other podium finishes in its debut season. The team demonstrated further improvement over the season's 13 rallies, ending up with enough points to secure 3rd place overall.
With continuous development through lessons learned from driving on the harshest roads, the next-generation i20 Rally Car is gearing up for the 2016 season.
Continued Podiums in 2015
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The First Podium of 2015, Rally Sweden with Thierry Neuville and Nicolas Gilsoul
The Hyundai Motorsport team stepped onto the WRC podium for the fourth time in its short history, the first time this season, as Thierry Neuville and Nicolas Gilsoul stormed to second place in Rally Sweden.
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Double Podium at Rally Italia Sardegna with Hayden Paddon(2nd) and Thierry Neuville(3rd)
An impressive double podium was rewarded for Hyundai Motorsport - second and third positions have enabled the team to close the gap to the second in the Manufacturers' Championship.
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The Spaniard Dani Sordo Leads the Way with Podium at Home
Home hero, Dani Sordo of Hyundai Motorsports Team claimed valuable Championship points with his third-place finish In Rally de Espana.
Year one fact file for 2014
Hyundai Motorsport's maiden season in 2014 was full of highlights, memories, and firsts. With its continuously improving i20 WRC, the team boldly carried on during an extremely competitive and fierce WRC season. Hyundai achieved its first victory in Rally Germany after 9 attempts and took four podiums in three rallies overall.
Hyundai began its debut season in January 2014 in Monte-Carlo, with the shortest preparation time for any new manufacturer ever. It was just 394 days after the formation of Hyundai Motorsport GmbH, made possible by 8,000km of i20 WRC testing over 16 sessions.
Beginning of a New Era for Hyundai i20 WRC
Review of Hyundai Motorsport Team's first season On August 24, 2014, four drivers from the Hyundai Motorsport Team stood on the podium in Trier, Germany. The team scored a historic maiden victory in the FIA World Rally Championship, with Thierry Neuville leading teammate Dani Sordo home to a 1-2 finish in the team's ninth WRC event. Considering that the team had only been in existence for 18 months, the result is even more impressive.
This rally in Germany was straight out of a fairy tale: things looked hopeless after a major crash right before the rally, but the mechanics worked a remarkable 18-hour shift to fix the car just in time for the first day, after which the team miraculously went on to win their debut WRC event that very Sunday afternoon. The four days in Trier showed just how much the team had improved, leaving the world in anticipation of their journey onward.
Stepping up to the podium
Hyundai won its maiden victory at Rally Deutschland in August 2014 and became one of just two manufacturers to win a WRC event in 2014, alongside Volkswagen.
In its debut season, Hyundai took the podium in three rallies (Mexico, Poland, and Germany) with four podium finishes.
Michele Nandan, Hyundai Motorsport Team Principal