Thierry Neuville ended Saturday’s schedule in second, 4.3-seconds from rally leader Sébastien Ogier

Rallye Monte-Carlo, the opening round of the 2019 FIA World Rally Championship (WRC), is shaping up for a thrilling final day with two Hyundai Motorsport crews still firmly in the podium fight as the rally intensified during Saturday’s four stages.

A repeat loop of two challenging but familiar stages – Agnières en Dévoluy-Corps (29.82km) and St Léger-les-Mélèzes-La Bâtie Neuve (16.87km) – formed the itinerary for the penultimate day, a total competitive distance of 93.38km.

Thierry Neuville and Nicolas Gilsoul kept pressure on rally leader Sébastien Ogier throughout the two loops, completing the day with a four-second deficit. Neuville’s previous best finish in this event was third place in 2016, a result that remains the team’s best Monte achievement to date.  

Sébastien Loeb and Daniel Elena continued their swift acclimatisation to the Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC, negotiating Monte’s complicated conditions in style. The #19 crew will tackle Sunday’s stages as part of a three-way battle for third place with Jari-Matti Latvala and a fast recovering Ott Tänak. Loeb currently has the advantage, 2.3s ahead of Latvala and 17.3s clear of Tänak.

There was less fortune for Andreas Mikkelsen and Anders Jæger-Amland as the Norwegians were forced to retire after sustaining wheel damage in the opening stage, having held a provisional podium overnight. With no Rally 2 regulations for the final day at Rallye Monte-Carlo, the #89 crew will now look to channel their encouraging pace this weekend into the next round of the championship, Rally Sweden.

Crew Notes: Thierry Neuville/Nicolas Gilsoul (#11 Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC)

• Belgian crew continued to keep the pressure on rally leader Ogier
• Four-second gap gives Neuville a shot at a maiden Monte victory on Sunday

Neuville said: “Overall it has been a good day and the game is still very much on. We have lost 2.3s compared to Ogier over four stages, which is not too bad. It was difficult to know what rhythm was best on these stages. I know I could have gone faster in some places, especially this morning, but if you push too much it’s easy to make a mistake. I didn’t want to take any risks but at the same time we had to keep the pressure on Ogier. It is his home rally so he knows the area very well. We will, of course, try to win tomorrow but we also have to be clever and think about the bigger picture.”

Crew Notes: Sébastien Loeb/Daniel Elena (#19 Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC)

• Home heroes continue to make smooth adaptation to Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC
• Close battle for third place looks set to go down to the Power Stage

Loeb said: “We have been in a great battle with Jari-Matti today, one time he was ahead and then it was me, things were constantly changing over the four stages. I’ve enjoyed it. This morning I wasn’t completely comfortable with the set-up of the car, so we made some adjustments at lunchtime service, which gave me a better feeling. The Toyotas have shown good pace today so the battle for third place will be tough. I will do whatever I can to push for the podium on Sunday, but we’ll have to see if that’s enough. I hope we will have less ice and more dry tarmac so we can get the slicks on the car for the final stages!”

Crew Notes: Andreas Mikkelsen/Anders Jæger-Amland (#89 Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC)

• Norwegian crew retired after SS9 with broken wheel while battling for podium
• No Rally 2 regulations means Rallye Monte-Carlo is over for the crew

Mikkelsen said: “I am really disappointed but there are positives to take away. It had been such a good start to the rally, and the feeling with the car has been fantastic. Unfortunately, at the end of the opening stage I lost the rear in a right-hand corner and the impact damaged the left-rear wheel. Game over for us and not the result we were going for. I’m really sorry for that on behalf of the team. Now we have to look ahead. We have been on the pace, fighting for the podium and that’s what we will bring with us to Rally Sweden.”

Team Director Andrea Adamo: “It has been a great day for our teas as we have Thierry and Nicolas in a position to battle Ogier for the victory tomorrow, with Sébastien and Daniel looking to be involved in an increasingly close podium fight. It won’t be easy and our rivals are looking strong, but to be involved in such an exciting finale is fantastic. We also suffered some disappointment with the retirement of Andreas and Anders after themselves holding a podium position. However, as a team, we will prepare for one final push on Sunday morning and aim to secure our best ever Rallye Monte-Carlo result. That’s certainly the plan!”

Sunday at a glance

• The famous Col de Turini offers one of the rally’s highlights on the final morning
• Crews have four more stages remaining over a distance of almost 64km
• La Bollène-Vésubie – Peira Cava (18.41km) and La Cabanette – Col de Braus (13.58km) will each be run twice with the latter acting as the Power Stage, where crews can add up to five extra points to their opening championship totals.

  Classification after Day Three  

Press release Hyundai Motorsport