Rallye Monte-Carlo – Day One
The FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) began in inimitable style with the notoriously challenging roads of Rallye Monte-Carlo kickstarting the 2023 season with two thrilling night-time stages.
Hyundai Motorsport’s three pairings – Thierry Neuville/Martijn Wydaeghe, Esapekka Lappi/Janne Ferm and Dani Sordo/Cándido Carrera – made it safely through the opening tests; but there’s no such thing as a dry run for the Monte, and the rally’s infamous unpredictability certainly made its presence felt.
Anticipation for the season-opening round built gradually throughout Thursday, starting with morning shakedown (Sainte-Agnès/Peille, 2.29km). The team’s crews – including newest addition Lappi - explored the set-up of their Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid cars with three runs each to acclimatise ahead of the event’s opening stages.
Against the backdrop of the iconic Casino Monte-Carlo, a spectacular ceremonial start launched the season in style with all Rally1 cars and crews lining up in front of gathered crowds. The atmosphere was palpable as the excitement ramped up.
With formalities completed, crews headed off to begin Rallye Monte-Carlo in earnest with two epic stages held in darkness. A first run of the weekend up the legendary Col de Turini – on dry tarmac (SS1, 15.12km) was followed by the longer La Cabanette/Col de Castillon test (SS2, 24.90km).
Neuville, on stage-leading pace, survived a scare around ten kilometres into SS2 when a stretch of unexpected black ice saw his car slide into the bank at a left-hand corner. The Belgian crew was able to push on, but lost around seven seconds, dropping them to fourth.
With limited intel, Sordo and Lappi adopted an understandably cautious approach through the same icy section, ending the first loop of the weekend in sixth and eighth positions – and plenty of stages remaining. The itineraries for Friday and Saturday cover 105km and 112km respectively but with no lunchtime service, the team and its crews will have to be on top of their game.
Crew Notes: Thierry Neuville/Martijn Wydaeghe (#11 Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid)
- Clean run through SS1 saw the Belgians hold an early third place
- Black ice on SS2 saw the crew lose time after sliding harmlessly into a bank
Neuville said: “The first two stages of the rally went OK. I was a bit cautious on the first one, but we had a much better rhythm on the next. We got caught out on the only icy corner, which was not in our notes, and it’s still a question mark where that came from to be honest. I stalled the engine and lost seven-to-eight seconds. Other than that, we had a decent run and felt OK in the car as well. We were fastest up until that point. The last five or six kilometres were a bit of a struggle as tyre performance dropped off, and we lost a bit on the final split because of that.”
Crew Notes: Dani Sordo/Cándido Carrera (#6 Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid)
- Steady start to the rally for the Spaniards
- A cautious approach to icy conditions in SS2 saw them in sixth place
Sordo said: “I don’t like to make excuses; we were not on such a good pace today. In the first stage, I was feeling good. I was a bit scared of the tyres, but it was narrow at the beginning and the others pushed hard. The second stage was more or less OK. There was one part in the middle which I took very carefully because they said there was black ice in some places, but in the end, it was only at one corner. So, for one kilometre I lost a lot for no reason. The car looks and feels good; I’m happy so let’s see. We need to catch up a bit but tomorrow is another day.”
Crew Notes: Esapekka Lappi/Janne Ferm (#4 Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid)
- Finns are making their Hyundai Motorsport debut at Rallye Monte-Carlo
- Crew used the opening day to adapt to their new WRC car on tricky night stages
Lappi said: “It’s not ideal where we are, but I wouldn’t say there is any drama. The first stage was better than the second. There was an icy corner which I was afraid of; I was expecting ice elsewhere after that and I was just too careful and lost a lot of time. In the end, it was only in one place but when you don’t know, it’s better to take this approach. Still, it’s not a nice feeling to see you’ve lost 30 seconds. We had good grip, and the car turns well, but for some reason I don’t trust enough to keep the speed through the apexes; I need to understand why I’m thinking like that and braking more than I should. There are many new stages to come, and plenty of new opportunities.”
Hyundai Motorsport Team Principal Cyril Abiteboul said: “It has been good, finally, to be amid the action and to spend some time with the team on-site here at Rallye Monte-Carlo. Of course, we would like to be in better positions, but these are early stages in a long, tough event, which will be all about gaining confidence throughout the weekend. Frankly, the mission today was to bring back the cars, to get some mileage and experience. That was especially true for Esapekka, who has only had one proper day of testing on tarmac; we have to give the guy a bit of time. Dani hasn’t competed here for two years so we’re sure he can improve tomorrow. Meanwhile, Thierry has been in the game, despite a small incident on the ice, so we’re sure he will be in the mix. We believe the car is capable of good things, providing it remains reliable, which so far it has been. We’ve given the drivers the platform to perform, now it’s up to them to grab the opportunity.”
Friday at a Glance
- The first complete day of action for Rallye Monte-Carlo comprises a repeated loop of three stages: Roure/Roubion/Beuil (SS3/SS6, 18.33km), Puget-Théniers/Saint-Antonin (SS4/SS7, 19.79km) and Briançonnet/Entrevaux (SS5/SS8, 14.55km)
- Friday’s itinerary totals 105.34km of competitive stages, with only a remote tyre fitting zone to separate the two loops.
Classification after Day One
| 1 | S. Ogier | V. Landais | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 Hybrid | 26:33.7 |
| 2 | E. Evans | S. Martin | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 Hybrid | +6.0 |
| 3 | O. Tänak | M. Järveoja | Ford Puma Rally1 Hybrid | +15.4 |
| 4 | T. Neuville | M. Wydaeghe | Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid | +15.5 |
| 5 | K. Rovanperä | J. Halttunen | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 Hybrid | +17.1 |
| 6 | D. Sordo | C. Carrera | Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid | +32.1 |
| 7 | P. L. Loubet | N. Gilsoul | Ford Puma Rally1 Hybrid | +40.3 |
| 8 | E. Lappi | J. Ferm | Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid | +41.4 |
| 9 | T. Katsuta | A. Johnston | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 Hybrid | +57.0 |
| 10 | N. Gryazin | K. Aleksandrov | Škoda Fabia RS | +1:06.6 |
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