Rallye Monte-Carlo – Day Two

Hyundai Motorsport’s Thierry Neuville and Martijn Wydaeghe occupy third place overall at the end of a tricky second day of Rallye Monte-Carlo, the first round of the 2024 FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) season.

Photo:Hyundaimotorsport

After an early morning service in Gap, Friday saw crews head east for three stages totalling 105.72km in competitive distance: St-Léger-les-Mélèzes/La Bâtie-Neuve (SS3/6, 16.68km), Champcella/Saint-Clément (SS4/7, 17.87km) and La Bréole/Selonnet (SS5/8, 18.31km). There was plentiful surprises on Monte’s mountain roads, with many crews falling victim to ice patches in the morning loop.

The Belgians were quick out the blocks on Friday, mastering an unexpectedly icy opening stage to claim their first stage win of the day. However, their luck soon changed; a small moment on the following test saw them lose time, and they fell to third by the end of the morning loop. However Monte is a long rally, and the Belgians were on a mission after mid-day service. Neuville claimed two stage wins in the afternoon to remain in podium contention heading into Saturday.

Ott Tänak and Martin Järveoja had a dramatic start to the day after a patch of ice pitched them into a ditch. Thanks to some resourceful spectators, who helped push the Estonians back onto the road, they were able to get back on their way again. Although they dropped to fifth, they fought back up to fourth with the third-fastest time through SS4 Champcella/Saint-Clément 1. A consistent afternoon followed, but the Estonians remain in prime position to capitalise on any dramas for those ahead of them.

The steep learning curve continued for Andreas Mikkelsen and Torstein Eriksen, who prioritised becoming better acquainted with the car over taking risks in the demanding conditions. Their stage times steadily improved in the afternoon loop, and the Norwegians climbed up the order to sixth overall.

Crew Notes: Thierry Neuville/Martijn Wydaeghe (#11 Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid)

Belgians claimed three stage wins on SS3, SS6 and SS7
Just 16.1 seconds cover the top three after eight stages

Neuville said: “The speed is there but not everything went without trouble today. The afternoon went well, but the morning was a bit more of a struggle despite our fastest time on the opening stage. We had some trouble after the spin, our steering well was bent and we lost valuable time to Ogier. We are still within the fight; hopefully we will have a perfect day tomorrow and can get a bit closer to the lead. With only a 16-second gap, we are well within that target.”

Crew Notes: Ott Tänak/Martin Järveoja (#8 Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid)

Third fastest on SS4 after early scare on SS3
Clean runs in afternoon loop but struggled for rhythm on final stage

Tänak said: “It was a consistent day for us. The afternoon was quite solid, although the last stage was a bit more tricky, but other than that it was quite OK. This morning we were carrying maybe a bit too much speed and we paid the price, but the spectators made a good effort to get us back on the road. The car has been running smoothly with no troubles; I’m just trying to find a bit more feeling. I think I’m 80% there, I feel quite relaxed and comfortable in the car.”

Crew Notes: Andreas Mikkelsen/Torstein Eriksen (#9 Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid)

Norwegians gained in confidence with every stage on Friday
#9 crew climbed from eighth to sixth after opening test

Mikkelsen said: “Today we continued our big learning curve from yesterday but there is still so much more room for improvement. It’s getting more natural for me to carry that momentum into corners, so we will build on that tomorrow and try to increase our speed. It’s like night and day compared to what we have been driving for the last four years, and we are not even close to our potential – this is good to know, and something we can explore on Saturday.”

Hyundai Motorsport President and Team Principal Cyril Abiteboul said: We might sound like a broken record when we say Monte-Carlo can be tricky, but we have seen today that it is a well-deserved reputation with a number of cars caught out. Today, with three stage wins, we have shown we can fight at the front, even though we were one of the ones who had some moments. Thierry is in the game, so let’s see what we can do tomorrow; as for Ott and Andreas, they are building knowledge and confidence in the car.”

Saturday at a glance

Six brand-new stages await WRC crews on Saturday; Esparron/Oze (SS9/12, 18.79km), Les Nonières/Chichilianne (SS10/13, 20.04km) and Pellafol/Agnières-en-Dévoluy (SS11/14, 21.37km)
The routes are completely unfamiliar to current drivers, with some roads not featuring on the Rallye Monte-Carlo itinerary since the late 1990s.

Classification after Day Two

1	E. Evans	S. Martin	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 Hybrid	1:25:28.9
2	S. Ogier	V. Landais	Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 Hybrid	+4.5
3	T. Neuville	M. Wydaeghe	Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid	+16.1
4	O. Tänak	M. Järveoja	Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid	+1:13.6
5	A. Fourmaux	A. Coria	Ford Puma Rally1 Hybrid	+1:38.0
6	A. Mikkelsen	T. Eriksen	Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid	+2:58.9
7	G. Munster	L. Louka	Ford Puma Rally1 Hybrid	+3:27.1