Hyundai Motorsport has confirmed a three-car line-up for the final round of the 2017 FIA World Rally Championship, Rally Australia.
The team will contest the event with Thierry Neuville and Nicolas Gilsoul, Andreas Mikkelsen and Anders Jæger, as well as the Hayden Paddon and Seb Marshall.
The logistics of the rally prevents the team from running a four-car entry. The team chose these crews, believing they represent its best chance of success in Australia.
Neuville finished on the podium in last year’s event, having registered a previous best finish of second place in 2013. Mikkelsen has built up a strong track record at the rally in recent years, memorably winning the 2016 season finale. Paddon, meanwhile, has scored three consecutive top-six finishes in Rally Australia for Hyundai Motorsport, an event in which the Kiwi receives plenty of support from local fans and supporters travelling from New Zealand.
Team Principal Michel Nandan said:“The complexity of logistics for Rally Australia meant that we were not able to run a four-car entry, although that would have been the ideal solution. We had to make the decision based on which combination of crews we felt would give us the strongest
“The complexity of logistics for Rally Australia meant that we were not able to run a four-car entry. Although that would have been the ideal solution. We had to make the decision based on which combination of crews we felt would give us the strongest all-round chance on the Australian gravel. Thierry scored our first Australian podium last year, an event that was won by Andreas and Hayden has made continuous improvements year-on-year in this rally. We want to finish the season in the most competitive way possible, to lay ourselves strong foundations for next year – that’s our aim.”
Hyundai Motorsport has confirmed a three-car line-up for the final round of the 2017 FIA World Rally Championship, Rally Australia
Get on-board with @AMikkelsenRally & Anders as they tackle the gravel roads of @RallyRACC! #WRC #HyundaiWRC
? https://t.co/yz0NaTmrwt— Hyundai Motorsport (@HMSGOfficial) October 12, 2017
