Whatshot
Hyundai ends on high note with 1st and 3rd on podium in Rally Australia
Hyundai ends on high note with 1st and 3rd on podium in Rally Australia
Hyundai Motorsport has scored its fourth victory of the 2017 FIA World Rally Championship with torrential rain and Power Stage drama creating a thrilling final day in Rally Australia on the past weekend.
The Belgian crew of Thierry Neuville and Nicolas Gilsoul battled through the tough conditions to take a well-deserved win on Sunday, clinching second place in the WRC Drivers' Championship as a result.
Hayden Paddon and Seb Marshall enjoyed their strongest day of the weekend, finishing in third position for their second podium finish of the season. They were on course to take fourth, but were promoted to third after second-placed Jari-Matti Latvala went off in the Power Stage.
Stage wins for Paddon and Neuville brought the total for the weekend to 14 from a possible 19, the most the team has scored in any event in its four-season history.
The final day of action was scheduled to include five stages, two runs through Pilbara Reverse (9,93 km) and Wedding Bells (6,44 km), as well as tackling the longer 31,90 km Bucca test. Heavy made conditions so bad that the penultimate stage, the repeat of Pilbara Reverse, had to be cancelled.
In one of the most exciting and closely fought seasons in the WRC, the Hyundai i20 CoupÈ WRC performed at a competitive level in most events. The car has helped Hyundai Motorsport to underscore its credentials against tough opposition, taking victories on gravel and tarmac on three different continents, and showing versatility across the WRC's wide range of rally conditions.