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Double podium finish for Hyundai in thrilling Croatia Rally

Double podium finish for Hyundai in thrilling Croatia Rally

Date: 2022-04-29

Hyundai Motorsport emerged from a thrilling Croatia Rally with a double podium finish after Ott Tiinak and Martin Jiirveoja secured second position ahead of team-mates Thierry Neuville and Martijn Wydaeghe in third.

On a nail-biting final day of a tense rally weekend, the battle for victory went down to the wire, with Hyundai Motorsport's Estonian crew taking the lead before the rally­deciding Power Stage. Tiinak and Jiirveoja were eventually beaten to first place by a mere 4,3 seconds.

Sunday's itinerary covered a repeated loop of two stages - Trakoan-Vrbno (13,15 km, SS 17 /SS 19) and Zagorska Sela­Kumrovec (14,09 km, SS18/SS20)­covering a distance of just 54,48 km.

Competitors had to negotiate tricky conditions on the second pass through Trako??an-Vrbno. A shrewd tyre choice by Tiinak and the team saw the pair closed a 28.4-second gap to leader Kalle Rovanperii with a sublime performance to take their second stage win of the weekend.

The crew headed into the sunny Power Stage with a narrow 1,4-second advantage. Ultimately, despite a trouble-free run, the pair had to relinquish their brief lead and settle for second spot - securing their first podium finish of the 2022 season.

Neuville, meanwhile, had his sights set on the podium positions after a strong Saturday, which placed him just 4,9 seconds off third-placed Craig Breen. The Belgians overturned the deficit by the end of the opening loop early on Sunday morning with a confident stage win in SS18. The wet penultimate test allowed them to extend their grip on the podium with another assured performance ahead of the final run.

There was more drama to come for the crew, as they pitched their car into a ditch during the Power Stage; they were lucky to escape any significant damage, and nursed their Hyundai i20 N Rallyl back home in third overall - to confirm the team's first double podium since last year's Rally de Espana. It was also Neuville's 45th individual podium result with Hyundai Motorsport.

After three rounds of the 2022 championship, Hyundai Motorsport has moved up to second place on the manufacturers' table with 84 points. Neuville still holds second place in the drivers' title chase, with Tiinak moving up to fifth after his strong finish in Croatia, which included four extra Power Stage points.