Hyundai holds onto podium position after challenging Saturday in Mexico

Hyundai Motorsport has taken an important step closer towards its objective for this weekend’s third round of the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC), with Dani Sordo extending his grasp on third place at the conclusion of a tricky day of rally action in Mexico.

Sordo defended his hard fought third place from a charging Andreas Mikkelsen throughout Saturday’s demanding stages, which included two passes through the 30.38km Ibarrilla and 42.62km Otates runs. The Norwegian’s retirement in the second pass of Otates gave Sordo welcome breathing space as he chases down his first podium of the season.

Hayden Paddon remains on schedule to meet his own personal target this weekend - a top-five finish - as he ends the penultimate day in a comfortable fifth place, less than a minute from fourth-placed Mads Østberg. Thierry Neuville was forced to retire from the rally in the first Otates stage (SS12) as he lost control of his New Generation i20 WRC. He was uninjured but will take no further part in the weekend’s rally.

Sordo (#4 New Generation i20 WRC) didn’t have the easiest of Saturdays as he looked to defend his podium position. A damaged fan in the morning loop caused his engine to overheat, while a spin at the end of SS12 lost him additional time. Along with co-driver Marc Martí, Sordo battled throughout the afternoon loop and ends the day still firmly in the fight for his debut podium of 2016.

Sordo said: “The good thing is that we are still in the fight for a podium after what has been a difficult day. The long stages we’ve tackled today have resulted in a few issues. This morning’s loop was not so easy as we had a broken fan in the long stage, which caused overheating. We had to put the engine in safe mode and lost a bit of power as a result. We were lucky to make it to service because the temperatures got really high. I also overshot a junction about 300m before the end of that stage and spun the car, which lost us a few extra seconds. We fixed the problem over lunch but I didn’t have the confidence in the afternoon. I just didn’t like the balance of the car on the hard tyres. It was very slippery, almost impossible to drive. We had no traction in the rear and that is something we have to work on. We have another really hard day ahead of us tomorrow - with the long 80km stage - so we have to be focused. Our third place is not guaranteed so we will have to remain concentrated. The rally is not over yet.”

Paddon and co-driver John Kennard (#20 New Generation i20 WRC) also had a troublesome day, sustaining damage to his toe arm suspension in SS12. The Kiwi crew tried to fight back in the afternoon but gearshift issues in the repeat of Otates caused further issues. Paddon took consolation from a strong performance in SS16 (El Brinco 2) to end the day in fifth place.

Paddon commented: “We can’t say it was the easiest of days today so we should be reasonably satisfied to hold a top-five position heading into the final day. The first stage this morning was OK. We changed the set-up and the feeling from the car was more precise, which allowed us to push with more confidence. Unfortunately, we ran into difficulties at the start of the long SS12. We touched a bank near the start and damaged the rear left toe arm, which we could thankfully repair. The car was a lot of fun to drive in the subsequent stages but we had more trouble in the afternoon - in the repeat of Otates - where we had to manage several temperature excesses in the car - engine and brakes overheating - and we lost the paddle-shift which meant we had to go into manual. It was OK in the fast parts but much harder in the twistier sections. There’s still a long way to go into this rally so I’ll be happy to keep hold of fifth by tomorrow lunchtime.”

It was a day to forget for Neuville (#3 New Generation i20 WRC) as he crashed out of the rally in the 42.62km SS12. The Belgian was taken to hospital in León for precautionary checks and was released with the all clear. He will take no further part in the rally and are already looking forward to bouncing back in Argentina.

Neuville commented: “We started the day well taking the second fastest time in the opening stage (SS11 Ibarrilla) and felt confident heading into the longer Otates stage. We started out in a good rhythm, trying to take advantage of our later road position. Unfortunately, I got caught 3km before the end in a fast section. The impact was quite strong and the car was heavily damaged. Consequently, I had to undergo some medical checks at the hospital but both Nicolas and myself are OK.”

Saturday’s stages in Mexico have kept the Hyundai Motorsport team busy with a number of issues across all three crews. The team has reacted well to the situations but will spend valuable time this evening looking into the issues ahead of tomorrow’s two final stages - including the daunting 80km Guanajuato stage.

Team Principal Michel Nandan said: “Overall, I am reasonably content with our positions on the classification. We have Dani in third and Hayden in fifth, which is not too bad considering the day we’ve had, There have been a few issues to deal with today that have made it a busy and occasionally difficult day for the team. Firstly, we are pleased that Thierry and Nicolas are fine after their off in SS12. Thierry was admitted to hospital for precautionary checks but everything was thankfully fine. Dani’s third place comes in spite of some technical issues, initially with the fan, which caused the engine to overheat, and then with a spin at the end of SS12 that lost him time. He was not happy in the afternoon loop so we have to sit down to understand where we can find improvements for tomorrow. Hayden, too, had some challenges today with a broken suspension this morning and some paddle-shift related problems this afternoon. He regained the top-five after Mikkelsen’s stop in SS15 but we will now make sure we are as well prepared as we can be for tomorrow’s monster 80km stage and the final Power Stage. There’s all still to play for and a lot still to lose.”

The final day of Rally Mexico will put drivers and teams to the ultimate test with the longest stage of the entire season - the 80km Guanajuato test which could transform the classification - as well as a repeat of the 16.47km Agua Zarca, which will be run as the Power Stage.