Hyundai Motorsport has concluded the 2023 FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) with Esapekka Lappi and Janne Ferm ending in fourth place in Rally Japan.
The final day, Sunday 19 November, featured three stages, each tackled twice, with no midday service. Conditions remained tricky, with grip levels hard to predict. Lappi and Ferm found themselves at risk of a charging Takamoto Katsuta on Sunday morning, with the gap between them dropping to 16 seconds heading into the remote tyre fitting zone.
A fantastic run through Special Stage 20 – Ena City 2 – was enough to keep the Japanese driver at bay, as well as confirm a Hyundai Motorsport 1-2 finish in the stage. The Finns then set the third fastest time on the final Power Stage of the year to claim three bonus points from the event.
Thierry Neuville/Martijn Wydaeghe ended a disappointing weekend, where they retired on Friday while chasing down victory, with a flourish. The Belgians won both runs of Ena City and Asahi Kougen special stages, and finished second on each Nenoue Kougen test. Their final result of 13th place does not reflect the pace of the Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team crew in the unpredictable conditions. Maximum points in the Power Stage was a small consolation for the duo.
Overall, the Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team has claimed 2 victories, 15 podiums and 67 stage wins in the 2023 season and finished second in the manufacturers’ championship. The team will now focus on coming back stronger in 2024 with a refreshed line-up and clear winning intentions.
Crew notes: Esapekka Lappi/Janne Ferm
Lappi said: “My pace was getting better and better day by day. This morning I was not really satisfied, I felt I was really driving on the limit of the grip and I couldn’t match the times of Katsuta, especially on the wet tyres. At the tyre fitting, we made a change with the suspension set-up just to try something else, and it worked. In the end, I think we found something at the right time to stop him, which was important for that fight. It is good to finish the final rally without any damage to the car. I think my season has been 50/50; at the beginning I was learning a lot, the middle of the season was really good, but the end was not so strong. I’m looking forward to coming back even better in 2024.”
Crew notes: Thierry Neuville/Martijn Wydaeghe
Neuville said: “I’m quite happy this event is over. It was still an enjoyable weekend but we could have been in the fight for victory considering the speed we have. I’m really disappointed for that mistake but it is what it is, and I apologised to the team for it. We’re going to another good season next year; we took eight podiums (in 2023), but we also had a couple of problems that cost us important points for the championship. We were really only targeting victories at the end of the season – sometimes it works, but sometimes it doesn’t.”
Hyundai Motorsport team principal Cyril Abiteboul said: “Rally Japan is a good summary of our season – one that has shown a number of positives with our crews and our team willing to do everything to fight for wins and showing strong speed. However, we have also had some lost opportunities, either due to direct mistakes or lack of confidence.
“This was the case this weekend, despite us showing decent pace in dramatic conditions and on a surface where, at the start of this season, we were not as strong. Thanks to the efforts of our team to develop the car, we have improved this over the course of the year. It is a good foundation to take the opportunity of the break and focus on the targets we have to set ourselves for next year.”
Abiteboul added: “Finally, I would like to take a moment to pay tribute to our team-mate Craig. We have suffered a great loss this season. Craig had a passion and love for our sport that he could express like no other, and he is still greatly missed by everyone. His words should serve as an inspiration to all of us, even on our most difficult days. We hope to carry his spirit, drive and determination with us on the next stage of our journey.”
Final results Rally Japan:
| 1 | E. Evans / S. Martin | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 Hybrid | 3:32:08.8 |
| 2 | S. Ogier / V. Landais | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 Hybrid | +1:17.7 |
| 3 | K. Rovanperä / J. Halttunen | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 Hybrid | +1:46.5 |
| 4 | E. Lappi / J. Ferm | Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid | +2:50.3 |
| 5 | T. Katsuta / A. Johnston | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 Hybrid | +3:10.3 |
| 6 | O. Tänak / M. Järveoja | Ford Puma Rally1 Hybrid | +3:28.3 |
| 7 | A. Mikkelsen / T. Eriksen | Škoda Fabia RS | +7:33.7 |
| 8 | N. Gryazin / K. Aleksandrov | Škoda Fabia RS | +8:49.6 |
| 9 | K. Kajetanowicz / M. Szczepaniak | Škoda Fabia RS | +19:25.9 |
| 10 | H. Arai / H. Tachikui | Peugeot 208 Rally4 | +22:22.7 |
2023 FIA WRC final manufacturers’ standings:
| 1 | Toyota Gazoo Racing World Rally Team | 504 |
| 2 | Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team | 399 |
| 3 | M-Sport Ford World Rally Team | 271 |
2023 FIA WRC final drivers’ standings:
| 1 | K. Rovanperä | 235 |
| 2 | E. Evans | 191 |
| 3 | T. Neuville | 184 |
| 4 | O. Tänak | 162 |
| 5 | S. Ogier | 114 |
| 6 | E. Lappi | 98 |
| 7 | T. Katsuta | 89 |
| 8 | D. Sordo | 63 |
| 9 | T. Suninen | 42 |
