Hyundai Motorsport secured a double podium in its most successful visit to Safari Rally Kenya, with Ott Tänak second and Thierry Neuville third.
As well as two Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team crews on the podium, the team claimed the top three positions in the Super Sunday standings with Adrien Fourmaux leading the charge.
The final day of Safari Rally Kenya featured some of the fastest stages of the event, yet there remained the ever-present risk of damage or punctures on the rocky roads. The head-to-head Mzabibu stage (SS17, 8.27km) returned to open the morning, followed by Oserengoni (SS18/20, 18.33km) and Hell’s Gate (SS19/21, 10.53km), split by a 15-minute service.
A fierce battle unfolded in the Super Sunday standings. Tänak and Neuville claimed Hyundai Motorsport’s fifth 1-2 in stage on SS17 to take an early lead, with Neuville moving into first on SS18. Fourmaux then took second with a stage win on SS19 – the dress rehersal for the Power Stage.
On SS20, Fourmaux snatched the lead from Neuville with the second-fastest time. There was little between the two team-mates on the final test of the weekend, but ultimately it was Fourmaux who claimed the stage win, maximum Power Stage points, and first place in the Super Sunday standings.
Tänak continued his calm and determined drive to secure his first podium finish of 2025. The Estonian was third fastest on the Power Stage behind Fourmaux and Neuville – a Hyundai Motorsport 1-2-3 forming the final flourish to a difficult yet rewarding Safari Rally Kenya.
Hyundai Motorsport’s first double podium at one of its toughest events is testament to the improved reliability and robustness of the Hyundai i20 N Rally1, which claimed 10 stage wins and 28 top-three stage times this weekend.
Neuville and Tänak both secured 23 points apiece at Safari Rally Kenya to move into second and third in the drivers’ standings. Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team is 26 points behind first place in the manufacturers’ standings as WRC now heads to the first full tarmac event of the season, Rally Islas Canarias.
Crew Notes: Ott Tänak/Martin Järveoja (#8 Hyundai i20 N Rally1)
- Second Safari Rally Kenya podium for Estonian crew
- Tänak now third in drivers’ championship
Tänak said: “Really happy with the result today. A difficult and demanding weekend, but we are happy to bring both cars safely home on the podium. Our chances of victory went on Friday, but after that we kept it clean and now we’ve scored strong points on Sunday. There’s a lot of positives to take from this weekend. Really thankful to the team and the mechanics for keeping us in the game, there was never an easy service so a massive thank you to them. The cars were really put on the limit but the team has improved the Hyundai i20 N Rally1 and its reliability – we’ve been moving in a really good direction since Friday.”
Crew Notes: Thierry Neuville/Martijn Wydaeghe (#1 Hyundai i20 N Rally1)
- Belgians secure best result and first podium in Kenya
- Move up to second overall in the drivers’ standings
Neuville said: “We can breathe now; it was a very stressful day today, always thinking something could break. I think we have been rewarded for our hard work on Friday and Saturday. It was an enormous job between stages for me and Martijn fixing the car, and the team always had a massive job to fix it at every service. But we never gave up, even when things were looking bad, and that paid off. We finally got the result we deserved.”
Crew Notes: Adrien Fourmaux/Alexandre Coria (#16 Hyundai i20 N Rally1)
- Superb Sunday drive sees French crew secure 10 points
- Two stage wins on SS19 and SS21 to top Super Sunday standings
Fourmaux said: “A really tough weekend for us with the technical issues that started on Thursday, which was difficult to accept. I’m very proud of our performance on the stages today; we have scored some good points, and it is really positive to come home with those after a difficult event. I’d like to thank the team for giving me such a strong car today that allowed me to fight for maximum Power Stage and Super Sunday points.”
Hyundai Motorsport President and Team Principal Cyril Abiteboul said:
“Certain podiums feel like wins, and this is certainly the case today. While we have seen that we still have some reliability issues we need to overcome, we can be very satisfied with the overall result here at Safari Rally Kenya. This is the reward for our very strong pace on Friday and Saturday, and for the amazing work and team spirit demonstrated by everyone at Hyundai Motorsport in very challenging circumstances. While the result reduces our gap to Toyota in the manufacturers’ standings, we must now give Thierry and Ott everything they need to challenge Elfyn, who is enjoying a very strong start to the season. Adrien did exactly what he needed to do on Sunday, putting himself in a strong position amongst a group of very competitive drivers.”
Next rally
- WRC will take on a new tarmac challenge for the fourth round of the FIA WRC season, Rally Islas Canarias (April 24-27).
