Rally Sweden 2014 – Hyundai WRC Team Scores First Driver, Manufacturer Points

Rally Sweden is over, and the Hyundai Shell World Rally Team got both cars to the finish, while racking up their first manufacturer points in only their second outing.

Things didn’t start so well on Friday, when driver Thierry Neuville in the #7 Hyundai i20 WRC and Juho Hanninen in the #8 car were both forced to retire after coming into contact with rocks.

The fact that both were able to bounce back speaks volumes for the performance level of both cars.

The remaining stages were a real opportunity for the drivers to get a real feel for the i20 WRC in race conditions, whilst also giving the team as a whole some much needed experienced.

The team has said that they are not overly concerned with stage times at this point, but they must still be pleased with Neuville taking a pair of second place finishes during the event.

36m Long Jump With Hanninen’s i20 WRC

Another bright spot from the competition in Sweden came on the final day, with Hanninen receiving the coveted Colin’s Crest Award for the longest jump.

The Finnish driver was able to propel his i20 WRC 36 meters off the Vargasen jump. Despite the fact that Hanninen received a 25-minute penalty for using Rally 2, he was still able to make another big leap into the overall top 20.

The points picked up and awards received were proof that the team made the right decision in switching to Rally 2 regulations after their respective collisions.

There was a lot of hard wor put in by the entire team to make sure that both cars would be able to complete the event in Sweden.

The amount of experience gained from all the events that occurred should serve them well as they move on to the next round of the FIA World Rally Championship in Mexico next month.