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11.05.2018 Press release

Hyundai Motorsport Preview: Portugal

  • Hyundai Motorsport returns to Europe with a four-car entry into Rally de Portugal, round six of the 13-event 2018 FIA World Rally Championship (WRC)
  • Hayden Paddon returns to the line-up alongside Andreas Mikkelsen, Thierry Neuville and Dani Sordo as the team aims to retain its lead in the manufacturers’ standings
  • Hyundai Motorsport’s Driver development Program (HMDP) crew also competes in Portugal, with Jari Huttunen taking part in his third WRC2 event of the season.

Press material

Hyundai Motorsport will field a four-car entry into next weekend’s Rally de Portugal and second in a run of four consecutive gravel rallies.
Hyundai Motorsport will field a four-car entry into next weekend’s Rally de Portugal, the sixth round of the 2018 FIA World Rally Championship (WRC), and second in a run of four consecutive gravel rallies.
Currently leading the manufacturers’ championship with a 15-point advantage over M-Sport Ford, the team will be aiming to continue its competitive start to the season with another fight for the podium positions.
Hayden Paddon returns for his first WRC event since finishing fifth in Rally Sweden back in February, joining Andreas Mikkelsen, Thierry Neuville and Dani Sordo in the Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC. All four crews have had the opportunity to test prior to the rally, which promises to be another closely fought battle among the WRC manufacturer teams.
In accordance with WRC regulations, only three crews will be eligible for championship points for the Hyundai Motorsport team, with the two highest finishers per team scoring. The team has already named Mikkelsen, Neuville and Paddon, with Sordo taking control of the fourth car.
Rally de Portugal consists of 20 special stages over four days of action, a total distance of 358km, following an itinerary almost identical to last year, when Hyundai Motorsport secured a double podium finish. The schedule builds towards an exhilarating Power Stage on Sunday morning, the famous Fafe test that offers an electric atmosphere and a thrilling finale to a tricky rally.
Portugal is set to be our busiest rally of the season in terms of car and team operations. Running four Hyundai i20 Coupe WRCs will require us to be extra focused and diligent. There is no room for error, as we target another strong all-round team performance. We welcome Hayden and Seb back into the team, and are confident that they will make their presence felt on the standings from the outset. All four crews have tested ahead of the event in order to be as prepared as we can for another close battle.

Michel Nandan Team Principal

In addition to its four WRC cars, Hyundai Motorsport will also have WRC2 representation from its HMDP crew Jari Huttunen and Antti Linnaketo. The Finnish duo will be taking part in their third event of the season after Rally Sweden and Rally Mexico, in which they showed encouraging pace and performance. They have carried out testing in Portugal to acclimatise to the conditions and the car, so they can hit the ground running next week.
We have been satisfied with how Jari and Antti approached their first two rallies of the year in Sweden and Mexico. They were two very contrasting events and Portugal will offer a new learning experience for the pair. The first objective is for them to finish the rally, and to gain a full experience of the Portuguese round of the Championship in their Hyundai i20 R5, but then to show some speed against the more established names in WRC2. They are well used to gravel rallies, so we have high hopes for them.

Michel Nandan Team Principal

Bite-size Portugal


  • 20 special gravel stages contested over a 358.19km competitive distance.
  • Event gets underway on Thursday evening with a super special at the Lousada rallycross circuit
  • A full day of action on Friday ends with new-look street stages in Porto
  • Saturday, the longest day of the rally with 154km of stages, consists of a repeat loop of the 17.50km Vieira do Minho, 22.22km Cabeceiras de Basto and 37.60km Amarante tests, the latter being the longest individual stage of the rally
  • Sunday’s schedule revolves around the legendary Fafe jump, with a spectacular Power Stage in front of thousands of fans.

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