Rally de España – Day Two
Hyundai Motorsport has moved up to second place in Rally de España, the 12th and penultimate round of the 2022 FIA World Rally Championship (WRC), after a trouble-free Saturday on the Spanish tarmac.
All three Hyundai i20 N Rally1 cars remained inside the top-five with Thierry Neuville/Martijn Wydaeghe up to second spot, Ott Tänak/Martin Järveoja holding fourth and Dani Sordo/Cándido Carrera in fifth after the team showed solid performance.
The scene was initially set for seven stages, a repeated loop of Savallà (SS9/SS12, 13.93km), Querol-Les Pobles (SS10/SS13, 20.19km) and El Montmell (SS11/SS14, 24.18km), followed by an early evening test at Salou (SS15, 2.15km).
Held in drier and more consistent conditions, Saturday’s schedule started in style for Neuville as he fought to close the gap to the rally lead with a stage win. Second fastest through the subsequent test kept the crew in third overall but with a reduced gap to second place.
Cancellation of the first El Montmell stage, the longest of the day, prevented them from catching back any more time ahead of lunchtime service. Meanwhile, Tänak and Sordo retained their positions with a clean morning loop.
All crews continued to push hard into the repeat loop with Tänak taking two second-fastest times to remain on the heels of his team-mate. However, it was Sordo who impressed when it came to El Montmell, taking an emphatic stage win by five seconds over Neuville – a Hyundai 1-2, and fulfilment of a promise made by the Spaniard to his friend!
Neuville’s performance slashed the deficit to second-placed Rovanperä to 0.4 seconds, but a joint stage-winning time with Tänak in the final Salou test saw him move into second place by a margin of 1.4 seconds. Four stages are left to contest on Sunday, starting with an early morning challenge in the dark to provide the ultimate wake-up call.
Crew Notes: Thierry Neuville/Martijn Wydaeghe (#11 Hyundai i20 N Rally1)
- Second stage win of the weekend in SS9 (Savallà) showed Belgian crew’s intent
- A joint fastest time in the Salou stage moved the crew up to second overall
Neuville said: “It was a tough day, but we had some speed in the morning. We won the first stage, but the longest sector of the loop was cancelled, so we held our third place. We wanted to keep pushing in front of the fans; it’s been great to see so many spectators. We had less speed in the afternoon, but we were just hoping to stay in the fight for the lead. There wasn’t much more we could do. All three of our crews struggled to find that little bit extra to match the frontrunner. Some stages we were there, but others we weren’t. We’re going to see what happens tomorrow; it could be tricky in the dark early morning conditions.”
Crew Notes: Ott Tänak/Martin Järveoja (#8 Hyundai i20 N Rally1)
- Estonians continued to run in fourth place overall
- Crew claimed the equal fastest time on the Salou test
Tänak said: “It was an OK day for us. Technical wise, we had no issues, but we were just missing a bit of pace and lacking a general feeling in the car. This afternoon, I was pushing quite a bit, actually outside of my comfort zone. We had a moment, well it was actually more of an off, but we got back on the road. It was a bit of a miracle. Other than that, it has been a challenging day. The roads have been nice to drive, so we have tried to enjoy ourselves as much as we can. Tomorrow morning in the dark on tarmac could be fun.”
Crew Notes: Dani Sordo/Cándido Carrera (#6 Hyundai i20 N Rally1)
- Sensational stage win in the only pass through El Montmell
- Spaniards hold fifth place with four stages to run on Sunday
Sordo said: “We made some important set-up changes during the day, and we seem to have unlocked some performance and confidence from the car. Things were much better, and we could show that in the El Montmell stage. My friend said that I had to do a fastest time today, and not just the short one at Salou, so I knew it would have to be this stage. I know the people living in the area; they wait for me to come through. It’s really fast in the middle and you just want to push hard. The car was working well, so I could just enjoy it. I gave it everything I had, and it was an amazing time. This was the feeling I’ve been looking for all weekend. We’ve not been doing badly, but the times were not there. Tomorrow, there are more stages like this one so I will try again to find that confidence to push, especially for all these fans we have cheering us on.”
Deputy Team Director Julien Moncet said: “All-in-all, this has not been a bad day with three stage wins. Thierry was determined on a strong start to the day, which he achieved by winning the opening stage. He then struggled with the car balance and worked on improving the set-up. He won, equal on time with Ott, the last stage in Salou, allowing him to claim the second position overall, and he will try to seal this classification at the end of the rally. Contrary to yesterday, Ott had trouble-free day. Despite missing some confidence in the car, he pushed to the limits. He had some moments in SS14 but retained fourth position overall. Under normal conditions, the gap to the podium is too significant to be closed tomorrow but anything can still happen. After a cautious morning and some set-up changes during midday service, Dani realised an outstanding performance in El Montmell, scoring his first stage win of the rally. Consolidating his fifth position over the course of the day, his target on Sunday will be to keep his advantage.”
Sunday at a glance
- Four stages remain on the Rally de España itinerary for the final day, totalling 56.10km
- Two runs through Pratdip (12.15km) and Riudecanyes (15.90km) complete the rally, with the latter test being held as the Power Stage
Classification after Day Two
| 1 | S. Ogier | B. Veillas | Toyota GR Yaris Rally 1 | 2:10:18.5 |
| 2 | T. Neuville | M. Wydaeghe | Hyundai i20 N Rally1 | +20.7 |
| 3 | K. Rovanperä | J. Halttunen | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 | +22.1 |
| 4 | O. Tänak | M. Järveoja | Hyundai i20 N Rally1 | +36.6 |
| 5 | D. Sordo | C. Carrera | Hyundai i20 N Rally1 | +1:13.2 |
| 6 | E. Evans | S. Martin | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 | +1:27.6 |
| 7 | C. Breen | P. Nagle | Ford Puma Rally1 | +1:39.7 |
| 8 | T. Katsuta | A. Johnston | Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 | +1:58.6 |
| 9 | A. Fourmaux | A. Coria | Ford Puma Rally1 | +2:13.7 |
| 10 | P. L. Loubet | V. Landais | Ford Puma Rally1 | +2:59.2 |
