After narrowly missing out on the World Rally Championship manufacturers' title to Toyota, Hyundai has changed its strategy for 2025 by employing a full-time third car driver it hopes can deliver the prize.
Adrien Fourmaux is the driver tasked with the honour of piloting a third factory Hyundai i20 N Rally1 in next season’s expanded 14-round calendar, in a move that team principal Cyril Abiteboul hopes will offer the Korean marque the final piece of its WRC jigsaw.
Fourmaux joining Hyundai for 2025 is not a surprise, with the Frenchman’s stock on the rise following a breakthrough season for M-Sport that delivered five third-place finishes (Sweden, Kenya, Finland, Poland Japan) on his way to fifth in the championship standings. His success led to the 29-year-old being linked to the team throughout the second half of the season.
It is also pertinent to note that this isn’t the first time Hyundai has tried to prise the driver away from M-Sport-Ford, having been linked to the team at the end of 2023.
But now Hyundai has landed its target, Fourmaux’s mission is clear. He managed to score 45 points more than the total accumulated by Hyundai’s third car crews this year, with the difference between Toyota and Hyundai in the manufacturers' standings just three points.
“Looking at what we have done this year, frankly it was a good year, but a season where we missed out on the constructors championship by a little bit,” Abiteboul told Autosport.
“Looking at the different challenges for next year and in particular Toyota going for a big push with four cars on a permanent basis, we thought to take a slightly different approach with a permanent third car. We want to have a focused effort from all three crews and in that context have Adrien Fourmaux in the team.”
This signing marks a significant change in strategy for Hyundai, as it has traditionally split its third car across multiple crews. This season it took that to another level with Esapekka Lappi (Sweden, Kenya, Latvia, Finland, Chile) Dani Sordo (Portugal, Sardinia, Greece) and Andreas Mikkelsen (Monte Carlo, Croatia, Poland, Central Europe and Japan) sharing the third car.
In principle, the strategy seemed good on paper. Lappi’s victory in Sweden and Sordo’s three top-five finishes certainly proved it could deliver. But even Abiteboul admits that, in hindsight, the extended time gaps for crews between events made it difficult for his drivers to deliver.
“Was it [our third car plan] the best choice? Maybe, maybe not,” says Abiteboul.
“I don’t think we can be too negative in our assessment of this year. We did miss out, but that can be attributed to lots of factors and not necessarily the third car.”
By moving to a full-time third car Abiteboul hopes to provide more stability. However, it is not only Fourmaux’s speed that has earned him the seat but his mental strength to “recalibrate” after difficult moments in his career, most notably a crash-strewn 2022 Rally1 campaign with M-Sport.
Abiteboul also offered praise to M-Sport for allowing the driver an environment to rebuild and grow during a 2023 season in which he won the British Rally Championship title and stepped back to WRC2.
“When you make a decision, you hope it is the right decision, but I think so,” Abiteboul added when asked if Fourmaux could be the missing piece of Hyundai’s plans.
“Again, because our approach is slightly different, we want to focus a bit more on stability of crews and that is what we are doing with Adrien.
“He started his career on a really strong foot with what he has done in junior FFSA programmes and then his first season [with M-Sport] in WRC2 [in 2020] was very strong.
“For sure, his career has had some difficulties at times. But the fact that he could accept that and take a step back, and that someone gave him the chance to step back, and I’m talking about M-Sport and [M-Sport founder] Malcolm Wilson for seeing there was more in him...
“The way that he has approached this period and transition, and the way he recalibrated, is clearly a statement of his mindset, his focus and determination.
“Clearly he’s had an excellent season this year. In terms of the context for next year, we feel he is the right choice for us.”
While Fourmaux has been signed to help Hyundai lift its first manufacturers’ title since 2020, all drivers have ambitions of being world champion, just as Thierry Neuville successfully achieved with Hyundai this year. So will Fourmaux be able to push for wins in a camp that houses WRC big guns Neuville and 2019 world champion Ott Tanak?
“There will be two parts in next year’s campaign,” said Abiteboul. “First and foremost, the first major target for us will be to fight back and hope to have revenge on the manufacturers’ championship, so that for sure is going to be his mission.
“Thierry and Ott very clearly will want to have a good go at the drivers’ championship. One thing that we don’t want is a stall in Adrien’s momentum.
“It is very clear, having had a number of podiums, he will be wanting to target wins. But I see that for the second part of the season, if everything goes to plan.”
Fourth car dream could offer Lappi, Sordo and Mikkelsen a lifeline
Hyundai’s decision to sign Fourmaux does mean the futures of two-time WRC rally winner Lappi, WRC veteran Sordo and three-time victor Mikkelsen are very much up in the air.
But they remain in Abiteboul’s thoughts for next season and he still wishes to field a fourth car at selected events, a matter that was discussed with Hyundai management at Rally Japan.
“I want to keep on dreaming of a fourth car, but I prefer to plan for three and if we can enter a fourth one at some point then happy days,” said Abiteboul. “It may be that it is something that we cannot confirm just now.
“Frankly when I say that I dream of a fourth car, it is also with them [Lappi, Sordo and Mikkelsen] in the back of my mind. I have enjoyed every minute of my time together with those drivers.
“There have been very good moments and I have very positive words for what they have done and brought the team and the group.
“I think now we have to make plans for next year, but clearly if we have an opportunity of a fourth car, we would love to have the opportunity to work with them.”
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