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NEUVILLE CHARGES TO MONTE CARLO VICTORY

Thierry Neuville charges to Monte Carlo victory - Photo: LAT

By Bruce Williams

Thierry Neuville charges to Monte Carlo victory - Photo: LAT

Thierry Neuville charges to Monte Carlo victory – Photo: LAT

Thierry Neuville delivered one of the best drives of his career to win the opening round of the FIA World Rally Championship in Monte Carlo.

By DAN McCARTHY

The Belgian charged from third with just four stages remaining to win the tarmac rally after missing out by just 2.2s in 2019.

By winning all of Sunday’s final four stages Neuville shot up from third place to reward himself and the factory Hyundai squad their first Monte Carlo rally victories.

“The target was to win this rally and take revenge and it feels good right now,” said Neuville.

“It’s something we’ve been fighting for, for a very long time. Rallye Monte-Carlo is one of the most historic events that every WRC driver wants to win at least once, and we’ve done it.”

Neuville claimed maximum points from the event after winning the rally ending Power Stage by just 0.016s from the six-time champion Sebastien Ogier.

Sebastien Ogier came hold second on debut for Toyota - Photo: LAT

Sebastien Ogier came hold second on debut for Toyota – Photo: LAT

The new Toyota Gazoo Racing driver Ogier who had won the previous six events in Monte Carlo was pleased to come home second and 12.6s behind Neuville, after managing to overhaul his teammate Elfyn Evans in the final test.

Welshman Evans who entered the final day leading the rally secured third 1.7s behind Ogier.

Neuville’s new Hyundai teammate, reigning champion Ott Tanak did not have a good debut event with the Korean team crashing heavily on Friday.

The Estonian ran off the road around a fast left-hander resulting in the car flipping and barrel rolling down a hill for over a dozen seconds before eventually coming to rest. Both Tanak and co-driver Martin Jarveoja escaped out of the wreckage unscathed but the damage sustained to the car meant they could not continue.

Tanak’s former teammate Esapekka Lappi fared better finishing fourth in an M-Sport Ford Fiesta and in doing so secured a record-breaking 250th consecutive points finish for team, a streak that dates back to 2002. Teenager and top-tier WRC debutant Kalle Rovanpera in a very impressive fifth.

Both Lappi and Rovanpera overtook nine-time champion Sebastien Loeb on the final day after the Frenchman made a wrong tyre choice and nursed his Hyundai home to sixth.

Takamoto Katsuta scored a career-best seventh place finish, completing the rally ahead of Teemu Suninen who suffered a broken transmission on the second stage of the event

WRC 3 winner Eric Camilli and Norwegian Mads Ostberg who won WRC 2 completed the top 10 finishers.

The next round of the championship takes place on the snow and ice of Sweden from February 13-16.

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