This archive report was first published on 21 June 2021.
Belgian driver Thierry Neuville and his teammates Ott Tanak of Estonia and Dani Sordo are gearing up for the World Rally Championship's (WRC) Safari Rally in Naivasha, Kenya, on June 24-27.
According to Neuville, their primary objective is to secure a top podium finish and accumulate a substantial number of points.
"This rally has not been in the championship for many years, so everybody wants their name on the list of winners. It’s definitely what we are trying to go for, especially with the championship being so tight," Neuville said in an interview.
The Hyundai team is aware that the competition will be fierce, particularly against the Toyota Gazoo Racing squad led by World champion Sebastien Ogier.
"We might have to take more risks if necessary to at least be able to do a gap to our main competitors because it will be a tight fight until the end of the season," Neuville added.
Despite their thirst for victory, Neuville acknowledges that they are not familiar with the challenging Safari Rally routes, which he believes will be an exciting adventure.
"I have heard many stories about Safari Rally from Bruno Thiry, who is part of my gravel crew. Thiry has participated in the Safari Rally many times. He has predicted that Hyundai Motorsport team will have a great experience and a great adventure at the Safari Rally,” Neuville said.
After studying the route and watching videos of the Safari Rally stages, Neuville believes the competition will be intense and feature a mix of challenging conditions.
"There are some really, really fast sections that are open where it looks very difficult to see where the road is turning, only a few places where you have some idea of where you’re going," he said.
"Then you have these narrow sections between the bushes, which are going to be more difficult.”
When asked about Hyundai's performance in the 2021 WRC series, Neuville noted that they have been strong in the circuit, with four podium finishes out of five races.
