Hyundai Motorsport prepares for final Championship push in Rally GB

aims to take back second place in the 2015 FIA (WRC) in Wales Rally GB next weekend  The team has four cars and a revised line-up for the season finale with (#7) and (#8) representing the Hyundai Shell World Rally Team  moves into the #20 car driving for Hyundai Mobis World Rally Team alongside , who returns to the #10 car for the first time since Corsica.

Alzenau,

November 6, 2015 - Hyundai Motorsport heads to Great Britain next week for Wales Rally GB, the final round of the 2015 FIA World Rally Championship (WRC), with second place in the Manufacturers’ Championship still in sight.

The team has just a four-point gap to its closest challengers, the Citroën team, as the Championship heads to a thrilling conclusion with all efforts focused on overturning the deficit.

Hyundai Motorsport will field a fourth Hyundai i20 WRC car at Wales Rally GB for the fourth time this season. The team has also restructured its driver line-up for this rally to concentrate on the Championship charge, as well as allowing its drivers to prepare in the best way for the 2016 season.

Dani Sordo, who claimed a fantastic podium in Spain, will lead the Hyundai Shell World Rally Team in the #7 car, and will be joined by Hayden Paddon in the #8 car. Thierry Neuville will drive the #20 car for the Hyundai Mobis World Rally Team – scoring points for Hyundai Motorsport N - to help him renew his confidence for next season, with Kevin Abbring returning to the #10 car.

Wales Rally GB will pose a fascinating challenge for all the drivers next weekend as Hyundai Motorsport concludes just its second season in WRC. Rally GB was founded in 1932 but it was the introduction of forest roads in 1960 that led to the format for which it is recognised today.

Known for their high-paced curves through tight forestry and unpredictable conditions that can vary from mud to rain, snow, ice and fog, the Welsh stages demand utmost respect.

Teams will fit cars with gravel suspension and soft compound tyres to deal with the expected cold, wet conditions and drivers will need to remain alert to pace notes as precariously low grip levels and

roadside log-piles can pose a threat.

Team Principal Michel Nandan commented: “We reach the final round of the 2015 season still involved in a big fight for second place in the Manufacturers’ Championship, which will offer us an exciting rally. We have made some important changes to our driver line-up with Dani and Hayden scoring Manufacturer points for Hyundai Shell WRT. We decided with Thierry to give him effectively a ‘free’ rally so he can regain his confidence for the 2016 Championship. We will have four cars for this event with Kevin completing his four-rally programme at an event where he has previously been successful. Rally Wales GB is always a surprising event with very difficult conditions, muddy stages, limited daylight hours and inclement weather. There are long days for the whole team as we start very early in the morning and finish very late in the evening, so it is a rally with a lot of challenges. We will all be pushing to reclaim second, a position we have held frequently up to this event. It won’t be easy but we are up for the fight!”

Sordo (#7 Hyundai i20 WRC) heads to GB on the back of a home podium in Spain and will be aiming for more of the same when he takes to the Welsh gravel next weekend.

Sordo said: “We had a great result in Spain so I hope to take that feeling forward to the final round of the season in Wales. This particular rally is normally set in difficult conditions with slippery surfaces, filled with mud, rain and gravel and so is a special rally. It is a very difficult event and the last one of the season so we will be extremely focused. The most important thing is that I do the best I can in our fight for second place in the Manufacturers’ Championship in front of Citroën. I am confident we can do it if we can find a good rhythm.”

Paddon (#8 Hyundai i20 WRC) will help the team’s push for second in the Championship, as he moves into the Hyundai Shell World Rally Team for this rally. The Kiwi has built up a several top-five finishes in recent races and will be one to watch in Wales.

Paddon said: “Wales Rally GB is a bit like a home event for me, going back to an English-speaking country where I have a lot of experience. Wales is where I competed in my first WRC round outside New Zealand, many years ago, so it is a happy hunting ground for me! And obviously, now that we are scoring points for the team, we have to make sure that we have a strong event and try to bring home some good points. I am looking forward to the rain and the mud and to sliding around in the forest. Of course, we want to try and finish here on a high, so we will be pushing the whole time and seeing if we can finish in the top-five.”

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Neuville (#20 Hyundai i20 WRC) will use the opportunity driving for Hyundai Mobis World Rally Team to re-build his confidence ahead of the 2016 WRC campaign. He found good form in Spain and will continue finding improvements with a pressure-free Welsh rally.

Neuville said: “Wales will be a useful rally for us to try and find a good feeling with the car once again. We have an opportunity to drive without any pressure. It is run mostly in foggy and wet conditions. The rain can be quite heavy in fact, which makes the stages very slippery, especially on second pass when the roads are polished and you are driving on loose stones. The team is still in a close fight for second in the Manufacturers’ Championship and we will be wishing for the best outcome. From my side, it would be nice to rediscover the pleasure we usually have when and we hope that the team can build on the sort of result we had last year, when we were very close to the podium.”

Abbring (#10 Hyundai i20 WRC) will take part in the final rally of his four-event programme with Hyundai Motorsport in Wales. He excelled in Corsica, running as high as second, and will no doubt put his accumulated experience to good use next weekend alongside his British co-driver Seb Marshall.

Abbring commented: “I am really looking forward to Wales, which will be the culmination of the season. The conditions are likely to be some of the most challenging that we see in any of the WRC rounds. It is the perfect way to end the WRC season and my four-rally programme with Hyundai Motorsport, which has been an incredible experience. Each of the rallies I have taken part in this year has allowed me to make invaluable developments as a driver and I aim to put all of that to good use in Wales. I have experience rallying at Wales myself, winning the S2000 class in 2011, while it will also be a special event for my British co-driver Seb. I will push myself to the best of my abilities to finish the season on a high with the team.”

Wales Rally GB consists of 19 stages run through Mid and North Wales, and will be run from a service park located in , covering a total of 312.16km. Thursday’s ceremonial start will this year take place in Llandudno, followed by Friday’s southerly opening leg that sees drivers tackle fan favourite Sweet Lamb (2.9km) as well as Hafren, the longest stage of the rally at 32.14km.

Saturday’s itinerary is the longest with 142.28km of stages. Two loops through Gartheiniog (11.34km) and Dyfi (25.86km) are accompanied by a run through Chirk Castle (2.06km) and precede the two Dyfnant (19.02km) and Aberhirnant (13.87km) night stages. Sunday’s final northern leg includes the iconic headland run (4.74km) and two runs of Brenig (10.50km), once as the rally’s .

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Hyundai Motorsport Crews’ Info

Hyundai i20 WRC #7 Chassis number: 008 Dani Sordo Marc Martí DOB 2 May 1983 1 October 1966 First WRC event 2003, Rallye Catalunya 1992, Rallye Catalunya WRC starts 127 162 WRC podiums 38 44 WRC wins 1 3 Wales Rally GB starts 7 9 2006, 7th, 2007: 5th, 2008: 3rd, 1997: Ret., 1999: 16th, 2003: Ret., Wales Rally GB previous results 2009: 3rd, 2010: 5th, 2011: 19th, 2004: 4th, 2006: 7th, 2007: 5th, 2013: 7th, 2008: 3rd, 2009: 3rd

Hyundai i20 WRC #8 Chassis number: 014 Hayden Paddon DOB 20 April 1987 11 February 1959 First WRC event 2007, 1985, Rally WRC starts 46 54 WRC podiums 1 2 WRC wins - - Wales Rally GB starts 5 7 2007: Ret., 2010: 19th (3rd 1985: OTL, 1998: 24th (5th N4 PWRC), 2011: 13th (2nd class 2), class) 2007: Ret., 2010: 19th (3rd Wales Rally GB previous results 2012: 26th (7th SWRC), 2014: 10th PWRC), 2011: 13th (2nd class 2), 2012: 26th (7th SWRC), 2014: 10th

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Hyundai i20 WRC #20

Chassis number: 007 Thierry Neuville DOB 16 June 1988 5 February 1982 First WRC event 2009, Rally Catalunya 2007, Rallye Monte-Carlo WRC starts 58 53 WRC podiums 12 12 WRC wins 1 1 Wales Rally GB starts 3 3 Wales Rally GB previous results 2012: 7th, 2013: 3rd, 2014: 4th 2012: 7th, 2013: 3rd, 2014: 4th

Hyundai i20 WRC #10 Chassis number: 009 Kevin Abbring DOB 20 January 1989 29 May 1988 First WRC event 2007, 2008, Rallye Deutschland WRC starts 28 26 WRC podiums - - WRC wins - - Wales Rally GB starts 2 5 2010: 34th (1st class A6), 2011: 5th 2011: 12th (1st class 2), 2012: 25th WRC Academy, 2012: 20th (3rd Wales Rally GB previous results (10th class 2) class 5), 2013: 23rd (4th class 5), 2014: 32rd (4th JWRC)

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About Hyundai Motorsport GmbH Established on 19 December 2012, Hyundai Motorsport GmbH is responsible for Hyundai’s global motorsport activities and primarily for its World Rally Championship programme. Based in Alzenau on the outskirts of in Germany, the company embarked on its debut season in the FIA World Rally Championship in 2014 with a bespoke team of skilled staff and a brand new car, the Hyundai i20 WRC. The team made a strong impression in its first year claiming podium results in Mexico and Poland, as well as a memorable 1-2 in Germany with Thierry Neuville and Dani Sordo. 2015 is Hyundai Motorsport’s second season in WRC and the team aims to build on the firm foundations laid in its maiden year of competition.

Further information about Hyundai Motorsport is available at: http://motorsport.hyundai.com

About Established in 1967, Hyundai Motor Company is committed to becoming a lifetime partner in automobiles and beyond. The company, which leads the Hyundai Motor Group, an innovative business structure capable of circulating resources from molten iron to finished cars, offers top-quality best-sellers such as Elantra, Sonata and Genesis. Hyundai Motor has eight manufacturing bases and seven design & technical centers worldwide and in 2014, sold 4.96 million vehicles globally. With almost 100,000 employees worldwide, Hyundai Motor continues to enhance its product line-up with localized models and strives to strengthen its leadership in clean technology, starting with the world’s first mass-produced hydrogen-powered vehicle, ix35 Fuel Cell.

More information about Hyundai Motor and its products can be found at: http://worldwide.hyundai.com or http://www.hyundaiglobalnews.com

To download high resolution photos for editorial use, full driver’s profiles, as well as other useful press information about the team please refer to: https://motorsport.hyundai.com/en/press Username : HyundaiWRC Password : hmsg2013

For individual information please contact:

Thomas Villette Nicoletta Russo Phone: +49-151 11354339 Phone: +49-151 1135 4362 [email protected] [email protected]

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