Thierry Neuville has hailed his third-place finish at Safari Rally Kenya as a hard-earned reward after enduring one of the most gruelling weekends of his FIA World Rally Championship career.
The Belgian battled through a barrage of setbacks – including illness, time penalties, and recurring mechanical issues – to claim the final step on the podium behind Hyundai team-mate Ott Tänak and event winner Elfyn Evans.
Neuville’s rally unravelled early, with a one-minute time penalty on Friday morning after his car’s gearbox change overran the service window. A puncture followed later that day, before Saturday delivered another wave of drama: a 50-second penalty for lateness after repairing his i20 N Rally1’s cooling package on a road section, and 10 more seconds added for a jump start.
The defending world champion also stopped to change a wheel on Saturday’s opening stage, struggled with a misted windscreen during a rain-soaked afternoon, and suffered another puncture on the penultimate test.
On top of that, Neuville revealed he felt unwell – possibly due to heat exhaustion – and didn’t sleep at all on Friday night before facing one of the rally’s toughest legs.
Neuville and co-driver Martijn Wydaeghe celebrate their third-place result
“I mean, if we wouldn’t have been rewarded for all that effort this weekend, I would have been really disappointed,” Neuville said. “But again, it shows that rallying is the toughest motorsport in the world – and maybe one of the toughest sports [in general].
“You’re fighting for a whole week. The recce was already tough and challenging, but the rally was just another dimension this year, to be honest – in terms of conditions, challenges, so many difficulties, and obviously so many problems as well for us. And the health as well – that made it not much easier.”
Hyundai fielded its older-specification i20 N Rally1 in Kenya in pursuit of increased reliability. Neuville backed the decision but admitted lingering technical gremlins remain a concern.
“We had a great Sunday. I was really afraid that something was going to break down, but it didn’t – so I’m super happy,” he added.
“The rally just was another dimension this year – in terms of conditions, challenges, and so many difficulties.“
