Craig Breen and Paul Nagle have been confirmed in Hyundai’s World Rally Car line-up for October’s Rally Finland. It will be the Irish pairing’s fifth WRC appearance of 2021.
Hyundai’s two full-time drivers, Thierry Neuville and Ott Tanak, will pilot the other two i20 WRCs.
Breen has been one of the most impressive drivers in the World Rally Championship’s last two rounds. The Irish crew claimed a brace of runner-up finishes on Rally Estonia and Ypres Rally Belgium in July and August.
Despite their form, Hyundai continued with its policy of rotating car number three between Breen and Dani Sordo. The Spaniard will tackle WRC’s next round, the Acropolis Rally, in September.
Hyundai also confirmed Jari Huttunen and Oliver Solberg will drive two Rally2 i20s in Rally Finland’s WRC 2 category. The junior drivers debuted Hyundai’s new Rally2 specification challenger on Ypres Rally Belgium earlier in August.
Rally Finland was Breen and Nagle’s first world rally with Hyundai back in 2019. They finished seventh on the famous flat-out rally having missed out on several months of WRC action after their exit from Citroen at the end of 2018.
This year’s Rally Finland will be very different to its previous editions. Running in autumn rather than its usual summer slot to increase the opportunity to have spectators stage-side; the rally will be darker, colder, and damper than before.
Whatever the weather, Breen will have one thing in mind – wringing the neck out of his Hyundai. With only Rally Spain and Japan remaining, Rally Finland could be his last chance to prove his world rally pace this season.
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Photos by Hyundai Motorsport