After driving “as good as he’s ever driven” in Paraguay, Rally Chile could present Adrien Fourmaux “a very good opportunity” to claim a maiden World Rally Championship victory, according to Hyundai Motorsport.
The Frenchman has been knocking on the door of an elusive first WRC win. The Hyundai factory driver came close in last year’s Saudi Arabia season finale, however a check-in error while leading the event forced Fourmaux and co-driver Alex Coria to settle for second.
This year, Fourmaux has often led the Hyundai charge in terms of outright pace, with a best result of a second place at Safari Rally Kenya coming after losing more than two minutes on the opening stage.
Last time out in Paraguay, Fourmaux was again in the victory fight before punctures provided a setback. The 31-year-old, however, produced a head turning performance to fight back to third, after taking a minute out of the frontrunners, ending the rally with nine stages wins. Fourmaux declared after the rally that he felt he “deserved the victory”.
Impressed by the drive in Paraguay, Hyundai sporting director Andrew Wheatley is convinced a first win will arrive sooner or later and believes this weekend’s outing in Chile could provide an opportunity.
“It’s [the first win] going to happen. There’s no question,” Wheatley told Autosport. “He’s now addressed and identified all of the challenges that were keeping him off the top step. I think his performance in Paraguay was about as good as he’s ever driven.
Adrien Fourmaux, Alexandre Coria, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1
Photo by: Hyundai
“The reason why I say that is because his performance was consistent. Where he’s making a positive impression at the moment is he drove every stage at a 100% and that’s difficult to do, particularly in those challenging conditions.
“But that’s how you win rallies by being consistent and consistently performing at a high level. And I think you know he’s mentally pretty strong at the moment. I think it’ll be a bit like Sami Pajari, who has won his first three WRC victories back-to-back [this year]. Once he can get that win off his shoulders, it will flow a lot easier.
“In terms of pure pace, we saw it earlier in the year in Safari where he dropped two minutes and 15 seconds on the first stage and finished second by 25 seconds. So that was annoying.
“Paraguay was equally annoying because he dropped around about three minutes with punctures and little problems over the weekend and again was able to take a minute out of Elfyn [Evans]. On Saturday, taking a minute out of a guy that’s fighting for the world championship and a minute out of Sami as well is difficult.
“I believe the win is coming. I think this is probably a very good opportunity. He was fast here last year but if he can have the same rhythm that he had in Paraguay here, I think he could be ready to fight for a win.”
Fourmaux showcased his speed in Chile last year after enjoying a spell in the lead before eventually finishing in third.
Andrew Wheatly, Hyundai World Rally Team Hyundai i20 N Rally1
Photo by: Hyundai
This weekend’s event is expected to be largely dry, but the stages will be abrasive in places offering a high puncture risk. Crews will however have eight extra tyres at their disposal following a change in the regulations.
Road sweeping is also likely to be a factor, meaning road position will be crucial. Fourmaux will begin the rally from fifth on the road.
“I’m really looking forward to Rally Chile after showing very strong pace throughout the weekend in Paraguay – it gives us confidence and hopefully we can carry this performance into Chile,” said Fourmaux.
“It’s a rally I really enjoy, last year we were fighting at the front, and we finished on the podium. The stages are fast and flowing, but also quite technical, so you need a lot of precision and confidence in the car. We know we were competitive there last year, and after the performance we had in Paraguay, the target is to fight at the front again and push for the best possible result.”
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– The Autosport.com Team
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