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Hyundai Motorsport confirmed in a press release on Wednesday afternoon that Andreas Mikkelsen, last season’s world champion in WRC2, will switch to WRC1 next year and will alternately drive the third Hyundai i20 N Rally1 together with Dani Sordo and Esapekka Lappi. The team had previously announced that Thierry Neuville and Ott Tänak will contest a full championship in 2024.
Bron: BELGIAN
With five experienced drivers for three cars, Hyundai is confident that it can compete for three world titles in 2024: among drivers, co-drivers and brands. The mission of Sordo, Lappi and Mikkelsen is to support Neuville and Tänak in their battle for the drivers’ world title.
It will soon be Dani Sordo’s eleventh season at Hyundai. Like Neuville, the Spaniard has been part of the team since Hyundai’s debut in 2014. With 189 World Cup rallies, the Spaniard is the most experienced driver in the championship. During his time at Hyundai, Sordo won two rallies and stood on the podium twenty times.
Like Ott Tänak, Andreas Mikkelsen also returns to Hyundai Motorsport. He previously worked there from 2017 to 2019. In 2019 he finished second behind Thierry Neuville in the Rally of Argentina, his best performance with a Hyundai in the WRC championship. Since leaving Hyundai Motorsport, he won the WRC2 title in 2021 and 2023. Hyundai will make full use of his experience in WRC2 because in addition to driving in the WRC, he will also play an important role in the development of the Hyundai WRC2 for 2025.
Mikkelsen and Sordo also played an important role in the world title that Hyundai won in 2019. Details about their program will be announced in the run-up to Monte Carlo, the opening event of the 2024 WRC Championship.