Hyundai Conquers a Crash-Filled Rally Sweden 2018
The World Rally Championship made one of its iconic stops on the calendar, and it surely didn’t disappoint.
Belgian rally drivers Thierry Neuville and Nicolas Gilsoul won the treacherous Rally Sweden 2018, becoming only the third non-Nordic crew to claim victory in the rally's 66-year history. The mighty powerful Hyundai i20 Coupe managed to beat rally favorites Jari-Matti Latvala at the wheel of his Toyota Yaris and the Ford Fiesta of Sebastien Ogier.
As it's often the case, Rally Sweden was filled with crashes, spins, and lots and lots of snow, which proved to be simply too much for even the series' veteran drivers. One of the most notorious collisions of this year's rally happened when Ott Tänak rammed his Toyota Yaris into the back of Kris Meeke, who was circulating at low speed due to prior damage to his Citroen C3. With nothing other than two snow banks on either side, Tänak clipped the Citroen and ricocheted onto a snow bank. This onboard video shows the exact moment when this accident happens, along with other highlights of the frigid rally.
Winning the second rally in a long season of 13 events around the globe means that Hyundai's WRC team now heads into Guanajuato, Mexico with renewed confidence. Of course, we can expect powerhouses like Latvala and Ogier to be extra-hungry as soon as they touchdown in the Aztec country, and we're referring to hunger for victory, not delicious Mexican food.
