Neuville's Priority is to Stay with Hyundai for 2027

Thierry Neuville has spoken out about his future in the World Rally Championship. The 2024 world champion has made it clear that his main priority is to remain with Hyundai Motorsport through the 2027 season, despite the uncertainty surrounding the Korean manufacturer's presence in WRC.

In an exclusive interview with DirtFish, Thierry Neuville admitted he has done a lot to keep Hyundai in WRC. "Today, my clear focus is to stay with Hyundai and it's my priority number one," he said. "Hopefully we can start something for next year."

This uncertainty stems from the new 2027 WRC regulations. Toyota is set to build a brand-new WRC27 car, while M-Sport is developing a kit for its Fiesta Rally2. Hyundai, on the other hand, is only updating its i20 N Rally2 with no plans to develop a kit. As a result, Hyundai could be ineligible to compete for the manufacturers' championship in 2027.

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Despite that, Neuville remains optimistic. He stressed that WRC needs real manufacturers like Hyundai. "The championship needs real manufacturers, people with the budget to support the new promoters and make the championship great again. And I'm not sure the tuners currently have the opportunity to do that," he added.

The situation is made more interesting by the emergence of a new project called Project RallyOne. Project leader Lionel Hansen revealed they have spoken to more than 20 P1 and P2 drivers ahead of their WRC debut next year. However, when asked if Neuville was interested, the answer was a firm "No."

Neuville also stressed that he is in no rush to make a decision. "I have done already a lot over the past years and we are still here, which wasn't necessarily supposed to be," he said. "But now, for sure it will be different from next year on. For how long I don't know, but hopefully we can find a good solution for next year to keep a foot in rallying."

He also hinted that his future doesn't depend solely on Hyundai, but also on the direction of WRC. "It also depends on what a new promoter is able to do and how the championship turns out to be," he concluded. With the new regulations on the horizon, Neuville's decision will be one of the hottest stories in rallying.