Breaking news: Ott Tänak is moving to Hyundai Motorsport
The freshly-crowned World Rally Champion Ott Tänak is moving to Hyundai Motorsport from the 2020 WRC season, it was announced today by the German-Korean team.
After two seasons with Toyota, in which he contributed to Teams’ title in 2018 and won Driver’s title in 2019, the 32-year-old Estonian and his navigator Martin Jarveoja will change racing suits and move into a Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC. Tanak and Hyundai signed a two-year contract.
Ott Tanak will drive for Toyota in one more WRC event, the Rally Australia
“I am really excited to join Hyundai Motorsport from the 2020 WRC season. The vision that Andrea has set out is very promising and matches my own ambitions for the future. It’s a big honour for me to have the opportunity to join the team at this exciting stage of our respective careers.
I have big respect for what Hyundai has accomplishedwe’ve been fighting closely against each other for a number of seasons. They have always had a competitive team and car, so now it will be interesting to see things from the other side. The driver line-up is good, and I am looking forward to seeing what we can achieve together over the coming years,” said Ott.
“Signing a two-year deal with Ott is a demonstration of Hyundai’s continued commitment and ambitions in the World Rally Championship. We are involved in a very close fight for the title this season. Bringing Ott and Martin into the team from 2020 will enable us to continue to be at the forefront for the coming years. He is an exceptional talent, as we have all seen, impressively quick and consistent on all terrains and he will be a real asset to Hyundai Motorsport,” said Team Director Andrea Adamo.
Thierry Neuville and Nicolas Gilsoul will stay with Hyundai in 2020
Ott Tanak will join Thierry Neuville for a full season, while Dani Sordo and Sebastien Loeb will share the third car throughout the year. The team also remains in discussion with Andreas Mikkelsen and Craig Breen regarding a possible WRC collaboration in 2020.
Andrea added: “With this announcement, we have four crews confirmed for the 2020 seasonThierry and Ott will contest all 14 rounds on the calendar in their own i20 Coupe WRC, with Dani and Sébastien sharing a third car. It is a potent and inspiring crew line-up, which will set a high benchmark to which the entire team will aspire. We also remain in conversation with Andreas and Craig to see how we might be able to collaborate in WRC next season.”
Photos: Hyundai Motorsport, Toyota Gazoo Racing,
