Is this the only reason that pushed Christian Loriaux towards the exit? Probably not. After three years at the heart of the Alzenau team's sporting program, the oldest and most renowned WRC engineer clearly needed to get some fresh air and offer himself a new challenge. But it won't be with Hyundai. Was it the fuse that was supposed to blow following the missed constructors' title? Did he pay the costs of a hefty fine for a technical infraction regarding the differential of the i20 N Rally 1 Hybrid inflicted on Hyundai the day after the Japan Rally and which could have led to the disqualification of Thierry Neuville in Japan… and in Central Europe, causing him to lose the title?
We will undoubtedly have these answers in some time, through a discussion. For now Cyril Abiteboul, the big boss of the Hyundai Motorsport sports program, simply wanted to thank the Belgian for his good and loyal service. “We would like to thank Christian for his contribution to our mission over the past three years, explained the Frenchman, former boss of Renault F1. He was a great personal support when I joined the rallying world and we wish him every success in his endeavours.”
Hyundai therefore recalled Pablo Marcos as team manager, after a season spent at M-Sport Ford. He succeeds Tolga Ozakinci, who takes on the role of head of racing operations within the technical team led by François-Xavier Demaison. However, we cannot help but think that Thierry Neuville and Martijn Wydaeghe have just lost a precious ally within their team and that Hyundai has just let slip away one of the only engineers in the world capable of taking advantage of the technical challenges of the new 2027 WRC regulations. Hence, of course, a new question about Hyundai's commitment to this discipline in the coming years.
