Neuville world champion: The highlights of his coronation

That's it, Thierry Neuville can exult: he is the WRC world rally champion. Twelve years after his debut with Citroën Junior Team and 5th runner-up later, the Belgian secured his first world crown. The opportunity for him to get rid of this eternal Poulidor cap that he had been carrying with him for many seasons.

The task ended up being simpler than expected. If he had to push during the day on Saturday to find the Top 10 after his mechanical setbacks on Friday, the Hyundai driver took advantage of Ott Tänak's catastrophic start this Sunday to celebrate. Indeed, the Estonian made a mistake in the first special of the day which assured the title to his teammate, informed of the news during the liaison.

This crowns a season that is quite difficult to read between great victories like this second Monte-Carlo opening or even this difficulty in returning to success because of his role as opener which he so much decried during the year.

From the stages of the Monegasque classic to his coronation on Japanese soil this Sunday via his Italian misadventures ultimately not as catastrophic as imagined, a look back at the campaign of Thierry Neuville finally world champion.

Monte-Carlo and a great start

What could be better than a victory on one of the most prestigious rallies than Monte-Carlo to kick off your season? Probably nothing! On the icy roads around the Principality, Thierry Neuville produced one of his most beautiful copies. Four years after his first victory there, he doubled the score at the end of a dream weekend: 9 special stages won out of 17, the maximum possible points thanks to this new scale (30) with the highlight being the best time during the Power Stage. Boss size!

Croatia-Portugal, two podiums in a row and big points

Leader of the championship after his triumph in Monte-Carlo and his 4th place in Sweden, the child from Saint-Vith is struggling to fight for victory on a regular basis due to his position as opener. Despite everything, he did not give up and managed to achieve very good results, notably against Ott Tänak, Elfyn Evans and the Toyota intermittents Kalle Rovanperä and Sébastien Ogier. The Croatia-Portugal sequence appeared to be a revelation for him. Unable to compete against Ogier, the Belgian took advantage of the current scale to be able to grab valuable points like the 18 and 13 on each Saturday of these two events. For comparison, he only scored three points less over these two weekends than Ogier, winner each time.

A 41st place in Sardinia very well rewarded

Out of the race on Saturday on the Italian island after his accident on SS8, Thierry Neuville decided not to throw in the towel for the future, and rightly so. With the current scale allowing him to score up to 12 points on Sunday, the Hyundai driver is taking his chance to the fullest and taking advantage of his position on the road to strike hard. Three scratches out of four and above all the best time of the Power Stage to hit the jackpot. 41st at the finish, he only scored 4 points less than Dani Sordo, who was 3rd. A result which will count a lot in his quest for the title.

Greece, finally another victory

In a duel that could not be closer with Sébastien Ogier who decided to finish the season in the hope of winning a 9th crown, Thierry Neuville managed to thwart his opponent. The Habs, very spicy throughout the weekend, made a mistake during the Power Stage offering victory on a plate to their counterpart: 24-13 for the Belgian who gave himself a breath of fresh air costs. “ It's incrediblehe smiled. It was a crazy weekend. I knew we had to take a different approach to some of the other drivers to try and maintain the championship advantage we have for the remaining rounds. This goal was accomplished, and it was rewarded with a victory and a good result for the team. We didn't drive at the limit throughout the weekend to avoid punctures and difficult moments, and we kept all four wheels on the road. Now we have a good lead, the story will be to protect these points in the last three rounds. »

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Japan, the coronation of Thierry Neuville

A month after missing his first match point during Central Europe, Thierry Neuville didn't give up his chance. Arriving there, the equation was simple: score 6 points, regardless of the result of Ott Tänak, the only one who can still deprive him of the coronation. After spending his Saturday making up for the time lost on Friday due to a faulty turbo, the child from Saint-Vith did not have to take a knife on Sunday. Quite the opposite since he was crowned even before the end of the first special of the day after the exit of the Estonian, despite being overall leader.

Ott Tänak on the mat, Thierry Neuville was able to attack the rest of the Rally in the shoes of the world champion. A huge weight less on his shoulders as he has gone through all his emotions since his full-time debut in 2012 and notably 5 second places in the championship (2013, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019). In the process, he became the first Belgian and first Hyundai driver to be crowned world champion.

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