Hayden Paddon claims second place for Hyundai Motorsport in Rally Sweden 16.02.2016: Hyundai Motorsport celebrated another podium result as Hayden Paddon clinched second

Hyundai Motorsport celebrated another podium result as Hayden Paddon clinched second place in Rally Sweden, the second round of the 2016 FIA World Rally Championship (WRC), over the past weekend.


The result marks the first occasion that Hyundai Motorsport has taken back-to-back podium finishes in the WRC and also represents the second podium for the New Generation i20 WRC which only made its rally debut at Rallye Monte-Carlo last month.


Further underlining the performance of the new car, Dani Sordo added a second top-six result to his 2016 rally, finishing in sixth place. Thierry Neuville, who ended the rally in fourteenth position after experiencing problems with his i20 WRC on Friday, also ensured all three New Generation i20 WRC cars completed the rally.


For Paddon and his co-driver, John Kennard, second place equals their previous best result, achieved in Sardinia (Italy Rally) last season in 2015, and scores 18 manufacturer points for the team, which is now just 5 points behind the leaders, Volkswagen Motorsport.


Paddon said: "A podium is a fantastic result for me and everyone in the team. We were hoping to have had a less stressful finish to the rally, but, unfortunately, we had some water leaking from the radiator after hitting a wooden post in the stage, which required some quick repairs.


Thankfully, we were able to find a temporary fix and get back to service with our second place intact. Late drama aside, we have had a good weekend and I have felt very comfortable in the New Generation i20 WRC."


Hyundai Motorsport has now scored ten individual podiums since it entered WRC in 2014. The Hyundai Motorsport team next heads to Mexico where the third round of the 2016 WRC will take place from 3 to 6 March.



Overall Final Classification:

1.    S. Ogier / J. Ingrassia (Volkswagen Polo R WRC) 1:59:47.4
2.    H. Paddon / J. Kennard (Hyundai New Generation i20 WRC) +29.8
3.    M. Østberg / O. Floene (Ford Fiesta RS WRC) +55.6
4.    Mikkelsen / A. Jaeger (Volkswagen Polo R WRC) +1:10.8
5.    O. Tanak / R. Molder (Ford Fiesta RS WRC) +1:50.7
6.    D. Sordo / M. Martí (Hyundai New Generation i20 WRC) +2:24.0
7.    H. Solberg / I. Minor (Ford Fiesta RS WRC) +2:40.0
8.    C. Breen / S. Martin (Citroën DS3 WRC) +2:44.6
9.    E. Evans / C. Parry (Ford Fiesta R5) +5:17.0
10.    T. Suninen / M. Markkula (Skoda Fabia R5) +5:31.6
.

14. T. Neuville / N. Gilsoul (Hyundai New Generation i20 WRC) +7:10.7




2016 FIA World Rally Championship for Manufacturers' Standings:

Volkswagen Motorsport 54 points / Hyundai Motorsport 49 / Volkswagen Motorsport II 30 / M-Sport World Rally Team 27 / DMACK World Rally Team 18 / Hyundai Motorsport N 14



Deon Sonnekus, photos www.quickpic.co.za