Hyundai Motorsport elects for tried and tested experience for 2026 FIA World Rally Championship line-up
Hyundai Motorsport is pleased to announce its full line-up for the 2026 FIA World Rally Championship, calling upon the expertise of five skilled and competitive crews.
Thierry Neuville/Martijn Wydaeghe and Adrien Fourmaux/Alexandre Coria will contest every round of the season, set to begin with Rallye Monte-Carlo in January and conclude with Rally Saudi Arabia in November.
Joining them in the third Hyundai i20 N Rally1 car will be experienced Hyundai Motorsport alumni: Dani Sordo/Cándido Carrera, Esapekka Lappi/Enni Mälkönen, and Hayden Paddon/John Kennard.
Sordo and Carrera enjoyed a strong season in the Portuguese national championship with the Hyundai i20 N Rally2, clinching the title in a close finale in October. The Spanish duo have claimed nine FIA WRC podiums together since their partnership began in 2021, including two Hyundai Motorsport podium lock-outs at Acropolis Rally in 2023 and 2024. Sordo and Carrera will begin their 2026 campaign at Rally Islas Canarias.
Lappi will be looking to add to his five podiums with the team as he embarks on his next chapter in the Hyundai i20 N Rally1 with 2024 WRC2 co-drivers’ champion, Mälkönen. While the Finnish pair only began competing together at Arctic Lapland Rally in January, they quickly powered their way to success, winning the Finnish Rally Championship. Much like the debut of their partnership, their first WRC event will also be on snow, at February’s Rally Sweden – the scene of Lappi’s long-awaited second WRC victory in 2024.
Paddon and Kennard also make a welcome return, having last competed with the team in 2018 and 2017 respectively. However, the Kiwi duo have continued to represent the Hyundai brand on the stages, winning multiple New Zealand Rally Championships, back-to-back European Rally Championship titles in 2023 and 2024, as well as this year’s Australian Rally Championship crown. During their time at Hyundai Motorsport, the crew claimed a spectacular victory at Rally Argentina in 2016, and three further podiums in Poland (2016), Sweden (2016) and Sardinia (2015); Paddon also scored four podiums with co-driver Seb Marshall. Paddon and Kennard’s first event will be January’s Rallye Monte-Carlo.
Hyundai Motorsport WRC Sporting Director Andrew Wheatley said:
We’re delighted to confirm our line-up for the 2026 FIA WRC season, which will see Thierry and Adrien compete in every round with a trio of very experienced and competitive crews sharing our third entry. Bringing in Dani, EP and Hayden enables us to call upon their individual strengths to support our manufacturers’ title ambitions next year. We had a difficult decision to make – whether to opt for experience and consistency, or bring in a rising star and nurture them. However, we are in the last year of the Rally1 technical regulations and we believe the right path is to bring in drivers with knowledge of the car and the team.
Thierry Neuville said: “I’m delighted to continue my rally adventure with Hyundai Motorsport in 2026. The team has become a family to me over the past 12 seasons – I’ve grown as a competitor thanks to sharing so many highs, as well as challenges, together with Hyundai. Despite 2025 being an incredibly difficult year for us, we have built something so strong, and I’m ready to fight for the team in 2026 to get back to where we belong on the stages. I hope we can carry the momentum from Rally Saudi Arabia into next year and achieve good results throughout the season.”
Adrien Fourmaux said: “I’m really happy to be returning to Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team for the 2026 FIA WRC season. We had a strong first year together, with plenty of learnings and progress made throughout the season. Now, our goal is to build on that in 2026, and put ourselves in the fight for the championship titles. It will be another competitive season, and the whole team and I are really motivated – we are confident that we can take a step further in 2026, and I’m excited to see what it holds.”
Dani Sordo said: “After a year away contesting the Portuguese Rally Championship, I am very pleased to be back in the Hyundai i20 N Rally1 car for 2026. Cándido and I had a strong season in the Hyundai i20 N Rally2, culminating in the Portuguese title, which was a fantastic achievement for us. We can’t wait to take this momentum into next year, and I am confident we will be a competitive package. I’m looking forward to working with the team again, and supporting Thierry and Adrien in the championship fight.”
Esapekka Lappi said: “It’s an honour for me to return to Hyundai Motorsport for the 2026 FIA WRC season. I assumed I was finished with WRC, but after numerous discussions with various people, I knew this was a great idea. I’ve still been competing in the Finnish Championship, which was a lot of fun, but Cyril’s call surprised me and brought me back. I'm as excited as a little boy to get behind the wheel of the Rally1 car again, this time with Enni – which is a wonderful new opportunity for her. My win at Rally Sweden in 2024 serves as a great motivation for our 2026 targets, and I can’t wait to get started!”
Hayden Paddon said: “I’m very excited to be back with Hyundai Motorsport, eight years after our last event together in the FIA WRC. Hyundai is a brand I’m very proud of and loyal to after 12 years, and to now be stepping into a Rally1 car is very exciting. Our expectations are clear: to do the best job we can to support Hyundai, Thierry and Adrien in their respective championships, and making sure we are collecting as many manufacturers’ points as possible at the end of the weekend. I feel I am a very different driver compared to eight years ago, and the experience I have gained all around the world in different championships puts me in a good place to put that experience to use.”
