page_title: Thierry Neuville
section_title: 2018
hierarchical_section_title: Thierry Neuville / Rally career / Hyundai (2014–present) / 2018
caption_attribution_description: Polski: Zwycięzcy Rajdu Szwecji 2018 Thierry Neuville i Nicolas Gilsoul
context_page_description: Thierry Jean Neuville is a Belgian rally driver who is competing in the World Rally Championship for Hyundai Motorsport. During his career, he has finished as runner-up in the drivers' championship five times and helped Hyundai win their first manufacturers' title, in 2019. His current co-driver is compatriot Nicolas Gilsoul, who has been his co-driver since 2011.
  Born in St. Vith, Neuville started rallying in 2007. Between 2009 and 2011 he competed in the Intercontinental Rally Challenge, in 2009 he also made his World Rally Championship debut at the Rally Catalunya and in 2010 he competed in the Junior World Rally Championship. With promising results across the categories between 2009 to 2011, he was signed by the Citroën Junior Team and made his World Rally Car debut in 2012. In 2013, driving for the Qatar World Rally Team, he was a surprise runner-up in the championship, having scored his first podiums in the sport, finishing 114 points behind Sébastien Ogier who dominated the season.
  When Hyundai Motorsport re-entered the sport in 2014, the Korean manufacturer signed Neuville as their lead driver.
context_section_description: Just as in 2017, Neuville's season started with a mistake at the season opener in Monte Carlo. On the first stage of the rally he lost control of his i20 and got stuck in a ditch, the excursion cost the Belgian four minutes and ruined his chance of a rally win. As the rally progressed, he fought his way up the standings and eventually finished fifth.
  In Rally Sweden, he was the fifth on the road at the opening day, which meant he had more grips than the drivers who start ahead of him. That gave him a chance to fight for the victory. Eventually, he took his seventh win and first on the snow in the WRC, though he had an electrical glitch with his Hyundai's paddle shift gearchange system in Saturday morning and made a few small mistakes. After winning the rally, he led the championship by ten points, ahead of defending world champion, Sébastien Ogier. The win meant Neuville became the third non-Nordic driver to win the Swedish Rally.
  The lead of the standings was short-lived, as Ogier won the next rounds in Mexico and Corsica. In Mexico, Neuville endured many technical issues with his i20 Coupe and achieved sixth as a result. While in Corsica, Ogier extended his lead in the championship further when Neuville finished behind him in third.
  Neuville beat Ogier to the podium in Argentina when he finished second, but the rally was won by Tänak. After Tänak's mixed start to the season, the Estonian's win in Argentina meant Tänak had emerged as a title contender along with Neuville and Ogier.
  In Portugal, Neuville secured his eight win in the WRC and inherited the lead of the championship when both title rivals Ogier and Tänak hit trouble and scored zero points. Along with four extra points from the Power stage, Neuville's victory lifted him to first place in the standings, 19 and 47 points clear of Ogier and Tänak, respectively. In the next event, Rally d'Italia Sardinia, Neuville won again. Ogier had led most of the Sardinian rally but Neuville eventually beat the Frenchman to the win on the very last stage with a margin of seven tenths of a second, equalling the third closest win in the WRC which was set by Neuville in Argentina, 2017.
  Just before Rally Turkey, it was announced that Neuville, along with Gilsoul, had signed an extension with Hyundai to drive for the team until the end of 2021.
  Neuville's advantage in the standings was reduced when his suspension broke in Turkey while he was leading, with Tänak eventually winning the event, and when he slid off the road in the next rally in Wales from second place. He lost the lead in the standings to Ogier when he finished fourth at the 2018 Rally Catalunya while Ogier was second, the result meant Ogier headed Neuville by three points in the championship.
  Heading into the 2018 Rally Australia, Neuville, Ogier and Tänak had a chance to win the championship. Neuville punctured on the first day and dropped down to last place of the World Rally car drivers which meant he had to run first on the road on the second day. As a result of sweeping the loose gravel roads by running first, making up time proved to be difficult for the Belgian and he could not pass Ogier who was sixth, which was also enough for Ogier to secure the title if the rally was to end without any change of positions. On the final day, Neuville hit a tree and lost a wheel of his i20 Coupe and ultimately had to retire from the event, ending his title bid. Soon after Neuville's retirement, Tänak also damaged his car and had to retire which subsequently handed the title to Ogier. Neuville finished as runner up in the standings for a third consecutive time and his fourth time overall.
caption: Neuville won the 2018 Rally Sweden.
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