Thierry Neuville crashes on shakedown, but will that stop him from competing?
The answer is straight – no. Of course not. Even though it was a massive crash and a roll, it obviously wasn’t massive enough to damage the key safety component of every rally car, the roll cage. In Thierry’s case, this cage sustained no damage and FIA allowed him to switch from racing to mechanic overalls and join Hyundai Motorsport mechanics in an attempt to repair the damaged i20 WRC in time for tomorrow’s day one of Rally Deutschland.
OK, maybe Thierry will not exactly take part in repairing the car, but he will surely let the team know how much he appreciates their work in bringing the car back in shape. And what better way to show appreciation than to bring home a good result.
In short, well done Thierry for damaging but not destroying the car and also well done Hyundai for promising that the car will be ready for tomorrow.
We're happy to confirm that @thierryneuville's i20 #WRC will be repaired and it will be at the start of @WRCGermany tomorrow!
— Hyundai Motorsport (@HyundaiWRC) August 21, 2014