The reigning FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) Ott Tanak had a massive crash in Rally Monte Carlo on Friday in his Hyundai i20 Coupe.
On his Hyundai debut to start the 2020 WRC season, Tanak and co-driver Martin Jarveoja, started the Rally Monte Carlo on a decent note as they were running fourth on Friday, when they had a massive crash in Stage 4, 9.2 km in Saint-Clement – Freissinieres.
Tanak lost slight control and slid into a cliff, where the Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC rolled over multiple times before coming to a halt. Post-crash shots showed the huge damage to the car but reports were positive as both Tanak and Jarveoja were unharmed.
As per norm and precaution, Tanak and Jarveoja were taken to the hospital. Seeing the damage to the car, it is highly unlikely that they will be able to fix it up for the remainder of the rally, which is currently headed by Toyota’s Elfyn Evans in the Toyota Yaris.
The Estonian’s Hyundai teammates are third and fourth respectively, with early leader Thierry Neuville ahead of veteran Sebastien Loeb. The Korean manufacturer only have two cars now left, as the Toyota duo looks in a good spot.
UPDATE: Following the initial checks, Hyundai confirms that both Tanak and Jarveoja are fine. But they add that both will be kept in the hospital overnight, which confirms that they will not take part in Rally Monte Carlo any further.
Here’s a side view:
Huh huh! Tänakin ulosajo oli tosiaan raju! #ralli #mmralli #WRC #rally pic.twitter.com/HA4F7LBpJ5
— Tomi Tuominen (@T_Tuominen) January 24, 2020
Here’s an onboard:
https://twitter.com/jarveoja/status/1220646856373436417?s=20
#WRC #MonteCarlo Huge crash Ott Tanak rally Monte Carlo 2020 WRC https://t.co/TtFX7QWUAF #MsportXtra pic.twitter.com/vmbtCFtqaE
— #MsportXtra (@MsportXtra) January 24, 2020
More to be added about Tanak and Jarveoja when it comes