Thierry Neuville facts for kids
Neuville at the 2014 Rallye Deutschland
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| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality |  Belgian |
| Born | 16 June 1988 St. Vith, Belgium |
| World Rally Championship record | |
| Active years | 2009–2010, 2012–present |
| Co-driver |
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| Teams | Citroën Junior (2012) Qatar (2012–2013) Hyundai (2014–present) |
| Rallies | 176 |
| Championships | 1 (2024) |
| Rally wins | 21 |
| Podiums | 72 |
| Stage wins | 424 |
| Total points | 2221 |
| First rally | 2009 Rally Catalunya |
| First win | 2014 Rallye Deutschland |
| Last win | 2024 Acropolis Rally |
| Last rally | 2025 Rally Estonia |
Thierry Jean Neuville (born 16 June 1988) is a Belgian rally driver. He competes in the World Rally Championship for Hyundai Motorsport. Thierry has finished second in the championship five times (2013, 2016–2019). In 2024, he won his first ever drivers' world title. This made him the first Belgian to win the championship. He also helped Hyundai win their first team titles in 2019 and 2020. His current co-driver is Martijn Wydaeghe from Belgium.
Thierry Neuville was born in St. Vith, Belgium. He started rallying in 2007. Between 2009 and 2011, he raced in the Intercontinental Rally Challenge. In 2009, he also made his first appearance in the World Rally Championship. This was at the Rally Catalunya. In 2010, he competed in the Junior World Rally Championship. Because of his good results, he joined the Citroën Junior Team. He started driving a World Rally Car in 2012. In 2013, he drove for the Qatar World Rally Team. He surprised everyone by finishing second in the championship. He also got his first podium finishes that year.
When Hyundai Motorsport returned to the sport in 2014, they chose Neuville as their main driver. Neuville won his first World Rally Championship event in 2014. This was at the 2014 Rallye Deutschland. It was also Hyundai's first win. He had helped Hyundai get their first podium earlier that season. Neuville finished sixth in 2014 and 2015. But he was runner-up in the drivers' championship from 2016 to 2019. In 2016, he was second to Sébastien Ogier. From 2017, he battled closely for the title with Ogier and Ott Tänak. He just missed out on the title to Ogier in 2017 and 2018. In 2019, he was second to Tänak. Even though he was second, his results helped Hyundai win their first team title.
Thierry Neuville has won 21 world rallies in total. All of these wins were with Hyundai. He was first known for being good on asphalt roads. But he has won on both asphalt and gravel. He also won on snow at the Rally Sweden in 2018. This made him one of the few non-Nordic drivers to win that event. Besides rallying, Neuville has also raced on circuits. He started in the 2019 ADAC TCR Germany Touring Car Championship in 2019.
Rally Career Highlights
Starting Out in Rallying
Thierry Neuville was born in St. Vith, a German-speaking area of Belgium. He drove his first rally in 2007 when he was 19. He used an Opel Corsa in a race in Luxembourg. In 2008, he won the Royal Automobil Club of Belgium Rally Contest. This helped him start his rally career. The next year, he won the Citroën Rally Trophy Belux. He drove a Citroën C2 R2 Max for that win.
Neuville first raced in the Intercontinental Rally Challenge in 2009. He drove a Peugeot 207 S2000 at the 2009 Ypres Rally. He crashed out of the rally while he was in fourth place. He was supposed to make his WRC debut in 2008. This was at the 2008 Rally Finland in a Ford Fiesta ST. But he did not start that event. Instead, his WRC debut was at the 2009 Rally Catalunya. He drove a Citroën C2 R2 with Nicolas Klinger as his co-driver. He had to retire from that event.
Private Racing Teams (2010–2011)
2010 Season
In 2010, Neuville drove his own Citroën C2 S1600 in five Junior World Rally Championship races. Nicolas Klinger was his co-driver. In the first two races, he retired while leading. This was due to a mechanical problem in Turkey and a crash in Portugal. He won his first race in this category in Bulgaria. This was on asphalt roads. He retired again in Germany due to engine failure. His last race was in France, where he finished third. Even though he led many races, he finished seventh in the championship. This was because of his many retirements.
In the same year, Neuville also raced in the 2010 Intercontinental Rally Challenge. He drove a Peugeot 207 S2000 for Peugeot Belgium-Luxembourg. His first event was in the Canary Islands. He retired due to suspension damage. He finished fourth in Sardinia, his first gravel rally in that car. He got his best result, third place, at his home event, the 2010 Ypres Rally. He finished ninth in the season standings.
2011 Season
Neuville continued with the Peugeot Bel-Lux team in 2011. He crashed in the first stage of the Monte Carlo Rally. After this, Nicolas Gilsoul became his new co-driver. In the next race, he battled for the win and finished third. He got his first victory at the 2011 Tour de Corse. He won by 15.5 seconds. He was leading in Ukraine but finished sixth after going off-road and getting a flat tire. He retired from the 2011 Ypres Rally due to suspension damage. He finished fourth in the Czech Republic. In Hungary, he almost won, finishing just 0.8 seconds behind the winner. His second win came in Italy, where he won by only 1.5 seconds. He finished fifth in the overall standings that year.
Joining Citroën Junior (2012)
Citroën signed Neuville for the 2012 World Rally Championship. He drove a Citroën DS3 WRC for their junior team. This was his first time driving a World Rally Car. He crashed early in the first race in Monte Carlo. He didn't score points until the fourth race in Portugal, where he finished eighth. He won his first stage in Mexico. In Argentina, he finished fifth even after rolling his car. His races were often affected by the Rally 2-rules. His first race without mistakes was in Greece, where he was sixth.
He also raced for the Qatar World Rally Team in New Zealand. He finished fifth there. He crashed in Finland and Germany, losing points. He returned to scoring points in Wales, finishing seventh. His best result of the season was in France. He led a World Rally event for the first time and finished fourth. He ended the season in seventh place overall.
Racing for Qatar (2013)
Neuville joined the Qatar team in 2013, driving a Ford Fiesta RS WRC. He retired from the Monte Carlo Rally for the third time. In Sweden, he finished fifth, which was good since he was new to racing on snow. In Mexico, he got his first podium finish, coming in third. Portugal was disappointing, as he finished outside the points. He was fifth again in Argentina.
Then, he had a great run of podium finishes. He became the surprise driver of the season. He finished third in Greece and second in Italy, Finland, Germany, and Australia. In Germany, his home rally, he was in second place. He led for one stage but lost the lead to Dani Sordo. He finished second, 53 seconds behind Sordo.
In Australia, Neuville was in third place before the final stage. He needed to finish second overall to have a chance at the title. His rival, Mikko Hirvonen, got a flat tire. This allowed Thierry to finish second overall. After this, only Neuville and Sébastien Ogier could win the title. Ogier secured the title in the next rally in France. Neuville finished the season in second place overall. This was after a podium finish in the last rally in Wales.
Joining Hyundai (2014–Present)
2014 Season
On November 5, 2013, Hyundai Motorsport announced they had signed Neuville. He would lead their team in the WRC starting in 2014. By the middle of the 2014 season, Neuville had two podiums for Hyundai. He was in sixth place overall.
Thierry Neuville had a big crash during practice for the Rally of Germany. But his car was repaired. Thierry Neuville and Nicolas Gilsoul finished the rally in first place. This was Thierry Neuville's and Hyundai Motorsport's first win in the WRC. His teammate, Dani Sordo, finished second. This was Hyundai's first win and a one-two finish.
2015 Season
Neuville started the 2015 season well. He finished fifth in Monte Carlo and second in Sweden. He was eighth in Mexico, but he had been fighting for the lead. The rest of the season was not as good for Neuville. After a crash in Argentina, he lost some confidence. He only got one more podium, which was in Italy. His teammates, Sordo and Hayden Paddon, did better than him in the later races. But he still finished above them in the standings. He ended the season in sixth place.
2016 Season
The 2016 season began with a third-place finish in Monte Carlo. He drove a new i20. But then he had a mechanical problem in Sweden and crashed in Mexico. This meant he scored no points in those races. In Portugal, he ran out of fuel while in fifth place. This was due to a mistake by Hyundai.
But in Sardinia, Neuville was back in top form. He won nine of the 19 stages. He won the rally by about 25 seconds. After the rally, Neuville honored his former mentors. On October 5, it was confirmed that Neuville would stay with Hyundai until the end of 2018. He finished the season with five podiums in the last five races. He secured second place in the championship with 160 points.
2017 Season
In 2017, Neuville and his teammates started with a new i20, the i20 Coupe. The season started badly for him. He finished 15th and 13th in the first two rallies after crashing. But he still scored points in the power stages. After finishing third in Mexico, Neuville won in Corsica and Argentina. This made him a strong challenger for the world championship against Sébastien Ogier. In Portugal, he finished second to Ogier. In Sardinia, he was third, ahead of Ogier. His next win was in Poland. In Finland, he finished sixth. But since Ogier retired, Neuville took the championship lead for the first time.
In Germany, Neuville wanted to keep his lead. But a small hit damaged his car. He had to retire from the day. Ogier took back the championship lead. Neuville then had bad luck in Spain. He hit a rock and broke his steering. He scored no points and dropped to third in the standings.
Neuville got back to second place in Wales. He finished second in the rally. He was the fastest driver using Michelin tires. He finished ahead of Ogier, who was third. But Ogier won the championship. In the final rally in Australia, Neuville took his fourth win of the season. This win secured him second place in the standings for the third time.
2018 Season
Just like in 2017, Neuville made a mistake at the start of the 2018 season. He got stuck in a ditch in Monte Carlo. This cost him four minutes. He fought his way back to finish fifth.
In Rally Sweden, he had good grip on the first day. This helped him fight for the win. He won his seventh rally and his first on snow. He led the championship by ten points. This win made Neuville the third non-Nordic driver to win the Swedish Rally.
His lead didn't last long. Ogier won the next races in Mexico and Corsica. Neuville had many technical problems in Mexico and finished sixth. In Corsica, he finished third behind Ogier. Neuville finished second in Argentina, but Tänak won. Tänak became a title contender with Neuville and Ogier.
In Portugal, Neuville won his eighth WRC rally. He took the championship lead when Ogier and Tänak had problems. He also got extra points from the Power stage. In the next event, Sardinia, Neuville won again. He beat Ogier on the very last stage by just 0.7 seconds. This was one of the closest wins in WRC history.
Before Rally Turkey, Neuville signed a deal to stay with Hyundai until the end of 2021. His lead in the standings was cut short in Turkey. His suspension broke while he was leading. He also slid off the road in Wales. He lost the lead to Ogier in Spain. Ogier was second, and Neuville was fourth.
Going into the 2018 Rally Australia, Neuville, Ogier, and Tänak could all win the championship. Neuville got a flat tire on the first day. He dropped to last place among the World Rally car drivers. He hit a tree on the final day and had to retire. This ended his chance at the title. Tänak also damaged his car and retired. This handed the title to Ogier. Neuville finished second in the standings for the fourth time.
2019 Season
Neuville battled with Ogier at the start of the 2019 season in Monte Carlo. He finished second, just a few seconds behind Ogier. He then finished third in Sweden. He was fourth in Mexico. His first win of 2019 was in Corsica. Elfyn Evans had been leading, but a flat tire on the last stage dropped him to third. Neuville was able to win. After Corsica, Neuville, Ogier, and Tänak were very close in points. He won the next race in Argentina.
In Chile, Neuville crashed badly after misjudging a fast hill. He and his co-driver were not seriously hurt. He had to retire. Tänak won that rally, and Neuville dropped to third in points. He raced in Portugal and finished second behind Tänak. He didn't score many points in Sardinia and Finland. Tänak was pulling away in the title fight. Neuville needed to beat Tänak in Germany. He was battling closely with Tänak. But he had to change a flat tire. He finished fourth, while Tänak won. He lost more ground in Turkey after rolling his car.
Tänak pulled further ahead by winning in Wales. Neuville finished second. In Spain, Neuville had to win to stop Tänak from winning the title. Neuville won the event, his twelfth WRC win. But Tänak finished second, which meant Tänak won the 2019 World Rally Championship. The final race in Australia was canceled due to bushfires. So, Neuville finished second in the overall standings. Neuville's results helped Hyundai win their first team title.
2020 Season
Neuville started his seventh season with Hyundai by winning the Monte Carlo Rally. He battled with Ogier and Evans. But he lost the lead after finishing sixth in Sweden. He lost more points in Mexico and Estonia due to mechanical problems. In a shorter season because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Neuville was 37 points behind Ogier. He led most of the race in Turkey but finished second after a flat tire. He was second again in Sardinia. In the final race in Monza, Neuville crashed early. Ogier went on to win his seventh title. However, Hyundai won the manufacturers' title for the second time. Neuville finished fourth in the drivers' championship. This ended his streak of finishing as runner-up.
2021–2024: Becoming a World Champion
After three seasons finishing third (2021 to 2023), Neuville finally won his first World Rally Championship title in 2024. He and his co-driver Martijn Wydaeghe also secured Hyundai's first Drivers' Championship title. Neuville started 2024 strong, winning the season-opening Monte Carlo Rally and Acropolis Rally. He was consistent throughout the year. Despite some challenges, he earned enough points to win the championship before the final stage. This made him the first Belgian to win the WRC Drivers' title.
Circuit Racing Experience
Neuville first raced touring cars in the 2019 ADAC TCR Germany Touring Car Championship. He drove a Hyundai i30 for Engstler Motorsport in two races. In the first race, Neuville started first, set the fastest lap, led every lap, and won. In the second race, he started tenth and finished sixth in the rain. After this, Neuville said he wanted to race more on circuits. He especially wanted to compete in the 24 Hours Nürburgring.
Rally Victories
WRC Wins
| # | Event | Season | Co-driver | Car |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  32. ADAC Rallye Deutschland |
2014 | Nicolas Gilsoul |
Hyundai i20 WRC |
| 2 |  13º Rally Italia Sardegna |
2016 | Nicolas Gilsoul |
Hyundai i20 WRC |
| 3 |  60ème Tour de Corse – Rallye de France |
2017 | Nicolas Gilsoul |
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC |
| 4 |  37° Rally Argentina |
2017 | Nicolas Gilsoul |
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC |
| 5 |  74th Rally Poland |
2017 | Nicolas Gilsoul |
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC |
| 6 |  26th Rally Australia |
2017 | Nicolas Gilsoul |
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC |
| 7 |  66th Rally Sweden |
2018 | Nicolas Gilsoul |
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC |
| 8 |  52° Rally de Portugal |
2018 | Nicolas Gilsoul |
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC |
| 9 | 15º Rally Italia Sardegna |
2018 | Nicolas Gilsoul |
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC |
| 10 | 62ème Tour de Corse – Rallye de France |
2019 | Nicolas Gilsoul |
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC |
| 11 | 39° Rally Argentina |
2019 | Nicolas Gilsoul |
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC |
| 12 |  55º RallyRACC Catalunya – Costa Daurada |
2019 | Nicolas Gilsoul |
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC |
| 13 |  88ème Rallye Automobile Monte-Carlo |
2020 | Nicolas Gilsoul |
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC |
| 14 | 56º Renties Ypres Rally Belgium |
2021 | Martijn Wydaeghe |
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC |
| 15 | 56º RallyRACC Catalunya – Costa Daurada |
2021 | Martijn Wydaeghe |
Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC |
| 16 |  66th EKO Acropolis Rally Greece |
2022 | Martijn Wydaeghe |
Hyundai i20 N Rally1 |
| 17 |  FORUM8 Rally Japan 2022 |
2022 | Martijn Wydaeghe |
Hyundai i20 N Rally1 |
| 18 | 20º Rally Italia Sardegna |
2023 | Martijn Wydaeghe |
Hyundai i20 N Rally1 |
| 19 |  1st Central European Rally |
2023 | Martijn Wydaeghe |
Hyundai i20 N Rally1 |
| 20 | 92ème Rallye Automobile Monte-Carlo |
2024 | Martijn Wydaeghe |
Hyundai i20 N Rally1 |
| 21 | 68th EKO Acropolis Rally Greece |
2024 | Martijn Wydaeghe |
Hyundai i20 N Rally1 |
Junior WRC Wins
| # | Event | Season | Co-driver | Car |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  41st Rally Bulgaria |
2010 | Nicolas Klinger |
Citroën C2 S1600 |
IRC Wins
| # | Event | Season | Co-driver | Car |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 54ème Tour de Corse-E.Leclerc |
2011 | Nicolas Gilsoul |
Peugeot 207 S2000 |
| 2 | 53º Rallye Sanremo |
2011 | Nicolas Gilsoul |
Peugeot 207 S2000 |
Personal Life
Thierry Neuville speaks German as his first language. But he uses French notes when he is rallying. His younger brothers, Yannick Neuville and Tom Heindrichs, are also rally drivers. Thierry Neuville became a father on July 8, 2019. He and his girlfriend, Déborah Ghys, have a daughter named Camille.
See also
In Spanish: Thierry Neuville para niños
