Neuville and Evans celebrate WRC wins on Hankook tyres

The FIA World Rally Championship served up two totally different, but equally exciting, events, with rallies in Portugal and Japan. Belgian’s Thierry Neuville and his co-driver Martijn Wydaeghe claimed the first win of the season for Hyundai at the Vodafone Rally de Portugal. All weekend, the duo remained within striking distance of the leaders on the demanding gravel stages, as rain and mud made for constantly changing grip conditions. When technical issues caused Frenchman Sébastien Ogier to lose valuable time on the penultimate stage, Neuville moved into the lead and went on to take victory, ably assisted by the Hankook rally tyre. Sweden’s Oliver Solberg finished runner-up behind the Belgian, with Elfyn Evans of Wales completing the podium.

Just a few weeks later, the FORUM8 Rally Japan formed round seven of the season. This time, Evans controlled proceedings from the word go, taking the lead as early as stage two. Faced with technically demanding asphalt routes, the Toyota driver benefitted from the consistent grip level of the Hankook tyres, which he was able to get the most out of at all times, even with the temperature rising. Evans eventually claimed his third victory in Japan, and his second win of the season, with an advantage of 12.8 seconds over Ogier. In doing so, the championship leader extended his advantage in the Drivers’ Championship to 20 points. Hankook used the Ventus Z215 and Ventus Z210 asphalt tyres during the rally. Both products delivered a consistently high performance in changing conditions. The next round of the FIA World Rally Championship is the EKO Acropolis Rally Greece from 26^th to 29^th June.

Highlights Portugal: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IvIhjz21XwI

Highlights Japan: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d268Bi2HJe4

Thrilling Formula E battles with Hankook on the streets of Monaco

On 16^th and 17^th May, the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship was in the Principality of Monaco, where it thrilled spectators with two spectacular races on the narrow street circuit. Race nine of the season saw Dutchman Nyck de Vries from Mahindra Racing claim his first victory of the GEN3 era of Formula E. A perfect PIT BOOST strategy allowed de Vries to take the lead after the mandatory pit stop, while the constant grip level of the Hankook iON Race helped him stay out in front right through to the finish. The tenth race of the season also served up a feast of racing, with many battles for position and Oliver Rowland eventually emerging victorious. Watched by Formula 1 world champion Lando Norris, the Brit from the Nissan Formula E Team used fine energy management and the Hankook iON Race to work his way into the lead from eighth place, before going on to celebrate his second victory in Monaco in two years. Mitch Evans from Jaguar TCS Racing also enjoyed a successful weekend, with a second and a fourth place. That was enough to see the New Zealander climb to the top of the table. From the Côte d’Azur, Formula E now travels to China and the 2.52-kilometre Sanya Street Circuit from 19^th to 20^th June.

Highlights of race 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9xH4IKMZXA&t=1s

Highlights of race 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hzzu8CiqqLU&t=20s

Hankook impresses with a strong fightback and two podiums at the Nürburgring 24 Hours

In front of 352,000 spectators, Hankook lined up with two exciting projects at the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring, once again demonstrating the performance of the Ventus Race in challenging conditions at the most demanding racetrack in the world. Koreans Jongkyum Kim and Steven Cho, Dutchman Roelof Bruins and German Nordschleife specialist Marco Seefried started for Hankook Competition in the Porsche 911 GT3 R. The quartet produced a flawless display to steadily work their way from 37^th to 13^th place overall. The drivers were supported by the Hankook Ventus Race, which impressed with a consistent performance in the wet and on a dry track, allowing the impressive fightback across the full distance of the race.

At the same time, the appearance of three HWA EVO.R cars also attracted a lot of interest. The modern homage to the legendary Mercedes-Benz 190 E EVO II had already established itself as a crowd favourite before the race even began. With former Formula 1, DTM and ADAC GT Masters like Germans Markus Winkelhock and Lance David Arnold, Jamie Green from Great Britain, and Canada’s Bruno Spengler, HWA took to the grid with a top-class driver line-up. All three cars reached the finish after many trouble-free stints, eventually finishing second, third and fourth in the SP-X class. This project also saw the Hankook Ventus Race support the drivers with a high level of stability and reliable performance, both in the daytime and at night.

Highlights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45FpLxiW1QA

Brace of wins for Rytter and Fraboni at round two of this season’s Lamborghini Super Trofeo Europe in Imola

The Italian city of Imola hosted Lamborghini Super Trofeo Europe from 9^th to 10^th May, and the one-make cup impressed with exciting motorsport in dry and wet conditions at the iconic Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari. The Hankook Ventus Race again made an excellent impression at the demanding circuit, displaying a high level of grip and stability throughout the two 50-minute races. The opening race of the weekend was won by Denmark’s Lovén Rytter and Italian Patrik Fraboni in a Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo EVO2. Rytter benefitted from the strong performance of the Hankook tyre, taking the lead shortly after a safety car phase, before celebrating the first win of the season together with his partner Fraboni. The Sunday race took place in difficult weather conditions, but the duo again produced a commanding display. Rytter consistently worked his way through the field in the opening stages, taking advantage of the optimal grip on the wet track to lay the foundations for win number two of the weekend. Fraboni then defended the lead relatively comfortably and went on to complete a brace of wins in Italy. The two victories catapulted Rytter and Fraboni to within four points of championship leaders Simone Iaquinta from Italy and Switzerland’s Kevin Gilardoni. The next round of this season’s Lamborghini Super Trofeo Europe takes place from 25^th to 27^th June at the iconic Spa-Francorchamps circuit in Belgium.

Highlights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CB5rDiIvuA8

Imberti retains the championship lead in TCR Italy in Vallelunga

Two different winners took their place on the top step of the podium at the second race weekend of this season’s TCR Italy at Autodromo Vallelunga. The opening race was dominated by championship leader Michele Imberti from Italy in a Hyundai Elantra N, who converted pole position into a commanding lights-to-flag victory. Imberti immediately got the Hankook Ventus Race into the optimal working window, and controlled the whole race, despite constantly coming under pressure from his compatriot Paolo Rocca in an Audi RS3 LMS. Argentinean Ramiro Zago from MM Motorsport completed the podium in a Honda Civic FL5, having successfully defended third place after a safety car phase. Zago then celebrated his maiden TCR Italy victory in race two. A perfect start saw the Honda driver move to the head of the field after just a few metres, before going on to take an imperious win. The Hankook Ventus Race once again impressed with great stability and a constant grip level in many hard-fought battles for position. Zago was followed home in second place by Italian Sandro Pelatti in a Cupra, while Czech driver Petr Cizek came home third to claim his first overall podium in the series. Despite being handed a time penalty, Imberti was still able to defend top spot in the table, and travels as championship leader to the next race weekend from 19^th to 21^st June in Monza.

Full replay of race 1: https://www.youtube.com/live/XdyE5JfZQtA?si=HzjvL-o8Vdso49v_

Full replay of race 2: https://www.youtube.com/live/qKU5zXsLWA8?si=YvlhGoRWLZuxn6Og

Thrilling start to the Eurocup-3 season with three different winners at Circuit Paul Ricard

Eurocup-3 kicked off the 2026 season from 10^th to 12^th April at Circuit Paul Ricard, and served up three exciting races with three different winners. The Hankook Ventus Race provided the basis for hard-fought battles and consistent lap times at the demanding circuit in Southern France. In race one, American James Egozi took advantage of a turbulent start, quickly bringing his tyres up to the ideal temperature, before taking the lead and going on to claim victory. The sprint race saw Lebanese racer Christopher El Feghali impress with a flawless display, aided across the full distance by the excellent performance of the Hankook Ventus Race. Race three was won by Keanu Al Azhari from the United Arab Emirates, who tasted success after a controlled performance. In total, 16 different drivers picked up points, underlining the strength in depth throughout the field. Egozi, who backed up his victory with another podium, leads the championship after round one. Next up from 5^th to 7^th June is Autodromo do Algarve in Portimão.

Highlights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=--m_YZnO0pk

Dramatic Junior ERC battle on Hankook tyres at the Rally Scandinavia

The BAUHAUS Royal Rally of Scandinavia produced a dramatic finale in FIA Junior ERC. Finn Aatu Hakalehto initially dominated proceedings on the demanding gravel stages, and held a lead of over a minute after setting the fastest time on every special stage on day one. However, the dream of victory in the class, which runs on Hankook tyres, was shattered shortly before the finish, when his Lancia Ypsilon Rally4 HF was forced to retire with a technical issue. Germany’s Timo Schulz and co-driver Maresa Lade inherited the lead and went on to claim their first victory in Junior ERC since August 2023 with a lead of 16.7 seconds. The duo was able to rely on support from the Hankook rally tyre, which impressed on the variable gravel stages. Second place went to another German, Tom Heindrichs, who was making his Junior ERC debut. Italian Davide Pesavento completed the podium for Lancia Corse HF. The next round of the Junior ERC season is the Rally di Roma Capitale (3^rd to 5^th July), which forms the first of four back-to-back asphalt rallies.

Highlights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqgk2TWZkeQ

Fuchs and Vogt take RCN victory in tricky conditions on the Nürburgring-Nordschleife

The drivers and teams in the Circuit Challenge Nürburgring (RCN) were faced with demanding conditions at both race weekends in May. The “Feste Nürburg” and “Nordeifelpokal” events took place in typical Eifel weather, with rain, a drying track and variable grip conditions posing additional challenges. Despite all this, the Hankook Ventus Race proved to be a reliable partner, providing the competitors with the stability they required.

The “Feste Nürburg” round featured on the programme for the Nürburgring 24 Hours, and saw Germany’s Mario Fuchs take overall victory in a Mitsubishi Lancer, ahead of his compatriots David Vogt in an Opel Astra TCR and Bastian Arend in a Porsche 911. A few weeks later, Vogt claimed his first overall victory in the series in the “Nordeifelpokal”. Second place went to German Horst Baumann in a Porsche Cayman GT4 CS. Jens Schneider and Robin Reimer finished third in a BMW 325i. That was enough to earn the German duo their third class victory of the season and saw them successfully defend their lead in the championship. The strong performances in changing conditions once again underlined the versatility and reliability of the Hankook Ventus Race on the Nürburgring-Nordschleife – one of the toughest racetracks in the world.

Highlights of Feste Nürburg: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dey_Ylqc_nk  

Photo credits: (1) Red Bull Content Pool, (2) FIA Formula E, (3) Tobias Reichert, (4) Tobias Reichert, (5) Lamborghini/Eros Maggi, (6) TCR Italy, (7) Eurocup-3, (8) Red Bull Content Pool, (9) RCN/Kevin Pecks