NAIVASHA, Kenya, March 19 (Xinhua) -- World champion Belgian Thierry Neuville is out to clinch a maiden WRC Safari Rally Kenya title this year after blowing the chance to bag the coveted crown in the previous four year.

Neuville, the star of the Hyundai World Rally Team (WRT) has been an ever-present since the famous event returned to the World Rally Championship after a 19-year hiatus in 2021.

The Belgian has found himself in the lead in the opening stages of the African round of the WRC in all previous editions only to trail off with mechanical problems towards the end.

His misfortunes have seen him witness main rivals, Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT win all the previous four editions of the WRC Safari Rally.

"I am here to win the Safari Rally. I am also here to lead Hyundai to outperform Toyota on this landscape. After the four-year struggle to master the Safari Rally terrain, I believe this is quite our year," the world champion said ahead of the event shakedown in Kenya's lakeside town of Naivasha on Wednesday.

Neuville will partner with 2019 world champion, Ott Tank and Frenchman Adrien Fourmaux who joined the Hyundai team this season from Ford Puma M-Sport WRT.

"Twice, I have had issues with my dampers (shock absorbers) and twice I have had problems with my fuel pump, actually last year I was lying second before the unimaginable happened. Hopefully this year I stay away from the challenges. We already have a team set up to solve those critical issues before we start the Safari proper on Thursday and we believe this will be our year in Kenya," he added.

Neuville has admitted there is a lot of pressure to perform in the Safari Rally that will be the third round of the 2025 WRC owing to the fact that Toyota has started the season on a high.

The Japanese carmaker has bagged back-to-back 1-2 finishes in the opening leg in Monte Carlo in January and the second event Rally Sweden last month.

"We are out to overturn that in Naivasha and as a team (Hyundai) we need to be strong to achieve that. We also know that Toyota has been very strong in the Safari in the past so we are working to solve our weak points in Kenya and hopefully it works for us," the world champion stressed.

He has singled out championship leader and Welshman Elfyn Evans as the main threat to his ambitions.

The Safari is the third leg of the 2025 WRC after the opening event Rallye Monaco in January and Rally Sweden in February.

This season has 14 events and will conclude with the first ever Rally Saudi Arabia in November. Enditem

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