WRC: Four more Hyundai rallies for Abbring

Hyundai has confirmed Kevin Abbring's programme for the rest of the 2015 World Rally Championship, with the Dutch driver to tackle a further four rounds in an i20 WRC.

Abbring's next event will be Rally Poland on July 2-5, before contesting Germany, Corsica and Rally GB. He has experience of all four rallies and along with British co-driver Sebastian Marshall made his debut with the team in Sweden earlier this year, deputising for the injured Dani Sordo.

The bulk of their program was always expected to be weighted toward the second half of the season, due to Abbring's testing commitments with the all-new i20 WRC.

Abbring will line up alongside Hayden Paddon in the Hyundai Mobis World Rally Team – essentially the junior team, but still running factory-specification i20s.

"I am excited to be returning to WRC and happy to be part of the Hyundai Motorsport's lineup at four events starting with Poland," Abbring said. "From a driver's point of view, testing is nice to get a rhythm and a feeling for the potential of a car, but there is no substitution for competitive rallying.

"It feels like a long time since Sweden and I'm looking forward to being back. The experiences of Rally Sweden were useful to get an idea for how the team works during a rally weekend but I've been working with the team for a long time now, so it really feels like family."

Abbring is happy to be returning to Poland, having scored a significant Junior World Rally Championship win there in 2009.

"Poland is one of the events where I have some of the best memories," he said. "There is a big passion for motorsport there and an incredible atmosphere, so I am glad to kick off my next four WRC events with Rally Poland."

Hyundai team principal Michel Nandan added: "Along with Sebastian, he did a good job in Sweden stepping into the car, with a very professional approach and enthusiastic attitude.

"Up to now, the New Generation i20 test schedule has not permitted him to take part in any WRC events, and the second half of the season is easier to mix his test and rally schedule. These four events will offer Kevin the chance to gain more experience as a WRC driver and to further enhance our aims at nurturing young driving talent in the WRC.

"We want to give Kevin the chance to compete at the highest level and to grow his skills against the most competitive drivers in WRC."

Originally on Autosport.com