Hyundai has been very successful in the World Rally Championship in recent times, and the credit goes to Andrea Adamo. The 2021 season is underway, so it was only fitting to talk to the man behind the brand’s success.
We are pretty sure that when he came to the company for the very first time, he was very relaxed. He went to the HQ in Alzenau, Germany, to give a job interview, and to be honest, the interview couldn’t have been easier. The outcome of the interview wouldn’t have changed his life, we were sure it wouldn’t have mattered much to him whether he is selected as the brand’s customer racing manager or not.
He told us that he has been in his field for 24 years, but he had taken a break. He wanted to live a normal life, where he can work from eight in the morning until five in the evening, return to his home, and spend time with family on the weekend. Furthermore, he said he received a call asking him whether he would accept the invitation for an interview, which he accepted. He didn’t care much about it, but then he received a phone call on Wednesday, asking him whether he can start on Monday. After being hired, his responsibility was to supervise the development of customer operations.
If we consider the brand’s first attempt at the WRC as a factory team, which was a four-year effort ended with a walkout, the second attempt was pretty successful. In 2014, during season 1, their car was in the top three by round three and it won six rallies later.
The difference this time was the company decided to do the job itself, instead of outsourcing it to a European preparation. A very healthy working relationship was built between Europe and Asia, thanks to the city’s direct freight flights to and from Seoul.