Jun.28 (GMM) Former F1 team boss Cyril Abiteboul has played down wild rumours linking Hyundai with Formula 1.
Once boss of Renault’s works Formula 1 team, Frenchman Abiteboul now heads Hyundai Motorsport.
And the Korean carmaker caused a huge stir in the motorsport world on Friday with a social media post featuring a Formula 1 car with “What If?” on the rear wing.
“Get ready for the ride,” read part of the caption on the post, which was later deleted.
The rumour mill, however, was already in top gear, with some linking the post with recent statements made by Otmar Szafnauer about a potential bid for F1’s vacant twelfth team entry spot.
Speaking at Rally Greece, with Abiteboul overseeing Hyundai’s world rally team, the 47-year-old insisted: “I think there was a clumsy post from the marketing team in Korea.
“They wanted to create a buzz, and it worked,” Abiteboul told France’s Auto Hebdo.
“It has since been removed, which shows there is nothing behind it. There is no F1 project. We already have a lot to do with our two programs. We remain focused on that.”
Indeed, alongside its current world rally project, Hyundai is currently preparing a top-tier ‘hypercar’ prototype to contest the WEC and Le Mans from 2026.
When the Hyundai-to-F1 rumour spread around the Rally Greece paddock, Abiteboul also fielded questions from the international media.
“Perhaps in the long term,” he said when asked if the carmaker really might enter a Formula 1 team. “But not at all in the short term.
“Our only chance would be to enter the market in 2031. Take Audi as an example – they decided in 2021 to enter the market in 2026.
“Formula 1 is a different world,” Abiteboul added. “We can’t come as a sponsor as we have no interest in paying other people’s bills – that’s not our style.
“The other option would be to come in with our own technology.”
Interestingly, with Renault having announced the end of its works F1 engine project, recent rumours suggested that Abiteboul had gone shopping at Viry-Chatillon for motorsport engineers.
Hyundai has also been linked with Formula E.
“The Formula E technological roadmap is interesting,” Abiteboul admits. “However, I observe that it is a championship that is struggling to break through a glass ceiling in terms of audience and popularity among fans.
“We will continue to study this possibility,” he said.
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