Ott Tanak was rarely 100% comfortable driving the M-Sport Ford Puma following his shock switch from Hyundai, but the 2019 world champion still scored two WRC wins.
The Puma wasn’t as heavily developed as its full factory Toyota and Hyundai rivals, but in Tanak’s hands it showed flashes of pace to beat the WRC works teams to victories in Sweden and Chile.
Tanak mustered 30 stage wins and four podiums, but his title tilt was derailed by a series of issues: Mexico (turbo), Sardinia (electrical), Estonia (engine), Finland (engine) and Greece (water pump).
A combination of driver skill and an inspired team tyre call produced the highlight in Chile dominance.
Ott Tanak reuniting with M-Sport was the move the rally world wanted to spice up the 2023 WRC title as it ensured Toyota, Hyundai and M-Sport all had rally winners in their ranks. The partnership which boasted plenty of potential on paper was ultimately unable to deliver a sustained title fight, but it was not for the want of trying from both Tanak and M-Sport.
Source: Autosport