First and foremost, I want to apologise for a lack of activity on This Is Rally. I have been busy with university and press duties for the Scottish Rally Championship which incidentally is looking as competitive and exciting as ever in 2017, so I apologise to that one person who was missing my rallying drivel!
Back to the point though, I woke up this morning to the news that 21 year old Norwegian rally driver Oscar Solberg will contest the Junior BRC in 2017 at the wheel of a Ford Fiesta R2T for MH Motorsport. So what, you might be thinking? Another driver has thrown his hat into the Junior British Rally Championship ring. That's true. But, this news is the hardest evidence you will ever get that the British Rally Championship is back to its very best, and if you have read any of my posts in BRC you will be more than aware what a strong national championship means to me. You see, the rally fan within you will immediately have realised the significance in Oscar Solberg's involvement: Solberg. Solberg Jr. is the son of former WRC driver Henning Solberg and therefore nephew of 2003 World Rally Champion and 2014 & 15 World Rallycross Champion Petter Solberg. The potential then for this youngster is very high, and the name in itself is a positive boost for the BRC, like Max Vatanen was in 2016. The reason today's news is so significant though is that Solberg is an international rally driver who has chosen the BRC as the best option to ply his trade on his venture to hopefully becoming a World Rally Championship driver. The mere fact he is Norwegian and not British is a factor, but last year Solberg was competing in what is now the Junior WRC and has chosen the BRC for 2017. That speaks volumes. Many have previously described the British Rally Championship as a "mini world championship", and Oscar Solberg's involvement indicates the BRC is returning to that level. Speculation was rife in 2015 and early '16 about the new series' credentials, and I have long since banged on about it, but this for me cements the BRC's place back in the good books of international rallying after the disastrous spell between 2012 and 2015. Solberg has said that events such as the Isle of Man attracted him, as well as seeing footage of the old F2 days of the late '90s and early 2000's. This kid and I could rub along very nicely... All I can say finally is well done to IMS and everyone involved with the championship. Britain is well and truly back on the rallying map, and the battle for overall honours in the BRC is set to be explosive with Fredrik Ahlin returning in a Skoda, Keith Cronin gunning for a fourth title in an M-Sport supported campaign and last year's chargers David Bogie, Desi Henry and Marty McCormack sure to be in the mix. I will be at the first three rounds of the year (Border Counties, Pirelli and Scottish rallies) and to say I can't wait is something of an understatement. A Solberg is coming to my local area, the Scottish Borders. Don't wake me up...
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Photo Credit: Lindsay Photo Sport The 2017 MSA British Rally Championship is a topic of hot discussion this month, with plenty of driver announcements and a new title sponsor coming in for the new season. with all being revealed next week at the Autosport International Show.
However, today some shocking news broke in that the scheduled first round of the championship, the Mid Wales Stages, has been cancelled in response to the ongoing saga in Wales regarding the prices of forest use. Rally4Wales looked to have secured a good deal in covering the costs of repairing the tracks destroyed by rally cars, but for a misunderstanding in VAT prices resulting in some clubs having to pay 20% of the what Rally4Wales are to repair the roads. Newtown & District Club who organise the Mid Wales Stages are one of these clubs, and so the decision was made with such little time until the start of the rally to cancel it. In its place comes the Border Counties Rally, round 2 of the ARR Craib MSA Scottish Rally Championship and now the opening round of the BRC. This means the two series' will compete on the same event twice in just three months, with the two meeting in May for the RSAC Scottish Rally. It has been a quick turnaround from the BRC organisers and the organisers of the Jedburgh based rally to cement the deal, and although this is bad news for the Welsh rallying community from my own personal bias as somebody from the Scottish Borders it is fantastic. The Borders has long been craving its star-attraction rally since the closed public roads of the Jim Clark Rally disappeared from the national rally calendar. The Border Counties runs every year as part of the SRC, but adding the BRC to the mix is a big boost for the event's status and the local community with both BRC and SRC rally fans flocking the Jedburgh area. And this boost to the economy has been a big loss to the Borders businesses sicne the Jim Clark Rally was cancelled. Although technically today's news isn't good news, it is to me. I for one and more excited for the start of the British Rally Championship season now. With the rally being contested in the classic Tweed Valley and Kielder Forest the BRC couldn't have picked a better backdrop, and I'll be there to see it all happen! "The BRC is back" was the prominent message that donned the championship's promotion campaign, but was it? After a year's sabbatical in 2015, the national championship previously touted as the best in the world was returning for 2016, with the IMS coming in to run the championships' reincarnation. This in itself, with well-known rallying names in Iain Campbell and Ben Taylor, was a positive sign that the new MSA British Rally Championship was not just there to make up the numbers; it wanted to return to its roots and become the best national championship in the world of rallying. And as news continued to filter through about the series, it became clear the British Rally Championship was indeed coming back with a bang, and back to its very best. Followers of This Is Rally may remember a feature I did in November 2015 looking ahead to the new BRC, written as one of my assessments for my university degree. Taking inspiration from that, I've decided to write a bumper preview with the help of those involved with the series for the 2017 Prestone MSA British Rally Championship, which has arguably an even tougher task than its predecessing season. 2016 was the new-born baby and thus had pressure to succeed which it managed to do superbly in my opinion. But maintaining those excellent standards is something that should not be underestimated. Can the 2017 Prestone MSA British Rally Championship continue to deliver? To understand the standards that have been set, let's remind ourselves of the successes of the 2016 season, with the help of MSA BRC Media Manager Ben Buesnel. "I think the British Rally Championship has to be a success to make rallying a success in Britain." Ben said. "It is massively important for rallying in the British Isles as the sport needs a flagship series. My initial reaction [to 2016] was one of excitement. The phone calls with Iain Campbell and Ben Taylor every other day were exciting, and we knew we were in for a stellar year ahead. "I was fortunate enough to be one of the first to know when drivers first signed up and to write the stories. That really filled me with excitement. So many wanted to see the BRC back with a bang and what a bang it came back with. To add names such as Evans, Vatanen, Cronin, Cave and Bogie into the pot made it very feverish." But it wasn't just the household names that made a good account of themselves last year, as Ben explains. "There were so many stand-out performers as I think everyone developed over the course of the year. Alex Laffey is a prime example. Having never really driven on gravel before, he struggled at the start but by the end was into the top ten on the time sheets. Switching focus to the 2017 season, which now has a title sponsor in Prestone, who should we be looking out for in 2017? Over to Ben. "Three drivers impressed me in BRC1 last year and could be ones to look out for in 2017. Tom Cave got a lot of much needed seat time in an R5 and by the Scottish Rally looked composed and relaxed. Desi Henry got to grips with his Skoda quite quickly to be on par with Cave by the end of the year. He is another who needed the seat time but with a year under his belt he could be one to watch in 2017. Finally, Jonny Greer kept his head down and chipped away all season. Underrated by many, Greer kept it consistent and for me showed improvement with every event. "The gauntlet has been thrown down with several drivers announcing their plans early. Marty McCormack for me is the dark horse. His performance on the Circuit of Ireland in an S2000 car was nothing short of sensational. With an R5 car he will be in the mix. Matt Edwards [2016 BRC2 Champion] is improving all the time and will spring a surprise or two this year." Ben Buesnel is just one of the many talented personnel involved in the BRC's transformation from nothing short of an embarassment in 2014 to a championship that was even discussed in the service park of WRC events in 2016. I think I speak for every British rally fan in saying a big thank you to the BRC team, not least Championship Manager Iain Campbell. The Scot, who is also the Clerk of the Course for Wales Rally GB, spoke to me about the challenges he and the organising team faced last year to put the spring back in the step of Britain's premier national rally championship. "The BRC in 2016 surpassed everybody's expectations. At the end of the season on the Isle of Man, I was very proud of what we as IMS had achieved but also relieved that we had survived the full year, whilst also feeling full of apprehension of what we had to do to do it all again in 2017. "We honestly didn't know if anybody would want to come and join the BRC at the start of the year and now we had the issue of how would we keep all of these competitors happy until the end of the year? Of course, we didn't manage to keep them all on the journey to the seven rounds with us but we did manage to average 40 entries per round. "Everything was a challenge. Everything was new and it was being run by a team who had never run a championship before. It was hard work but it's amazing what adrenaline, excitement, fear and sheer determination can get you by on. That and what the BRC really has going for it was everyone wants it to succeed. There is enormous support for the championship and we fed off that goodwill a lot in 2016. Perhaps we can't feed off it so much this year but the desire from everyone to make it succeed is still as strong." The 2017 season sees subtle changes to the rule-book, with the points-scoring system being adjusted and with it changes to the effect each driver's nominated Joker round has. 'Skunner' explained: "We learnt a lot in 2016 but it is always important not to just keep doing the same things. We are always looking for change if it will mean that things will improve. The points system was designed to reward winners in 2016. There was a definite advantage to getting on the top step of the podium instead of having a consistent run of seconds and thirds to base your championship on. Competitors asked us to adopt the FIA point system for 2017, so we have. "The Joker points have been retained, however the reward for scoring on your Joker round has been reduced to 5 for a win, down to 1 point for 5th place. Interestingly we had decided on 5-1 points before the FIA decided to do the same with the WRC Power Stage points." The BRC's decision to head overseas to Belgium and the Ypres Rally in 2017 has been met with scepticism in some parts, notably myself at first, as it means the British Rally Championship is heading away from the British Isles. However, Iain Campbell has the perfect response to any of the doubters (I don't think he realised I was one of them when I asked!) "Our desire for the BRC is to be an international championship. What better way is there to promote what the UK can offer to overseas competitors than to go to them and to show them our pace, our promotion and to speak to them direct, to see if we can entice them across the Channel to the BRC. "Ypres is the most fantastic of events. It's superbly promoted, has a great atmosphere and it's a great occasion for our competitors to experience a foreign event whilst still scoring points in the BRC. For many in the south it is actually their local BRC round! We can only see benefits from this rally being the fourth round of the British Rally Championship. Everyone needs to look outside of what is regarded as the norm or the traditional and challenge it." So since I've got one of the main driving forces behind the Prestone MSA British Rally Championship, let's find out what the aims are for the 2017 season. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Skunner sees the new BRC's second season as a platform on which to build on from last year. "2017 is very much about taking the lessons from 2016 and learning from them." He said. "We also have a title sponsor this year [in Prestone] who are incredibly enthusiastic and excited about their involvement. We need to deliver on their objectives but also use their high street brand to raise the awareness of the BRC and UK rallying. "2017 is a year that will hopefully offer great competition on the stages and continues to find new UK talent. It is also the year where we really have to start building on the foundations laid out over the last 18 months. "Our events now know what we bring to them, what our expectations are, as we now know them. They all have new ideas on what they can do in 2017 to create an impact on the regions we visit. These are the things that excite me. I've already started on a proposed calendar for the 2018 championship. We have 11 events that are either part of the current calendar or have expressed an interest in being part of the championship next year. This is a nice position to be in." Speaking of nice positions to be in, things could be a lot worse for young rally driver Rhys Yates. The Englishman took part in his second full season of rallying in 2016, competing in the MSA British Rally Championship with a Ford Fiesta R5 and later on in the year with the upgraded Fiesta R5 Evo. Yates was one of the first drivers to sign up to the new-look BRC, and made real progression across the seven rounds in 2016. I spoke to the young charger, who explains the appeal of the BRC to a competitor. Rhys said: "The BRC is the most competitive championship in the UK and the R5 class definitely attracted us. The pace was very fast [last year], with some guys doing WRC2 and winning rallies proving this. So the BRC has definitely brought us all on, and we got a bit closer as the season went on." 2017 marks Yates' second full season at the wheel of M-Sport's R5 machine, and will be his second stab at the British Rally Championship, where he is hoping to continue where he left off in 2016. "After a full season under my belt, I feel more comfortable with the rally formats, recce, pace notes and with the car, so we feel a lot better prepared than last year. We've just got to keep having fun and push on when I feel comfortable. "The calendar looks great. It's a shame to lose the Mid Wales Stages but that isn't the BRC's fault, and they dealt with it straight away and sorted out a solution which is great! The rallies look evenly spread out which is great for me, as there's not massive time-gaps between events giving just enough time to re-prepare the car and be ready for the next round. "I was never involved with rallying when the championship was run without four wheel drive cars, but the R5 class is great for the championship and the overall competitiveness. I think's its building reputation and the pace really shows when lads do WRC2 from the BRC. I think it's a great championship and definitely the championship to do." Actions speak louder than words, but if what Ben Buesnel, Iain Campbell and Rhys Yates have said does not get you excited for the upcoming season in the British Rally Championship and fill you confidence that the championship has a healthy future then I guess you just aren't a fan of rallying. I personally can't wait to see how 2017 unfolds, especially considering the title race is expected to be closer with the departure of 2016 Champion Elfyn Evans to the World Rally Championship.
And I have every confidence in IMS to deliver a successful championship for years to come. I'll leave the final words to those on the inside. Why should we be paying attention to the 2017 BRC? Ben Buesnel: "Ari Vatanen last year likened the BRC to a mini world championship as the series has the lot. Bumpy Irish Asphalt, rough and challenging stages in Scotland, smooth Tarmac on the Isle of Man, high-speed gravel on the Pirelli, the demanding mixed-surface test or the Nicky Grist and even snow and ice on the Mid Wales Stages last year! I don’t think other domestic series offer the range of surfaces that the BRC does. "I think 2017 is going to be a year for British talent to shine in the BRC and I cannot wait for the season to get underway on the Border Counties Rally. ...And just in case you needed convincing... Iain Campbell: "The British Rally Championship is really the national championship that offers the competitor the opportunity to compete on all the surfaces that they are likely to face in our sport. Few other championships in Europe can do that: most are either purely asphalt or purely gravel. There are also so many variations to our stages that you can’t drive a forest test and just call it a ‘typical’ UK stage. The heritage that this series has is so rich. It has started so many careers and we have to use that to promote the sport, whilst offering great competition on the stages. As for going to watch BRC, why wouldn’t you want to watch the best drivers, in the best cars on the best stages? Come and join us, it is going to be good." Head over to my Facebook page where the full interviews will be posted in the coming days, and make sure you follow me on Twitter for all the latest from This Is Rally. Massive thank you to Ben Buesnel, Iain Campbell and Rhys Yates for the words. Photo Credit: Lindsay Photo Sport Firstly, I do realise this isn't a BRC article and it has been published in my BRC section, but this is the most relevant category for me to discuss the 2016 ARR Craib MSA Scottish Rally Championship which concluded in dramatic fashion last weekend in Castle Douglas. I have been lucky enough to work as the Press Officer for the SRC this year, and I have to say it has been a dream come true. Everything I have heard about the series - the friendly nature, the fierce competition and fantastic spirit and camaraderie - is absolutely true and I believe it is one of if not the greatest national championship around. Heading into the season, the favourites to succeed throughout the season were the establishment; Jock Armstrong (Subaru Impreza), Mike Faulkner (Mitsubishi Evo IX), Bruce McCombie (Mitsubishi Evo IX) and Donnie MacDonald (Mitsubishi Evo IX). However, the championship had seen some new and returning faces join the ranks, with the R5 Fiesta remaining in the series despite multiple champion David Bogie's departure to the BRC. Duns driver Garry Pearson and Tobermory's John MacCrone both showed up in Inverness on the opening round in the popular M-Sport machine, on the back of differing circumstances. MacCrone was looking to increase his confidence after an accident on the previous year's Mull Rally, while Pearson launched into the season with next to no experience of a four wheel drive rally car. Mark McCulloch was also another to watch in a newer Evo IX, with usual suspects Barry Groundwater and the returning Dale Robertson joining the fray. The Snowman Rally, round 1, was by no means a reflection on true form but was an absolute thriller. Conditions were incredibly treacherous, with ice and snow making tyre choice and indeed the rally a complete lottery. Local man Donnie MacDonald, who went on to solely focus on the BRC National Cup after his SRC season curtailed, grabbed his maiden SRC win coming out of the final test seven seconds ahead of Dale Robertson in another Mitusbishi. However, we arguably should have seen another debut winner in Mark McCulloch. The Newton Stewart driver had opened up a huge lead after an impressive display in the tricky conditions, only for a puncture for ruin his hopes and drop him to third. Defending champion Armstrong, Faulkner and MacCrone all languished outside the top 10 as they struggled with inadequate tyres for the conditions, diminishing any of their confidence. Garry Pearson took a solid fifth on his R5 debut, setting a fastest stage time in the process. Onto round 2 and Jedburgh in the Scottish Borders and it was the predicted pace setters that hit back in the Tweed Valley forests. The rally was all about the close battle between Armstrong, Pearson and Shaun Sinclair in a Focus WRC. In the end, Jock's Subaru and Garry's Fiesta could not be separated for overall time after the six special stages, with Armstrong taking his first win of the year on the tiebreak after setting the quickest time on the opening stage. At the time, this was seen as tremendously exciting and impressive from young Pearson who had launched himself into an early championship lead. But this result would prove to be more crucial than we all realised. Sinclair took third while Mike Faulkner could only grab fourth despite pushing his car to its limits. The Speyside Stages replaced the Granite City Rally, now reformed as the Grampian Stages, as the third round on the calendar, and the SRC contingent had a benchmark to compare themselves to: the Peugoet 208 T16 R5 of previous Scottish Champion Euan Thorburn. Thorburn was indeed the man to beat up in Elgin, right up until the penultimate stage where his French R5 decided enough was enough and let the Duns man down. This meant the hot battle ensuing behind him was now definitely fighting for first, even though they never lost touch with Euan all day. Pearson continued to impress, and despite a hairy final stage spin, he took his maiden Scottish Rally Championship win to extend his championship lead. Jock Armstrong was once again his closest challenger, something of a theme for the 2016 season, and took second with Mike Faulkner grabbing his first podium of what was a slightly frustrating season for the Wigton driver. John MacCrone, whose turbo clamp ended his Border Counties, was right in the mix and getting his confidence back with co-driver Rhiannon Gelsomino. However, a driveshaft broke mid-way through the day meaning he had to settle for fourth, but only just. The finishing gap was encouraging though, as had his Ford not hit trouble he could have been the victor. Photo Credit: Lindsay Photo Sport Round 4 of the season became the RSAC Scottish Rally after the Kielder forest version of the Jim Clark Rally had to be pulled due to lack of entries, and it was a big test for the SRC contingent who faced an extra 20 competitive stage miles and were sharing the stages with the British Rally Championship crews.
None of this fazed Garry Pearson who went on to take eighth overall and his second SRC win on the bounce, once again ahead of the consistent Jock Armstrong and Mike Faulkner, in what was an exact copy of the podium on the Speyside Stages two months earlier. The Grampian Stages marked the business end of the season, and Pearson the chance to grab the Scottish title if he won the event and other results went his way. However, a rampant John MacCrone, who was forced to miss the Scottish despite entering the event due to budget issues, was one to watch after his impressive pace on the Speyside, and he was well within the now traditional Pearson-Armstrong onslaught right from the off. Jock looked to have almost binned his hopes of recording his second Scottish title according to the time sheets, but it turned out he had only lost 30 seconds with an overshoot rather than the 3-4 minutes initially suspected. Either way, the Subaru man was now out of the fight for the win, leaving the two Fiesta R5's of Pearson and MacCrone to battle it out for SRC honours. Heading into the final test, the non-registered Dave Weston Jr held the lead in his Subaru Impreza WRC ahead of Euan Thorburn, Pearson and MacCrone who were all tied on overall time, creating a thrilling finale. In the end it was MacCrone who aced it, taking a gulf of time out of Pearson in fourth and Thorburn in third, and even reducing the gap to overall winner Weston Jr to just six seconds. It was a fantastic drive that gave John his first SRC win and put Garry Pearson's title hopes on ice. Heading into the season finale, the Galloway Hills Rally, Pearson held a 3 point gap with drop scores considered, with a win or a second behind Armstrong if he won enough to secure him his maiden SRC title. Pearson's chances took an early boost as the man predicted to shake up the battle, John MacCrone, retired his Fiesta R5 in a ditch on SS2, giving Garry a seven second advantage over Jock at midday service. Armstrong through caution to the wind on the final loop of stages, which was about all he could do, but little did he know young Garry Pearson's season was curtailing. The Fiesta R5 had developed a problem diagnosed as an engine manifold issue. Pearson drove the car through SS5 in road mode to try and preserve the engine but smoke filled the R5 as the plastic rocker cover melted, grinding his car to a halt and ending his rally and championship there and then. That left Jock to celebrate his second title back in Castle Douglas in typical exuberant Jock fashion, but back there waiting to congratulate the champion was Garry Pearson; a classy touch, highlighting the camaraderie in the SRC. Nobody could deny either Pearson or Armstrong wasn't deserving of the championship, but unfortunately for Garry his luck ran out with just one stage to go. So what about the importance of the Border Counties? Well if Pearson had gone just one second faster on the final stage and had beaten Armstrong to the win, he would have been Scottish Champion. The championship literally came down to, in effect, one corner. You don't see that in many other places. Personally, I can't wait for 2017. Whether Pearson returns for another shot at glory remains to be seen, but he has a very bright future ahead of him after such an impressive season. Jock Armstrong however is still the wily king of Scottish rallying. Followers of This Is Rally will be more than aware how much a strong British Rally Championship means to me, and in truth I am most certainly not the only one who adores a strong domestic series in the UK.
After its sabbatical in 2015, the 2016 season was more hyped up a great deal, not least by myself with my constant tweets and feature pieces on here including an interview with championship manager Iain Campbell. However, the hype was certainly not misplaced, with four different manufacturers, three different winners, a more than solid range of car classes and international flavour all creating a fantastic season's rallying, ultimately dominated by one of the sport's most promising young drives Elfyn Evans who really is too good to not be consistently in the world scene. But the question is, where can the championship really go from here? Well firstly it will head to the Isle of Man in just under 2 weeks time, a classic event and a classic line-up. Newly crowned BRC Champion Elfyn Evans will take on former BRC driver and Circuit of Ireland winner Craig Breen in a DS3 R5, with triple BRC Champion and local man Mark Higgins joining Evans in a DMACK Fiesta. There were rumours of potentially Ostberg or Kevin Abbring coming along, but if anything this is even more mouthwatering. The ultimate master of all conditions in the British Championship, versus the rising star who claimed an emphatic podium on the fastest rally of them all: Rally Finland. Then there's the man that's been there, done it all and often won it all. A rallying hero of mine, Mark Higgins may not have driven competitively in a while but he can never ever be discounted, especially on his home turf. Here I go again with my comparisons to the BRC's past (but forgive me it was I grew up watching) but I think it's fascinating that Mark Higgins was battling Elfyn Evans' dad Gwyndaf all those years ago but now the two will face up for a showdown on one of the world's most difficult and unique rallies. The fight for second in the championship is also a hot one between a whole host of drivers. Tom Cave probably deserves a 2016 win and would have done so had he not been up against a WRC driver, whilst Fredrik Ahlin has been the strong international competitor the BRC needs. One man who has failed to make the impact I thought he would is David Bogie, although that has been a lot down to luck in a few cases but his performances show the jump a driver has to make jumping from a regional championship to one as big as the BRC. Now I'll tread carefully as I am the Scottish Rally Championship Press Officer and don't get me wrong I think the SRC is one of the best series around for its competitive nature and camaraderie, but Bogie's 2016 shows the difference between the SRC and BRC. Bogie was ultimately too good for the SRC, but the former British Champ has struggled this year with tougher opposition than he is used to and having to make his own pace notes again. He'll be back next year though make no mistake, and he is proof Scotland still produces great driving talent with Euan Thorburn, John MacCrone and Garry Pearson too looking promising. Photo Credit: Lindsay Photo Sport Round 4 of the 2016 MSA British Rally Championship saw Britain's and some of Europe's best rally drivers and co-drivers head to Scotland and Dumfries for the RSAC Scottish Rally.
For the first time in two years, the BRC drivers contested the same event as the ARR Craib Scottish Rally Championship crews, meaning this was the second event this year the BRC crews were doing battle with other championships. After disappointing runs on the Circuit of Ireland and Pirelli Carlisle Rallies, Elfyn Evans and Craig Parry were in need of a strong result and delivered strongly in Scotland, dominating the event from start to finish to become the first repeat winner of the rejuvenated British Rally Championship. The Welsh pair won 6 of the 7 special stages aboard their Ford Fiesta R5. Second place went to Tom Cave and James Morgan, who used this event as their double pointer 'Joker' round. The Fiesta R5 crew did battle with local man David Bogie and his Hawick co-driver Kevin Rae all day, with the Skoda driver losing the second place position on the final stage of the event due to a puncture. However, worse was to come as the puncture Bogie picked up ate away at the Fabia's radiator leading to retirement after he had completed the final stage. To make matters worse, the Scotsman had elected his home event as his Joker. Fellow Skoda pilot Desi Henry completed the podium in third after his victory on the DMACK Carlisle Stages, and provided comment of the rally when referring to Elfyn Evans saying: "He's a World Championship driver, I'm just a builder." Euan Thorburn and Paul Beaton took their best result of the season in their troublesome Peugeot 208 T16 R5, finishing just ahead of the Citroen DS3 R5 of Jonny Greer and Kirsty Riddick. Just behind were the Fiesta R5's of Josh Moffett and then the ever impressive Jamie Anderson, with the SRC podium of Garry Pearson, Jock Armstrong and Mike Faulkner completing the top 10 overall. Sindre Furesseth won the Junior BRC, Jamie Jukes the National Cup, Matt Edwards BRC2, Chris Wheeler BRC3 and Tony Simpson BRC4. The next round of the season is the Nicky Grist Stages on both tarmac and gravel roads in just 2 weeks time. It's a thought I had to myself when I was driving along the country lanes of Berwickshire, made famous in the world of rallying by the Jim Clark Rally. My little Ford Fiesta is by no means a rally car, but I was really enjoying the road stretching out ahead of me, and being a Borderer who has grown up watching rally cars blast along the roads round where I live, closed road tarmac rallying is something very close to my heart. But what is it that makes it so special? In the UK at least closed road rallies are something of a rarity. At this moment in time there are none on mainland UK, but for many years the only one has been the Jim Clark which hopefully will return to the tarmac lanes next year in 2017. However, with the Jim Clark potentially returning home so to speak next year and the recent price increase in forest use for rallies that is putting Welsh forest rallying in general under serious threat, closed road rallying could be where the future of our sport lies. If you ask Scottish Rally Championship competitor John MacCrone, who is from the Isle of Mull, that's not such a bad thing. He said: "I really enjoy Tarmac, so would love to see more closed road events in the UK. Getting to recce the stages means you can be much more committed to your notes which is a lot of fun. "Narrow bumpy roads with crests and jumps are my favourite and there are plenty of these to be found throughout the country so fingers crossed closed road rallying becomes a reality!" I am by no means demeaning the charms and the attraction of forest stage rallying as it would be a tragedy if we were to lose them in Britain. The fast, flowing roads or tight, technical sections littered with hazards that sees the cars throwing up dust and stones is a spectacle worth seeing. But the main disadvantage of rallying in the forests is it is much less accessible to most of the spectators going to watch. Opel works driver and current ERC Junior points leader Chris Ingram, who has rallied on some of the best gravel and tarmac events across Europe including Wales Rally GB, the Circuit of Ireland and Ypres, gave his opinion on the matter. "For me closed road rallying is the future of the sport. It's arguably even more enjoyable than gravel rallying as the speeds are higher and a faster driver in a slower car can shine by being able to carry more speed. It is more accessible and closed road events in mainland Europe always bring out massive crowds." I may be perceived as possibly being a little biased as the reason I fell in love with rally was because of the Jim Clark Rally, meaning my first introduction to the sport was a closed road event. But the closed road events would be a credible solution to rally's current problems and should get new blood involved with the sport as they naturally get more people involved through the closure of public roads. If the rally runs past your house you can't really ignore it; a situation that has had a major affect on the number of people involved with rallying in Ireland for example. It's clear to see how much the closed road rallying means to the people of Berwickshire and beyond where the Jim Clark is staged (Photo Credit: Garry Pearson Rallying). And although there will undoubtedly be some who find the rally a nuisance, the general community welcomes events like this as they are fantastic for the economy; the Borders gains £5,000,000 from the annual event. Closed road rallying is the origin of our sport. The two oldest rallies in the world, Rallye Monte-Carlo and the Circuit of Ireland, so it's a shame it's not such a feature in the present in the UK at least. Ideally what we want are rally calendars full of gravel and tarmac events, so we get a mixture of different types of event and a bigger challenge for the competitors. As for what makes them special, just imagine walking into your local town on a Friday night and seeing a bunch of rally cars charging through. It''s a spectacle forest rallying can't give you. 24 year old Swedish rising star Fredrik Ahlin won round 3 of the 2016 MSA British Rally Championship, the Pirelli Carlisle Rally, becoming the third different winner in this year's BRC. Contested in the notoriously challenging and rapid Kielder Forest, Ahlin took the win by 27 seconds from Matthew Wilson, who in turn had 3 seconds over the charging Elfyn Evans in third.
Matthew Wilson returned to the BRC for the first time in 11 years, at the wheel of a Ford Fiesta R5 Evo with Scotsman Stuart Loudon in the co-driver's seat. He had a solid rally apart from suffering a puncture on Sunday's opening test. Welshman Elfyn Evans took third overall, but was left frustrated after a puncture on day 1 saw him catapult down the leaderboard. His comeback was thwarted by the sheer pace of the turbo charged, four wheel drive machinery the top guys were using. As several drivers beat the bogey time, the times were nullified which restricted the amount of time the WRC star was able to claw back. Fellow Welshman Tom Cave stayed out of trouble to take fourth overall, being pipped to third position right at the end of the event. He will be happy enough, but was never really on terms with the leading quartet of drivers (Ahlin, Evans, Wilson and Bogie) aboard his Ford Fiesta R5. Marty McCormack made it four different tyre manufacturers (Pirelli, Michelin, DMACK and Kumho) in the top five positions with fifth place overall in his Skoda Fabia S2000. Fifth marked McCormack's first points of the season, and was another impressive display in an inferior car. After taking second on the Circuit of Ireland rally, Jonny Greer and Kirsty Riddick took sixth overall on the Pirelli in their Citroen DS3 R5, to lie fifth in the championship standings. Desi Henry guided his Skoda Fabia R5 to seventh overall, a mere 3 seconds ahead of fellow Skoda driver Neil Simpson, who notched up his first BRC finish since the year 2000. Ford Fiesta R5 runners Jamie Anderson and Max Vatanen completed the top 10. Robert Duggan took his second consecutive DMACK Junior BRC win for the works Vauxhall team, edging out Gus Greensmith and Adam Bustard. Matt Edwards took his second BRC2 win of the year, with Chris Wheeler taking the spoils in BRC3 with his R3 Citroen DS3. Scottish driver Donnie MacDonald won his second consecutive BRC National event in his Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX. However fellow Scottish drivers David Bogie and Euan Thorburn didn't achieve the results they were after. Bogie in his Fabia R5 was right in the mix after day 1, trailing CA1 Sport team mate Fredrik Ahlin by less than 10 seconds before Sunday's action. However, the multiple Scottish champion out braked himself on Sunday's opener, tried to use the ditch on the outside of the bend to get round the corner but his wheel got caught and his Skoda was sucked into the ditch head first. Thorburn suffered yet more teething problems with his Peugeot 208 T16 R5. The team faced a massive task to get the car to the start after issues on last weekend's Speyside Stages rally in Moray, but the car was hit by a separate issue that took him out of contention. The next round of the BRC is the RSAC Scottish Rally on 25 June. Fredrik Ahlin played his Joker on the Pirelli meaning he now heads Elfyn Evans by 5 points in the championship, with it still all to play for. Round 2 of the 2016 MSA British Rally Championship was contested on the narrow, demanding and historic lanes of Northern Ireland for the Circuit of Ireland, the second oldest rally in the world. Held over two days, the rally was extra difficult for the BRC drivers, and not just because the weather did its best to unsettle everybody. The British boys were also battling the best of Europe and Ireland in similar machinery, making it a record breaking entry list and one titanic battle!
It was a rally of attrition, with early pace setter and rally leader Elfyn Evans falling by the wayside in the morning loop with mechanical issues aboard his DMACK British Rally Team Fiesta R5. That left the door open for those behind, and by the service break Swede Fredrik Ahlin and Marty McCormack had taken full advantage and found themselves tied for time in what was an impressive drive by both men. McCormack was proving that the old S2000 breed could still take the fight to the younger R5 cars, with the Skoda driver ending leg 1 at the head of the BRC field as Fredrik clipped a curb in his orange Fiesta on the street stage that concluded the day's action, dropping a handful of seconds and damaging a wheel in the process. It was still an impressive run considering it was Ahlin's first time driving a four wheel drive car on tarmac. Josh Moffett and John Rowan found themselves third overnight. Day 2 and first it was McCormack to go, with mechanical issues withdrawing him from proceedings. Next it was Ahlin, who suffered a small mechanical glitch but worse was to come when he left the road in the challenging conditions. This cleared the way for Josh Moffett and John Rowan, who steered their Fiesta R5 safely to a surprise BRC win and maximum 25 championship points, good enough to put them into second in the standings behind Elfyn Evans and Craig Parry. They also took fourth overall, making it a fantastic weekend for the youngster. Jonny Greer and Kirsty Riddick came second in the BRC in their Citroen DS3 R5 and fifth overall, with a controlled drive as others hit trouble. Making the podium after missing out to Tom Cave on the Mid Wales were David Bogie and Kevin Rae. The Scottish crew had a lively run to sixth overall, with an excursion into the hedge on the pre-event qualifying stage and various other small moments throughout the weekend, but valuable experience was gained given this was Bogie's first time on the Circuit. The Circuit of Ireland rally was won by Irishman Craig Breen in a DS3 R5, who took a second consecutive home victory. Defending European Rally Champion and runner up on the Circuit for the second year running was the Fiesta R5 of Polish driver Kajetan Kajetanowicz. Leading Irish Tarmac Championship runners Alastair Fisher and Gordon Noble completed the podium in their Fiesta R5. The next round of the British Rally Championship is the Pirelli International Rally on 30 April - 1 May. If you're not excited for this one then you are not a rally fan! Round 2 of the MSA British Rally Championship is the historic Circuit of Ireland Rally, which apart from Rallye Monte-Carlo is the oldest rally in the world. After the grueling mud and gravel of Rd 1 in Wales, the tight, twisty and jump-littered roads of Northern Ireland could not be more different, which just adds to the challenge of the 2016 BRC.
What adds extra spice to this second round of the rejuvenated BRC is that the British drivers will be wading into battle with the Irish Tarmac Championship runners and the boys from the European Rally Championship, creating one mega battle and a record breaking entry list of 44 R5 specification vehicles. Leading the British Rally Championship runners away is championship leader Elfyn Evans, who won his home round of the series last time out. Close behind in the running order are his nearest rivals from the Mid Wales Stages Fredrik Ahlin, Tom Cave and David Bogie. Ahlin and Cave are in Fiesta R5's while Bogie is the leading Skoda Fabia R5 on the entry list. Seeded fifth and closest to Evans is Keith Cronin, who had a disappointing Mid Wales but has been strong in the Irish Tarmac series this year. Other BRC drivers to watch are Euan Thorburn who claimed a solid fifth on round 1 and who did this rally last year in a Fiesta S2000, Max Vatanen, Jonny Greer and Desi Henry, who is another along with Greer and Cronin that is contesting both the Irish and British Championships in 2016. The battle in the DMACK Juniors is likely to be between the Fiesta R2T's of Gus Greensmith, Adam Bustard and Meirion Evans and the works Vauxhall Adam R2's of Robert Duggan, Mattias Adielsson and Arron Windus. The battle for BRC honours is only part of the equation for the top runners though, who surely will be interested to see how they can do against the European contenders, which include 2016 ERC points leader Alexey Lukyanuk (Fiesta R5), 2015 ERC Champion Kajetan Kajetanowicz (Fiesta R5) and 2015 Circuit of Ireland winner and Citroen WRC driver Craig Breen (DS3 R5). One thing is for sure, it's going to be epic! Check out the full entry list here. |
BRITISH RALLYINGArticles covering rally in Britain, looking at the MSA BRC Archives
September 2017
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