Cole cleans up!
Posted: June 8, 2017 6:40 AM
Damian Cole/Paul Morris emerged victorious from the fourth round of the MSA Asphalt Rally Championship, the Tyneside Stages, in their Fiesta WRC which, after twelve stages on the Otterburn Military Ranges, came home 22s to the good over the Impreza WRC of Steve Simpson/Patrick Walsh. The win consolidates Cole & Morris’ lead of their respective Championship categories but, at the same time, they’ve been unable to shake off the attentions of Simpson/Walsh – after four rounds, both crews have two maximums to their credit!
Unfortunately, although the overall result would not have changed, the event was blighted by several stages being ‘cleaned’ by a number of crews – a great shame after all the hard work put in by the organisers, Alnwick & District and Berwick & District Motor Clubs, who had already been faced with restrictions to their preferred route.
Outgoing MSA Asphalt Champion Co-driver Jack Morton was 4th, sitting alongside Thomas Preston in his Skoda Fabia R5, while David Tinn had an excellent run in his Proton Satria Neo to take third-place points in the Drivers’ table. Having missed the trip to Ireland for the ALMC Stages, Richard Clews returned to the series and brought his Impreza home in 8th place which, in turn, moved him up to 3rd in the table, while the Slingers, Richard & Ben, also claimed a Top Ten finish in their Lancer EVO9.
tyneside16 (56)Mark Borthwick took his ex-Simon Mauger Escort MkII (a past Tyneside Stages winner!) to maximum points in the Millington Rear-Wheel Drive Challenge, ahead of Geoff Glover/Keith Barker whose Astra RWD still leads the category.
Manxman Stu Bainborough was experiencing Otterburn for the first time, bringing his Lancer EVO6 home just ahead of the EVO9 of Oliver Hopkins who, following the demise of David & Mathew White’s Impreza, took maximum Group N points to lead the category with three events remaining.
tyneside16 (129)Following the expensive noises emanating from under their Fiesta’s bonnet which put them out of the ALMC Stages, William Hill/Richard Crozier returned to take a class win on the Tyneside Stages, and maximum points in the AB Motorsport Front-Wheel Drive Challenge which they now lead. Richard & Pat Egger (Nova) are next, with Paul Clackett/David Millard’s Suzuki Swift S1600 also in close attendance.
Making their first appearance of the season in their ex-Kev Monaghan Corsa S1600, Tom Middlemiss/Richard Stewart were Hill/Crozier’s nearest rivals on the day. Clackett/Millard were 3rd and Richard Milbank/Lee Bezuidenhout (Corsa) next. Milbank also returned home to Essex with top marks in the 1400cc category, although Bezuidenhout’s attempts to join him were thwarted by Val Thompson who was guiding Andrew Egger’s Nova round the Ranges to a class win on the event.
Ian & Mags Kelly (Nissan Micra) and David & Mathew Smalley (Vauxhall Corsa) are neck-and-neck in the race for Class B9 honours and, although they already have three maximums on the board, Milbank/Bezuidenhout are far from safe!……
Apart from David & Mathew White’s non-finish, Tim Seipel was the only other Asphalt Championship driver to return home pointless. He has been experiencing clutch mechanism problems with his MG ZR and what he thought would be a cure proved to be the exact opposite. Consequently, the head-scratching continues as Tim contemplates his next move….
David Hardie/John McCulloch had placed an entry on the Tyneside Stages but their participation was conditional on their Impreza’s safe passage through the previous day’s Solway Coast Rally. Unfortunately, manifold problems and a broken differential saw to it that they didn’t finish one and didn’t start the other!….
No2hThe Tyneside Stages was also the second asphalt round of the ‘mixed-surface’ BTRDA Rally Challenge. Steve Simpson/Patrick Walsh were the main beneficiaries, followed by Thomas Preston/Jack Morton but, with two rounds still to go (the all-asphalt Mewla and the North York Moors-based Trackrod) it’s Stephen Petch (Fiesta R5+) who holds a narrow lead in the Drivers’ table from Preston. Meanwhile Richard Crozier, who has scored on all five events so far, is top Co-driver with Morton as his nearest rival. Currently, any one of the top five drivers and four co-drivers could, theoretically, end the season as Champion!
Fuchs R.A.C. Historic Asphalt Championship resumes
Posted: July 26, 2016 10:49 AM
After a break since round two, the Fuchs Lubricants R.A.C. Historic Asphalt Rally Championship, resumes on the Harry Flatters Rally on Epynt (Sunday 31 July).
Along with the early championship contenders, several crews are joining the championship for the challenge of the Epynt ranges and the scene is set for a very competitive event as the championship runs alongside the Mintex MSA British Historic Rally Championship for the first time.
The Fuchs Lubricants R.A.C. Historic Asphalt Rally Championship is organised by the Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club and is a dedicated asphalt championship for all categories of historic stage rally cars. As well as catering for crews who prefer to compete on sealed surfaces, the championship also offers a place for the Category 1 (pre-1968) cars that are moving away from gravel rallying as a result of the changes to event running orders.
Heading the historic field away will be Rob Smith and Alun Cook who are making their debut in the championship in their Ford Escort Mk2 but they will face a tough challenge from early pacesetters Roger Moran and Ashley Trimble in their similar car. Moran has scored two strong results to date and has good experience of Epynt.
Eian Pritchard and Steve McPhee (Ford Escort Mk2) are another crew with major potential on a venue that Pritchard senior knows well, while Tim Freeman and Paul Williams will field either Freeman’s regular Escort Mk2 or his recently acquired Ford Sierra Cosworth. Brothers Leigh and Chris Armstrong bring more quality to the Escort Mk2 pack, while heading the Category 2 cars will be the immaculate Ford Escort Mk1 of Roger Matthews and Tom Marrott.
The Harry Flatters Rally is organised by Brecon Motor Club.
BHRC battle moves to asphalt
Posted: July 26, 2016 10:35 AM
The 2016 Mintex MSA British Historic Rally Championship moves to asphalt for round five, the Harry Flatters Rally on Sunday 31 July.
After four rounds, Irish ace Paul Barrett heads the overall points’ table after a fabulous campaign in his Pinto-powered Ford Escort Mk2. Now comes a switch to asphalt and the demanding Epynt ranges always deliver a tough challenge, but Barrett is no stranger to asphalt and has every chance of maintaining his overall lead. Local co-driver Dai Roberts will guide Barrett over the crests and dips of this fantastic venue.
The Roger Albert Clark Rally Motor Club promotes the MSA BHRC under a five-year contract and 2016 is the second year of that agreement. The calendar covers six gravel and two asphalt rallies, with a double-header on the Isle of Man in September to make nine rounds. The team at Special Stage is filming all eight events and produce hour-long programmes to give the BHRC some of the best TV exposure in British rallying.
Heading into the rally, defending champions Jason Pritchard and Phil Clarke are badly in need of a strong result after sliding off the road on each of the two previous gravel rallies. They cannot afford another non-score as they bid to retain their title. However, in the Holton Homes Category K for cars prepared to FIA Appendix K regulations Pritchard faces a very big challenge in the form of Rob Smith and Alun Cook on their first championship event of the season.
Making a rare foray onto asphalt to continue a superb run of form in the RSR Historic Engineering Category 3 are Joe Price and Chris Brooks in their Ford Escort Mk2. However, missing the event due to family commitments will be title contenders Nick Elliott and Dave Price.
Stanley Orr and Guy Weaver are having a mighty season in the Capital Construction Category 2 with their Pinto-powered Ford Escort Mk1 and have already competed over Epynt this season. Key rivals to Orr include Simon Tysoe and Cliffy Simmons (Escort Mk1), who are right on the category pace.
In the Vintage Car Radiator Company Category 1, for the pre-1968 cars, the standard should be set by experienced Epynt competitor Bob Gibbons who has his son Dale co-driving in their Ford Cortina GT. Paul Mankin/Desmond Bell (Porsche 911) and Bob Bean/Malcolm Smithson (Lotus Cortina) will lead the chase of Gibbons.
The Harry Flatters Rally is organised by Brecon Motor Club.
Seeded Entry List
Posted: July 16, 2016 3:32 AM
Entries Recieved
Posted: June 23, 2016 1:54 PM
Available at:
On Line Entry / Regulations / Details
Posted: June 23, 2016 1:54 PM
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