Bulldog International Rally of North Wales Round 2 - 2011 British Rally Championship Round 2 - 2011 Welsh National Forest Rally Championship
Round 2 - 2011 MSA British Historic Rally Championship
Round 2 - 2011 2011 Citroen Racing Trophy UK
For 19 year old Omagh driver Mark Donnelly the weekend brought a magnificent victory that is highly significant in the young driver’s career. On his first event in a new car, the Renault Clio R3, and against the best drivers in the British Rally Championship, in the Welsh forests, Mark and Fermanagh co-driver Barry McNulty topped the chart. “We are absolutely thrilled!” commented Mark. ”We have had a few set-backs lately so we decided to hire this Clio for the second round of the British Rally Championship. I first drove the car briefly two days before the event, so we certainly did not at all expect to win the rally!” The 2 litre, 250 brake horse power front wheel drive Clio R3 is a different machine than the 195 horse power Citroen C2, Mark had been campaigning, but after a slow start on stage one, as he adapted to car, the 8.8 mile second stage in the Welsh forests, gave Mark and Barry their first fastest time.
After three of the ten special stages, Mark was now 8.4 seconds behind the leader Martin McCormack, the former British Junior Champion driving Citroen’s direct rival to the Renault the Citroen DS3 R3. “The morning stages were slippery, and it was hard to get traction. We did drop a lot of time on the opening stage, but we were closing up. The Finnish based Pinomaki team had set the car up and as the miles progressed I felt more and more confident in the car.” Stage 5 was the long 15 mile Gartheniniog test and Mark took 4.5 off the leader. Again on the next test, Dyfi Main, he took almost 4 seconds closing the gap to just 0.2 of a second after this stage. On stage 7 however he swept into the rally lead, reigning British Champion co-driver Barry McNulty guiding Mark through the famous Welsh stages.
However with just 0.8 of a second in hand and three tests to go it was all set for a fantastic final showdown. Indeed McCormack replied on the next 15 mile test, taking back the lead, with just an 8 mile and a 5 mile test before the finish it was knife edge stuff. On the penultimate Dyfi Main stage, Mark went slightly over the knife edge, the Clio sliding on a hairpin. “We had to reverse and everything, and we lost ten seconds. When I got to the end of the stage I thought I had thrown it all away, but we were actually 1.8 seconds faster than Marty, so it was all down the final stage. We had just 0.2 seconds in hand entering the test!”
On the final 5 mile stage however Mark drove superbly, 6.6 seconds faster than his rival to win by 6.8 seconds, and impressive debut and one which earned the young driver much praise on Sky Sports coverage of Britain’s premier rally series. “It’s fantastic for me, Barry and the team. Now our focus is on trying to get another run in a Clio on the next BRC round, the Pirelli Rally at the end of the month.” Certainly with this result Mark could be one to watch for the future in the sport, and the icing on the cake was receiving the Pirelli Yellow Jersey for drive of the rally, which grants Mark a place in the end of year shoot-out for a supported BRC drive in 2012.
Early exit for JRM in North Wales
Posted: April 4, 2011 9:17 PM
It was not the outcome the JRM Rally Team and driver Tom Cave had been hoping for on this weekend’s Bulldog Rally of North Wales, the second round of the 2011 Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship, when an off-road excursion at the end of the first stage forced the 19-year old from Aberdovey and his co-driver Craig Parry from Llanymynech into early retirement.
The one-day rally started and finished in Welshpool and featured ten stages, the combination of which provided teams with a total competitive distance of 82 miles. Cave was driving the same Group N Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X he had used on two previous rallies this year and, with both outings delivering good results, he was looking forward to being back out in the JRM car.
Boosted by an impressive second overall on the opening round of the British Championship in February, the team were targeting another podium finish this weekend, especially with this being the crew’s most local BRC event of the season. However, with the forests of North Wales a challenging environment for even the most seasoned of drivers, a good result was never going to be easy.
With this in mind, Cave was determined to push from the start and, even after the heavy overnight rain had left the stages more slippery than experienced during the previous day’s recce, onlookers reported that Cave was setting a blistering page over the opening 4.5 mile run through Llangywer Forest. There was no doubt that the car and crew were working well until, with only a few hundred yards of the stage left to go, the back of the car stepped out.
Of course, in rallying, this is never a cause for concern. However, on this occasion, for some reason the car suddenly turned in the opposite direction, sending Cave, Parry and their Evolution X off the road, down a bank and into a tree. Although there was only minor damage to the Mitsubishi’s screen pillar, they were stuck and therefore, could not get back on to the road and continue.
Although disappointed, the crew and team were philosophical about the incident, as regulations allow two scores to be dropped from the season’s seven rounds. Their attentions now turn to round three and the Carlisle-based Pirelli Rally, which takes place on 29th & 30th April and utilises the demanding gravel roads in the infamous Kielder Forest.
Team Quotes
Tom Cave
"I am absolutely gutted our rally ended like this – and so soon. And the worst part is, I'm still not entirely sure what happened. The conditions were very tricky and possibly I left my braking too late. All I know is that when I turned into the left-hander the rear of the car started to slide - just as I wanted it to. It then felt like it found some grip and suddenly the rear snapped the other way, which pitched us off the road and down a bank. There was no way we could get back on the road and that was it. That’s one of our two lives lost, so we’ll now have to make sure that we take a good haul of points from the rest of this season’s events.”
John Barnes - Team Manager
It’s not the result that any of us wanted, or indeed expected, but it’s the nature of the sport and I’m afraid we have to accept that these sorts of things happen sometimes. We will have a good look at the car to see if there’s anything that may have contributed to the off, but having driven it from the stage and back to the service area, there doesn’t seem to be any mechanical issues. We will now focus on making sure that we give Tom the best chance he can of a great result in round three.”
BHRC report, round two: Bulldog Historic Rally
Posted: April 4, 2011 8:53 PM
The spectacular rivalry between the Ford Escorts of Nick Elliott/Chris Brooks and Julian Reynolds/Ian Oakey was once again the highlight as the Dunlop/WONAGO MSA British Historic Rally Championship returned to Wales for round two, the Bulldog Historic Rally (Saturday 2 April).
Elliott turned the tables on Reynolds on this occasion, having lost out to his rival by a solitary second on last month’s Mid Wales Historic Stages. Elliott led category three all day, while there was another win for David Stokes/Guy Weaver (Escort Mk1) in category two and maximum points in category one for Rikki Proffitt/John Stanger-Leathes (Porsche 911).
Category 1
The pattern of the category one contest seemed to be set from the start, after Mid Wales victors Simon Wallis and Graham Wride (Lotus Cortina) pulled out a 30s lead over the opening two stages through Dyfnant and Gartheiniog. “It was very muddy and slippery; we ran wide a few times but there was nothing serious,” said Wallis.
Graham Waite/Gill Cotton arrived at first service with their Volvo Amazon in second place. “It’s our first time out since an engine rebuild, but we got stuck behind Rikki Proffitt’s Porsche 911 car for the last three miles in Gartheiniog,” he explained.
Proffitt/John Stanger-Leathes were in third though and, like team mates Derek and Roisin Boyd, they had misfire problems. “It started on stage two, just like we had on the Mid Wales and we thought it was cured,” said Proffitt. Things were even worse for Dessie Nutt and Geraldine McBride, down in fourth in their Porsche. “The car’s perfect but I can’t believe I am doing as badly as the times show. We chose a narrow open patterned tyre and we were too sideways,” said Nutt.
The lead continued to grow and after the Dyfi Main and Big Ray stages, and Wallis looked well set for his second consecutive win of the year. “It was so smooth in Dyfi we could have done it without a sump guard,” Wallis reckoned. Waite had a few concerns over a misfire and Proffitt’s misfire worsened.
There was a sting in the tail though, with Wallis rolling out on the penultimate stage in Llangywer. Waite should have taken the lead but he was in trouble too. “They tried to flag me down, but my pedal went to the floor. I think we led the rally for a few yards though,” he said.
Despite his ongoing misfire Proffitt still made it home for maximum points, with Nutt taking second. “We had a puncture too on the last stage, it’s a better result than we thought we were heading for too,” said Nutt.
The Boyd’s also made it to the finish ahead of a delighted Geoff Taylor/Steve Greenhill in their Imp. “We had the engine rebuilt since the last rally and have been working to cure a misfire. It wasn’t pulling on the hills and we tried hard to keep the revs up,” said Taylor. Edmund Peel/Janet Craine’s Porsche 911 completed the finishers, after the misfire on the Lotus Cortina of Paul Mankin and Peter Scott became terminal.
Category 2
It could so well have been a three-way battle between the Escort MK1s of Stokes/Weaver, Stefaan Stouf/Joris Erard and Rupert Lomax/David Alcock. But after Lomax blitzed his rivals by 11 seconds through the opening nine-miler in Dyfnant, his glory was soon over. “I followed the tree line instead of the stage and got stuck up a fire break,” said Lomax. “If I hadn’t gone off there it would have somewhere else,” he added.
There was less than a second between Stokes and Stouf on the opener, but as they arrived at Dolgellau for first service Stokes had pulled out a two-second gap. “I was a bit slow out of the blocks, but I am driving to the conditions,” he said. “I damaged the rear corner on a square right hander on stage two,” said Stouf.
Peter McDowall/ and Ian Orford (Porsche 911RS) had been fourth best through Dyfnant, but found Gartheiniog harder. “I got caught, so must go faster,” said McDowell. Although Chris Browne/Liz Jordan found their Escort struggling for power, they still made it to service in third, ready for a change of plugs.
It became nip and tuck through the next two stages, with Stouf nosing ahead after Dyfi Main, only for Stokes to respond through Big Ray, enabling him to return to service six seconds up on the Belgian crew. “It’s a bit to and fro with Stefaan, but I think we are going in the right direction now,” said Stokes. “I liked the muddy stages better, I think I will lose out on the fast stages as I haven’t the experience,” Stouf added.
Stokes continued to edge away to clinch his victory over the final leg of stages. “I just kept pushing,” he explained. Although Stouf retained a clear second, he had made a basic error on the final Woodyard stage. “I have two intercom connections and I plugged into the wrong one, then went straight on at a hairpin,” he said.
Browne retained third for most of the day and Dick Slaughter/Geoff Dearing came home next, having dominated class C3 all day. Andrew Siddall/Carl Williamson managed to consolidate second in C3, having fought off a determined challenge from Mark Holmes/Tony Lindsay. “We got held up for eight miles on stage two and clipped a corner on the fourth, but we were going for it,” said Holmes.
Rex Ireland and Adrian Scadding were delighted to take their Escort to their maiden C2 victory. “The intercom played up on the first stage, but that was the only problem all day,” they said. David Kirby and Ben friend were the only other C2 finishers after the Escort of Matthew Fowle and Jane Edgington blew its head-gasket.
Keith McIvor/David Burns won the battle of the Porsches in C4 over McDowell. “The driver was a bit slow warming up,” said Irish visitor McIvor.
Category 3
It was like Mid Wales Stages part two as Elliott and Reynolds eased clear of the rest and made it a personal duel for victory. “I was a bit scrappy on the first stage and caught the back of the car at a hairpin, but then got into a rhythm,” said Elliott. “We changed to harder tyres for stage two but they didn’t work,” Reynolds replied.
The gap was already 17.3s in Elliott’s favour as they arrived at service. Will Onions/Dave Williams settled into a solitary third, but Will was suffering some discomfort after falling off a horse before the rally.
Elliott continued to push hard through Dyfi and Big Ray and admitted to taking risks. “I was keeping it tidy, but Julian reckons he saw our tyre marks and they went over fresh air,” he said, after the gap was up to 25s when they returned to Dolgellau for service. “I have only got one real problem and that’s Nick,” Reynolds added.
Onions and Tim Pearcey/Neil Shanks held their positions. “I’m enjoying it now the stages are drier,” said Pearcey, who was unable to relax as Alan Walker/Jez Rogers were close enough to threaten. “We lost time on the second stage with no brakes, so went for new tyres too and pushed on,” said Walker.
On this occasion Reynolds had no answer to Elliott’s pace and after a timing problem on one of the later stages, Elliott was declared the winner by 21.5s. “It was fairly comfortable for us,” he said. Onions “plodded on” to take third and Pearcey claimed to have had a gentle ride round to take fourth. “We had a puncture on Llangywer and then fuel vaporisation on the last one and nearly stopped,” he said. Walker was fifth: “Just as we arrived at the final control the gearbox went,” he explained. Richard Lane and Frank Richer completed the top six, after what they termed a good clean run.
Guy Anderson and Kim Baker made it through to claim the class D2 spoils in their Talbot Sunbeam. In class D3 Stuart Clarke and Andy Ballantyne (Escort Mk2) was unbeatable again. “We will have a family chat about the Pirelli now, as I have never been there before,” said Clarke. David Lloyd Roberts/Dei Jones claimed second in class, after the non-registered Guy Woodcock and Hu Kent lost time in Gartheiniog.
Steve Magson and Geoff Atkinson were eighth overall and topped D4 in their Opel Ascona. “We were down on power on SS2 after damaging the exhaust manifold in Dyfnant. We had two overshoots, a stop due to overheating and fuel starvation and then took the final flying finish airborne,” said Magson. Behind them, Francois Delecour and James Bocognano were first of the Tuthill Porsche Challenge crews. “It didn’t feel like an old car, it was superb and surprised me a lot. A fantastic day,” said the former World Rally Championship runner up.
Guest driver Delecour triumphs on Tuthill Porsche Challenge opener
Posted: April 4, 2011 8:31 PM
Francois Delecour marked his guest appearance in the Tuthill Porsche Challenge with victory as the one-make series for identical historic-specification Porsche 911s got underway on the Bulldog Historic Rally in Wales yesterday (Saturday).
Co-driven by fellow Frenchman James Bocognano, Delecour headed home John Lloyd/Adrian Cavenagh and Andrew Barnes/Guy Simmons after seven demanding gravel stages, which had been made more slippery due to overnight rain.
Delecour, a winner of four world championship rallies in the past, had never driven an historic-specification Porsche in competition before but relished the experience as he returned to the forest stages in north Wales for the first time in almost 10 years.
“The conditions were difficult, we had to use the pace notes from the organisers and my co-driver has very little experience, but I really enjoyed the experience of coming back to Wales and driving in the Tuthill Porsche Challenge,” said the 48-year-old rallying legend. “It was hard to find the confidence with the pace notes, especially over the crests when I didn’t really know what was to come. But the Porsche didn’t feel like an old car. It was superb, you could really push it and slide it and it was great fun to drive.”
Both Lloyd and Barnes are adapting to historic rallying this season and Lloyd commented on the differences between the modern World Rally Cars he has been used to of late and the impeccably prepared Tuthill Porsche 911.
“The car was fantastic with plenty of power,” said Lloyd. “The early stages were slippery and it was hard work without an automatic gearbox and adapting to rear-wheel drive.”
Andrew Haddon’s Tuthill Porsche Challenge debut ended when he picked up a second puncture and was forced to retire in the early stages.
At the finish of the event in Welshpool, Tuthill Porsche director and series founder Richard Tuthill said: “It was encouraging to see just how close Francois was to the times of the overall leaders, especially as he wasn’t happy not being able to use his own pace notes due to the regulations. It was disappointing that Andrew didn’t get to the finish though, as he had tyre problems in testing too. But overall it has been a satisfying start to the series and preparations are already underway for the next round, the Pirelli Historic Rally later this month.”
About the Tuthill Porsche Challenge
Tuthill Porsche, the United Kingdom’s foremost preparation firm of historic Porsche rally cars, is running the one-make series on five rounds of the Dunlop/WONAGO.com MSA British Historic Rally Championship, which is managed by the Historic Rally Car Register.
For a fee of £42,250.00 (plus VAT if applicable) competitors will have the use of a Challenge-specification 3.0-litre Tuthill Porsche on all five events, with all costs fully covered. These include maintenance, consumables, accommodation, entry fees and insurance.
Tuthill Porsche Challenge organisers have put an exciting prize structure in place with the inaugural champion receiving a fully-paid entry into an FIA European Historic Rally Championship round, using one of Tuthill Porsche’s full-specification 3.0-litre Porsche 911s.
The second-placed crew will receive an all-expenses-paid trip to watch the East African Safari Classic as a guest of the team, while the third-placed driver and co-driver will enjoy a two-day course at Tuthill Porsche’s ice-driving school in Norway.
Welsh Wizard Evans Wins For TEG Sport With Gould On The Podium Also
Posted: April 4, 2011 8:11 PM
Following on from his podium finish on the opening round, TEG Sport team driver Elfyn Evans took his maiden win in the Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship with a brilliant victory on today's Bulldog International Rally of North Wales.
Driving the Pirelli-sponsored Subaru Impreza and in only his second ever event in a four-wheel drive car, the 22-year-old Welshman from Dolgellau and fellow Welsh co driver Andrew Edwards saw off championship leader David Bogie to take victory by 17.7 seconds after easing off on the final two stages to ensure the winner's spoils on his local event.
There was more podium success for the Carnforth-based TEG Sport team as they made it a double podium with Bristol driver Adam Gould and co driver Sebastian Marshall surviving a late scare with a broken oil cooler to clinch third in their Subaru.
Gould led the rally for the opening four stages before Evans grabbed the lead on SS5 and held the advantage for the remaining six stages as he fended off both Bogie and Gould.
With nearly half a minute advantage going into the final two tests, Evans eased the pace to give him and the TEG Sport team their first International victory since Keith Cronin clinched the British Championship title for himself and the team on last September's International Rally Yorkshire.
It was very nearly a one-two but team-mate Adam Gould slowed when he suffered the oil cooler problem which necessitated him to extinguish a small under-bonnet fire at the end of the stage but worse still was he had to drive steadily through the final test, dropping half a minute in the process.
At the Welshpool finish, an elated Evans said: "I tried to take it easy on the car and I'm delighted with the result. I didn't come with the intention of having to win and I'm surprised it has come so soon. It's a long championship and we'll take it one rally at a time but now I've won, I hope to continue the trend. Thanks to Pirelli and the TEG Sport team and also to my father Gwyndaf who helped me with set up as it's really helped the car. I feel there's more to come from both me and the car and I'm grateful for this opportunity."
For Gould, it was a case of what might have been following a promising showing: "I'm really lucky to make the finish as I wasn't sure what the problem was, I just saw lots of smoke under the bonnet and had to take the extinguisher to it. As a result, I just coasted through the last stage and made sure we got the car to the finish. After leading the rally, third place isn't what I wanted but it wasn't our day today. It's one place better than Rallye Sunseeker so I guess we should take consolation in that."
TEG Sport team owner Stuart Newby said afterwards: "What a brilliant day for Elfyn, he drove magnificently. We made quite a few changes to his car and the results have paid off. Adam was unlucky to break the oil cooler on the penultimate stage but he really showed his pace today and but for a bit of bad luck, we could have been first and second."
The next round of the Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship takes place with the Pirelli International Rally based in Carlisle on April 30th.
Early bath for Tom Cave on Bulldog Rally
Posted: April 4, 2011 8:03 PM
Teenage rally driver Tom Cave retired from this weekend's Bulldog Rally, the second round of the Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship after he slid off the road on the first stage. His JRM-run Group N Mitsubishi Lancer EvoX suffered only minimal damage in the accident but the car came to rest down a steep bank and was not able to get back onto the road, so he and co-driver Craig Parry were forced to retire.
Heavy overnight rain in the mid-Wales area made the opening stages particularly slippery but despite this, Tom and Craig were feeling positive as they headed for the first of the day's ten timed tests.
The stage was going well, with Tom having a good feeling in the car, despite the conditions. However, on the penultimate corner of the first stage, as he turned in to a left hand bend, the rear of the car snapped to the opposite direction and this sent the car off the road and down a bank. It came to rest against a tree, which cracked the windscreen but it was unable to get back onto the road.
Commenting, Tom said; "I am absolutely gutted. And the worst part is, I'm still not entirely sure what happened. Possibly I left my braking too late and the conditions were very tricky but I'm not really sure...
"As I turned in to the left-hander, the rear of the car started to slide, as I wanted it to. However, it then felt like it found some grip and it sent the rear end the other way and pitched us off the road and down the bank. There was no way we could get back onto the road and that was it.
"Once we get back to base, we'll have a look at the data to try to understand what actually happened. Up until that point though, the feeling in the car was really good and we were attacking as we planned to, to try to get an early advantage."
The next round of the BRC is the Pirelli International Rally over the weekend of the Royal Wedding, 29/30 April and based in Carlisle, Cumbria.
Perez Celebrates His Best Lancia Finish on Bulldog Historic Rally
Posted: April 4, 2011 8:02 PM
Kick Energy rally driver Steve Perez was in action in his first British event of the year and promptly recorded his best finish in the Lancia Stratos when he took a superb fourth place on today's Bulldog Historic Rally.
In the BTR-prepared 1974 specification Italian machine whereby he was contesting a round of the Dunlop/WONAGO MSA British Historic Rally Championship, the Clay Cross driver along with Welsh co driver Paul Spooner reported no problems at all with the car as they were welcomed back to the Welshpool finish in the spring sunshine.
With overnight rain making the classic Welsh stages very muddy and slippery, the triple UK champion took it easy early on before upping his pace as the conditions dried out as the day progressed and after seven stages, claimed fourth position in the Post Historic Category 2, just over two minutes off the class winner, multiple British Historic Champion, David Stokes.
At the finish ramp, a delighted Steve commented: "I can honestly say I'm very pleased to bring the car home and we have experienced no problems whatsoever. It's by far the best finish we've had in this car, I've had it for seven years now and its been tough at times. But today I've been able to concentrate on my driving and getting faster as the day went on. I kept thinking that I should be in my four-wheel drive Ford Focus WRC in Wales but today has been all about the Stratos and hopefully, we can continue this good form for the rest of the season."
Perez also admitted he was considering putting the Bulldog Rally forward for inclusion in the self-appointed G-WRC (Gentleman's World Rally Class) next season: "The sun has shone on us and it's comparable to Rally Barbados so I think we should maybe include the Bulldog next year!" he quipped.
Welsh Pride As Evans / Edwards Wins Bulldog International Rally
Posted: April 4, 2011 8:00 PM
In only his second event in a four-wheel drive car, Welshman Elfyn Evans took his maiden win on the Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship with a scintillating victory on today's Bulldog International Rally of North Wales.
The 22 year old from Dolgellau along with fellow Welsh co driver Andrew Edwards brought his Pirelli-sponsored Subaru Impreza home 17.7 seconds ahead of Scots pairing David Bogie and Kevin Rae's Mitsubishi Lancer with Adam Gould and Sebastian Marshall surviving a late scare with a broken oil cooler to clinch third in their Subaru.
With overnight rain making the stages slippery, the first casualty of the event was local ace Tom Cave and co driver Craig Parry who slid off the road and into retirement on SS1 meaning he couldn't add to his runner-up placing in round one.
Bristolian Gould grabbed the early initiative and led for the first loop by 4.1 seconds ahead of Evans with Bogie a further ten seconds back in third. Evans took the lead on SS5 and held sway from there onwards as the battle raged behind between Gould and first round winner Bogie.
Into the final two stages and Evans held nearly half a minute advantage which he comfortably controlled as behind the drama was unfolding. TEG Sport team-mate Adam Gould slowed when he suffered the oil cooler problem which necessitated him to extinguish a small under-bonnet fire at the end of the stage but worse still was he had to drive steadily through the final test, dropping half a minute in the process.
Bogie's second place was his first defeat in three rallies but means he still holds the championship lead going into the Pirelli International Rally later this month by just two points ahead of the resurgent Evans with Gould well placed in third to tackle the daunting Kielder Forest which awaits crews on April 30.
As darkness fell at the Welshpool finish ramp, Evans said: "What a fantastic day! I'm surprised the win has come on only my second event and to have proven myself so soon is a bonus. It means a lot to win this rally and sets us up for a championship challenge this season."
Runner-up Bogie was gracious in defeat: "Elfyn drove really well today and the best result I could have hoped for was second place. I always knew it was going to be tough and I'm happy enough with second place and to maintain my lead in the championship."
For Gould, who crawled over the finish ramp with his stricken car, he was left to reflect on what might have been: "After leading the rally, third place isn't what I wanted but I was lucky to get to the finish. It wasn't our day today but two strong finishes in the opening two events is small consolation, I need a win to challenge Elfyn and David."
There was an intense battle in the Dulux Trade MSA British Formula Two Championship which eventually went the way of Mark Donnelly and Barry McNulty who emerged victorious in their Renault Clio Maxi by 6.8 seconds over Martin McCormack and David Moynihan's Citroen DS3. McCormack held sway for much of the day and got to within 0.2 of a second of Donnelly on the penultimate stage as they swapped places but couldn't quite reclaim the lead.
Third place and the class R2 victory went the way of Craig Breen and Gareth Roberts in their Ford Fiesta R2 but the series lead is maintained by Estonian student Siim Plangi who brought his and co driver Marek Sarapuu's Renault Twingo R2 home in fourth position.
In the Bulldog Challenge Rally, which comprised a qualifying round of the 2011 BRC Challenge, Matt Edwards and Sam Collis took a comprehensive start to finish victory in their MG ZR, winning in the end by over two minutes ahead of Phil Scholes and Bradley Johnson's Ford Fiesta and the similar car of Damien Smith and Ella Flynn in third.
In doing so, Edwards clinched class honours in RC2 with Scholes doing likewise in RC4 along with taking the victory in the Fiesta Sport Challenge 2011. Andrew Wheatley and co driver James Aldridge won class RC5 in their Ford Fiesta as Mark Turner and Sasha Heriot claimed the RC3 class in their Peugeot 106. John Hardman and Andy Marchback won the S1000 class (RC1) in their Nissan Micra.
In the Bulldog Historic Rally, which formed the second round of the Dunlop/WONAGO MSA British Historic Rally Championship, the class B4 Volvo PV544 of Ian Beveridge and Peter Joy inherited the Category 1 win after early pace setters Simon Wallis/Graham Wride rolled out of the lead in their Lotus Cortina and in Category 2, a day-long battle between the Ford Escort RS1600s of David Stokes/Guy Weaver and Belgians Stefaan Stouf/Joris Erard went the way of the British crew by an eventual 19.3 seconds.
However, there was drama for the overall victory and Category 3 when, after leading Julian Reynolds and Ian Oakey throughout the event, Nick Elliott and Chris Brooks showed as dropping around 40 seconds on the Llangywer stage meaning times had to be checked by the hardworking officials but in the end they ruled in favour of Elliott although Reynolds took the consolation of sharing the series lead with David Stokes. Will Onions and Dave Williams took third in their Ford Escort.
Bulldog National Rally honours went the way of Shaun Gardener and Ben Innes who brought their Mitsubishi Lancer home ahead of the Subaru Impreza of David Howells and Julian Wilkinson by just 2.6 seconds with Alex Allingham and Mark Glennerster taking third place and class N4 honours in their Subaru. Class wins went the way of Boyd Kershaw/Bryan Hull (Ford Escort B11), David Poyser/John Orme (Honda Civic N3), Robert Wheeler/Chris Wheeler (VW Golf B10), Jochen Walther/Phil Clarke (Volvo 940 B12), Dave Lewis/Steve Southall (Ford Escort H2) and James Watkins/Siobhan Pugh (Nissan Micra B8).
Results
Posted: April 4, 2011 7:41 PM
1 Elfyn Evans/Andrew Edwards (Subaru Impreza N15) 1:21:15.4
2 David Bogie/Kevin Rae (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9) 1:21:33.1
3 Adam Gould/Sebastian Marshall (Subaru Impreza N15) 1:21:59.6
4 Jonathan Greer/Dai Roberts (Skoda Fabia S2000) 1:22:20.1
5 Jason Tauber Pritchard/Robbie Durant (Subaru Impreza N16) 1:22:29.9
6 Tom Clark/Alistair Wyllie (Subaru Impreza N15) 1:25:56.4
7 Mark Donnelly/Barry McNulty (Renault Clio Maxi) 1:26:25.3
8 Martin McCormack/David Moynihan (Citroen DS3) 1:26:32.1
9 Craig Breen/Gareth Roberts (Ford Fiesta R2) 1:27:53.1
10 Callum Black/Paul Wakely (Suzuki Swift S1600) 1:29:05.0
Craig Breen Rallying: Bulldog International Rally Event Preview
Posted: April 1, 2011 12:44 PM
From the Dust of the Algarve, it's back to the gravel of North Wales next weekend for Irishman Craig Breen. His untimely exit from World Rally Portugal has been put behind him he looks forward to his next event. "It was devastating at the time to make a mistake, there was no damage to the car but we couldn't get back on to the road. I must now look ahead to the next round in Italy at the beginning of May. For sure there are positive aspects from Portugal. I was delighted we my pace and when we were hit by mechanical problems, we were controlled in our decision making and a total of five fastest stage times bodes well for the future.”
After returning to front wheel drive on the BRC season opener at Rallye Sunseeker, Craig will use the rounds two and three of the BRC as preparation for his next outing in the WRC Academy. Up first on Saturday is the Bulldog International North Wales. Water pump failure curtailed his attack in Bournemouth but the Waterford driver will be hoping for a clean run in his Keltech Fiesta R2 next weekend. Craig and Gareth are the number 2 seeds and will again face stiff opposition in the R2 class.
Tuthill Porsche Challenge set for lift-off in Wales
Posted: April 1, 2011 12:39 PM
The inaugural Tuthill Porsche Challenge gets underway on the Bulldog Historic Rally on Saturday (April 2), with a host of drivers taking part in identical historic-specification 911s.
Tuthill Porsche, the United Kingdom’s foremost preparation firm of historic Porsche rally cars, is running the one-make series on five rounds of the Dunlop/WONAGO.com MSA British Historic Rally Championship, which is managed by the Historic Rally Car Register.
For a fee of £42,250.00 (plus VAT if applicable) competitors will have the use of a Challenge-specification 3.0-litre Tuthill Porsche on all five events, with all costs fully covered. These include maintenance, consumables, accommodation, entry fees and insurance.
Tuthill Porsche Challenge organisers have put an exciting prize structure in place with the inaugural champion receiving a fully-paid entry into an FIA European Historic Rally Championship round, using one of Tuthill Porsche’s full-specification 3.0-litre Porsche 911s.
The second-placed crew will receive an all-expenses-paid trip to watch the East African Safari Classic as a guest of the team, while the third-placed driver and co-driver will enjoy a two-day course at Tuthill Porsche’s ice-driving school in Norway.
Among the Challenge drivers in action on Saturday’s Bulldog Historic Rally are historic rallying converts Andrew Barnes and John Lloyd, plus Francois Delecour, the runner-up in the 1993 World Rally Championship and a winner of four WRC rounds.
The event will cover seven all-gravel stages over a competitive distance of 53 miles. The first crew will leave the rally base in Welshpool at 0700hrs on Saturday April 2 with the first car due to reach the finish in Welshpool at 1442hrs. Bulldog Historic Rally competitors will make two visits to the service halt in Dolgellau during the course of the event.
Richard Tuthill, director, Tuthill Porsche
“We’re really relishing starting our Porsche Challenge season, and I can’t think of any better way of doing it than with Francois Delecour in one of our cars. On Friday (today) François gets to test his car and I’m sure he’s going to enjoy it. We’ve got a few other Porsches out as well, so it’s good to see a healthy Challenge contingent on the Bulldog and I’m sure that we can only improve on that in the future. We’ve worked hard to get all the cars ready and they’re going to make a great sight through the forests of Wales. We’ve got quite a wide variety of events this year, so there really is something for everybody. Most of all we just want to offer our competitors value, fun and ease of use: they just arrive and drive while we take care of absolutely everything else.”
Francois Delecour, Tuthill Porsche Challenge competitor
“It’s been nearly 10 years since I have been in the forests of Wales so I know that it’s not going to be easy, particularly if it rains and the stages become muddy. Driving a historic Porsche is also going to be a new experience for me as I have only driven the modern cars before, but I’m sure it’s going to be a lot of fun because these are absolutely fantastic cars that you can really enjoy yourself with. We will work with organisers’ pace notes on the Bulldog Rally and I’m not sure how this is going to be: we will just have to be a bit careful. But the stages are magnificent, some of the best gravel stages in the world.”
Preview: HANKOOK MSA WELSH NATIONAL RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP 2011
Posted: March 31, 2011 2:46 PM
The Hankook MSA Welsh National Rally Championship is back in Welshpool and continues its long association with the Bulldog Rally.
The Hankook MSA Welsh National Rally Championship is pleased to report the continued sponsorship package with Hankook. Hankook are also sponsors of the DTM German touring car championships and Toni Gardemeister in the IRC for 2011 amongst others, so their involvement in the Welsh Championship is very much appreciated. This partnership benefits both competitors and event organisors alike, including Juniors with a training programme now in place. The Hankook Prize Drive in 2010 was presented to Callum Black and will provide valuable support through 2011 for Callum in his pursuit of the BRC Challenge.
The championship consists of, Overall, Group N, Two Wheel drive and Junior championships, with ten classes and a generous point scoring system making for an exciting championship. This year’s series comprises of seven rounds and visits some of the best stages Wales has to offer. Wales is after all the home of rallying.
Alex Allingham (Staylybridge)and Mark Glennerster (Swindon)Subaru won the National Rally on last year’s Bulldog Rally and went on to become 2010 Overall Welsh and Overall Group N Champions, a unique double. Alex and Mark are determined to defend their champion’s status.
Leading contenders after the first round are Hugh Hunter(Ruthin)Focus WRC, Roger Chilman (Hereford)Subaru WRC Tom Cave(Aberdovey))Evo and Nigel Griffith(Presteigne) Mitsubishi Evo, Alex Allingham Subaru,
In Group N, Tom Cave leads Alex Allingham, and Tom Naughton after a very close first round battle.
This year, the SJR Two Wheel drive contenders will be battling it out for a Free Entry on Rally Reykjavik 2012; Mick Jones in his Escort Mk2 leads the way and after is on form with excellent recent results.
In the Juniors Tom Cave, leads Luke Francis(Rhuddlan)Evo, Sara Williams(Brecon)Subaru and Barry Jones(Llandysul)Subaru.
Barrable Forced to Withdraw from Bulldog International
Posted: March 30, 2011 11:22 PM
Motorsport Ireland Billy Coleman award winner Robert Barrable has been forced to withdraw from this weekend’s second round of the Dulux Trade British Rally championship after his Skoda Fabia S2000 engine developed a serious problem. Robert who was half way through a gravel test in preparation for the event his second outing on gravel in the car had to stop when the engine developed a problem. The team returned to their North Dublin base and immediately started to work on the car in an effort to try and ascertain the cause of the problem. The problem was declared as terminal and the Evolution Motorsport run team turned their attention to trying to source a new engine for the car, unfortunately for Robert and co-driver Damien no engine could be found in time to be fitted prior to the start of the rally and they were left with no option but to withdraw their entry. “I am really disappointed, the Bulldog is a good rally and I was looking forward to my second event on gravel in the car. We have tried everything to get an engine but there is not enough time to turn it around” said Robert. The Skoda’s engine will be transported to the factory in the Czech Republic on Thursday for further investigation and to be rebuilt in time for the third round of the BRC the Pirelli International which takes place at the end of April. “It is one of those things and proves how unpredictable rallying is, we will now focus on ensuring the car is ready for the Pirelli” mentioned Gary Emmet of Evolution Motorsport. The next outing in the BRC for Robert and Damien is the Pirelli International Rally round three of the British Rally Championship.
JRM aim to go one better in Wales
Posted: March 30, 2011 8:54 PM
The JRM Rally Team will be in action again this weekend, when Tom Cave drives one of its Mitsubishi Evolution Xs on the second round of the 2011 Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship, the Bulldog Rally of North Wales. Taking place on Saturday (2nd April), the team will be aiming to finsih one-place-higher, after Cave scored an impressive second place on February’s opening round, the Bournemouth-based Rallye Sunseeker.
Since then, the 19-year old from Aberdovey has contested two events in his own car, winning one of them – the Mid Wales Stages - overall. Therefore, Cave is eager to maintain his winning momentum in the Welsh forests, especially as the Bulldog Rally can be regarded as his home event.
With his team-mate for the Rallye Sunseeker Daniel Barry opting to use his own car this weekend, JRM will be running just one of its Mitsubishis. However, the Irishman is expected to rejoin the JRM fold later in the season, having been extremely impressed with the car and the team during his first outing in Bournemouth.
Cave will use the same car as he drove on that occasion and, to ensure it’s set up to cope with the longer and more demanding North Wales stages than those of the Dorset forests, he tested the JRM Mitsubishi yesterday (Monday). He will be accompanied by his regular co-driver Craig Parry from Llanymynech.
The Bulldog Rally of North Wales starts and finishes in Welshpool. Its one-day format features ten stages that combine to provide a competitive distance of 82 miles in many of the classic forests that were used by the RAC Rally more than a decade ago.
Team Quotes
Tom Cave
“I’m feeling really fired-up about this weekend. Things are going well at the moment and my confidence is high, so I’m looking forward to getting back into the JRM car and the BRC. We’ll be attacking from the start and see how our pace matches up with the others. I’m expecting it to be very competitive and a tough battle, but I’m up for it - that’s for sure.”
John Barnes (Team Manager)
“I really think Tom can do well this weekend, as he has already proved he can be quick in the Welsh forests. Because there is no opportunity to score points towards the teams’ championship with four-wheel-drive cars this year, we are not so disappointed to only be fielding one of our Mitsubishis. It also allows us to put all of our focus onto Tom. However, we hope that Daniel will be back with us again before the season is out.”
PIRELLI STAR DRIVER EVANS PLAYS DOWN HOME ADVANTAGE ON BULLDOG INTERNATIONAL RALLY NORTH WALES
Posted: March 29, 2011 2:39 PM
Pirelli Star Driver Elfyn Evans insists that he will not start Bulldog International Rally North Wales next month with an advantage over his rivals despite living 10 miles from the event's landmark Dyfi stage.
The 22-year-old from Machynlleth in Powys, Wales, is ranked as one of the favourites for this year's Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship title following his run to third overall on the season-opening Rallye Sunseeker back in February.
Driving a Subaru Impreza on Pirelli's K6 gravel tyre, which is used as standard by all BRC competitors and is famed for its unique tread pattern and construction, Evans says the rally stages in Wales are some of the country's finest but admits to having limited knowledge of driving on them in competition.
"The stages have a great flow and when you get a good rhythm it's very satisfying," said the Welshman. "You need to be driving well, have a good car set-up, a good set of pacenotes and obviously a good set of tyres. When this happens and you get into the zone you can set really good times. The problem is I've done more rallying on the Isle of Man than I have done at home so I definitely won't have an advantage."
Evans, who is contesting the BRC this year as his prize for winning the Pirelli Star Driver UK Shootout in 2010, plans to seek advice from his famous rallying father Gwyndaf before tackling the Welshpool-based event on April 1/2. Evans Sr is a former British rally champion and has vast knowledge of the Welsh forest tracks.
"Preparation is important for every rally so of course I'll be getting some advice from my father," said Evans. "As with all the events I do it's very important to focus during the reconnaissance to get a good set of pacenotes."
Evans says his podium finish on Rallye Sunseeker has given him a confidence boost ahead of his home event, which he will tackle alongside co-driver Andrew Edwards.
"It was a good start to the season but there's a long way to go," said Evans. "Everything is still pretty new to me Ð the car, my TEG Sport team, and four-wheel-drive. Until this season I'd only driven two-wheel-drive cars that were quite basic to set up. My Impreza needs a lot more input from me so it's still something I'm learning. But I'll be starting the event with the aim of doing my best to win."
Bulldog International Rally North Wales is the second of seven British championship events in 2011. The event will be based at the Welshpool Livestock Market with the all-gravel stages run in North Wales over a competitive distance of 82 miles.
Action gets underway with a ceremonial start in the centre of Welshpool on Friday April 1 at 1830hrs. The stage action begins early on Saturday morning.
BHRC preview, round two: Bulldog Historic Rally
Posted: March 28, 2011 2:39 PM
The 2011 Dunlop/WONAGO MSA British Historic Rally Championship will be back in Wales on Saturday 2 April for round two, the Bulldog Historic Rally.
Once again, a superb field has been assembled for the historic rally, including the appearance of former WRC ace Francois Delecour in a Porsche 911 to celebrate the start of the Tuthill Porsche Challenge, which runs over five events within the BHRC.
With the Escort Mk2s of Julian Reynolds and Nick Elliott heading the field away in what will surely be a repeat of their mighty battle from the opening round, the scene is set for another fabulous event covering over 50 stage miles on classic Mid Wales gravel roads.
Category 1
Category one - for the pre '68 cars - featured a marvellous contest on the Mid Wales Stages and ended with victory for the Lotus Cortina of Simon Wallis and Graham Wride.
Dessie Nutt/Geraldine McBride set the early pace until a transmission problem put their Porsche 911 out. Instead, Wallis/Wride stormed through to win and take maximum class B4 points in the Cortina. But they were not far clear of the spectacular Volvo Amazon of Graham Waite/Gill Cotton, which was consuming oil at a prodigious rate by the end of the rally. Also well in contention in what promises to be a very open season in category one were Rikki Proffitt and John Stanger-Leathes, despite a misfire on their Porsche 911. They will all be back in action in the Bulldog, while Paul Mankin and Peter Scott will be aiming to join the contest in their Lotus Cortina after spark plug dramas on the Mid Wales. Among the smaller engined cars in category one, the Sunbeam Imp of Geoff Taylor and Steve Greenhill will shine.
Category 2
David Stokes and Guy Weaver (Ford Escort Mk1) are the benchmark for category two after a fine victory on the Mid Wales, but will be chased by the similar Mk1 Escorts of Rupert Lomax/Dave Alcock, Stefaan Stouf/Joris Erard and Chris Browne/Liz Jordan. This is the home rally for defending champion co-driver Weaver, so another victory would be particularly sweet.
In class C3, for the Pinto-powered Mk1s, Welshpool-based Tim Jones and co-driver Don James scored the first strike of the season on the Mid Wales, but can expect tough opposition from Andrew Siddall/Captain Thompson and Dick Slaughter/Geoff Dearing. Having switched to the Pinto-powered Mk1 previously rallied by his son James, Slaughter senior took to his new mount in typically spectacular style on the Mid Wales.
In class C2, for the 1600cc cars, it was Matt Fowle and Jane Edgington who took victory with Fowle?s Escort Mk1 on the season opener, despite a misfire. Rex Ireland, with last-minute stand in co-driver Vince Bristow led the chase of Fowle. Adrian Scadding should be back alongside Ireland this time and joining the battle will be the Escort Mk1 of Nick Danks/Martin Corbett.
Category 3
A month ago, category three victory was won, and lost, by the smallest of margins in a mighty contest of the Ford Escort Mk2s, with victory only decided on the final stage of the rally as Reynolds and Ian Oakey overhauled Elliott and Chris Brooks to win by a single second after nearly an hour of flat out rallying on. The fact that Reynolds clawed back five seconds on the last stage to win by just one second has left Elliott very determined to turn the tables on the Bulldog.
But this is not simply a two-horse race and a gaggle of very quick Escort Mk2s will be chasing Reynolds and Elliott as well as cars like the Opel Ascona of Steve Magson/Geoff Atkinson. In the Escort ranks, prime contenders include Will Onions/Dave Williams, Paul Griffiths/Paul Williams, Tim Pearcey/Neil Shanks and Alan Walker/Jez Rogers. Though relatively new to the BHRC, Walker showed superb pace on the Mid Wales and could go even better on this event, run by his home motor club.
New onto the stages this weekend will be the cars in the Tuthill Porsche Challenge, for identical 3-litre 911s. This is set to grow over the coming weeks, but gets off to a good start with cars for friends and rivals John Lloyd and Andrew Barnes and a very special entry for former WRC star Francois Delecour. In class D3, for the Pinto-powered Escort Mk2s, another big contest is likely as Guy Woodcock and Hu James take on Stuart Clarke and Andy Ballantyne in another instalment of their on-going rivalry.
In class D2, a BHRC debut for the Escort Mk2 of Vince Bristow and Tim Sayer will surely set a cracking pace and humble some of the more powerful cars.
The Bulldog Historic Rally is organised by Wolverhampton and South Staffs Car Club and starts at 7am on Saturday 2 April from Welshpool.
Tom Cave looking for more BRC success on 'home' event
Posted: March 27, 2011 6:56 PM
Teenage rally driver Tom Cave will be looking for more success on the next round of the 2011 Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship, the Bulldog International Rally of North Wales next weekend (2 April). The event, based in Welshpool, is the closest thing to his home round of the series and he and co-driver Craig Parry will be looking to maintain the momentum that recently saw them claim a class and an overall win in the same weekend.
Following their excellent performance on the BRC opener in February, where they took second place behind David Bogie, Tom and Craig have been busy. They contested the Malcolm Wilson Rally and the Mid Wales Stages event on the same weekend, claiming the Group N win on the Malcolm Wilson and outright victory on the Mid Wales, at the wheel of Tom's 2004 GpN Subaru Impreza on both occasions.
However, for the Bulldog, they return to the JRM-prepared and run Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X that they used to clinch second on the Sunseeker. And not surprisingly, Tom is looking forward to the event.
In contrast to the first round, the Bulldog features longer stages, which should give the drivers a better margin for error and more opportunity to build an advantage as the day goes on. Tom already has some experience of the stages from previous events and plans to put that to good use from the outset, adopting the same strategy as he has done so far this year, by pushing hard from the start of the event.
Commenting, Tom said; "I have to say, I'm feeling pretty good at the moment. We did two rallies in March and got a lot of good seat time, as well as a class win and an overall win, so I'm feeling really fired-up. The feeling and confidence are high and I'm really looking forward to getting back into the JRM car and the BRC action.
"We have a short test ahead of the rally on Monday to finalise the car set-up but I'm really psyched-up, ready for a full attack from the word go. The longer stages mean that you can develop a good rhythm and also, if you do have a problem, you can try to get some of the time back.
"We'll be attacking from the start and see how the pace pans out. I'm expecting it to be very competitive, particularly with David [Bogie] - he's on great form at the moment and I know it will be a tough battle with him but just like on the Sunseeker, I'm really looking forward to it."
The one-day event is based in Welshpool and comprises ten stages run over three loops. The first sees four stages used just once, while the second and third loops are three stages repeated, including the 15.5mile Gartheiniog stage. The first crew is expected at the finish ramp at 19.30.
Francois Delecour to contest Tuthill Porsche Challenge season-opener
Posted: March 27, 2011 4:08 PM
Rally legend Francois Delecour will contest the opening round of the inaugural Tuthill Porsche Challenge, the Bulldog Historic Rally on April 2.
The 48-year-old Frenchman will drive one of Tuthill Porsche’s 10 identical historic-specification 911s on the gravel event, which takes place on forest stages in North Wales.
Tuthill Porsche, the United Kingdom’s foremost preparation firm of historic Porsche rally cars, is running the one-make rally series within the Dunlop/WONAGO.com MSA British Historic Rally Championship, managed by the Historic Rally Car Register, this season.
“I’ve always been a big Porsche fan and I’m particularly excited about driving on the Welsh stages, some of which I know from doing Rally GB in the past, and which I consider to be among the best in the world,” said Delecour, a winner of four world championship rallies.
“I know Tuthill Porsche by reputation and driving one of their cars will give me a great chance to have a lot of fun. I’m not completely sure who I will be competing against but rallies like this tend to get a lot of very good local experts so I know it won’t be easy.”
Event regulations don’t permit a pre-rally reconnaissance so Delecour and French co-driver James Bocagnano will spend Friday April 1 adapting to their 911 for the first time during a test at Sweet Lamb in Wales.
Tuthill Porsche director Richard Tuthill said: “It’s a huge privilege to add Francois Delecour to the list of world class drivers who have driven for us such as Markku Alen, Stig Blomqvist, Michele Mouton, Walter Rohrl and Bjorn Waldegard. I’ve always admired Francois’ committed and spectacular driving style and it will be a real treat for the spectators to watch him through the forests of Wales.
“Francois will drive the same Challenge-specification as our other competitors and getting him over here to drive one of our cars is a great way to get the series off to an exciting start.”
For a fee of £42,250.00 (plus VAT if applicable), Tuthill Porsche Challenge competitors will have the use of a Challenge-specification 3.0-litre Tuthill Porsche on five rounds of the MSA British Historic Rally Championship, with all costs – including maintenance, consumables, accommodation, entry fees and insurance – fully covered.
Tuthill Porsche Challenge organisers have put an exciting prize structure in place with the inaugural champion receiving a fully-paid entry into an FIA European Historic Rally Championship round, using one of Tuthill Porsche’s full-specification 3.0-litre Porsche 911s.
The second-placed crew will receive an all-expenses paid trip to watch the East African Safari Classic as a guest of the team, while the third-placed driver and co-driver will enjoy a two-day course at Tuthill Porsche’s ice-driving school in Norway.
Town Centre Ceremonial Start for Bulldog International Rally of North Wales
Posted: March 26, 2011 9:29 AM
With just a week to go to the second round of the Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship, competitors on the Bulldog International Rally of North Wales will be heading for the centre of Welshpool next Friday evening prior to the action getting underway in earnest on Saturday.
Welshpool Town Council has arranged a market, fairground and live band for the new ceremonial start which will take place in the centre of the town on Friday from 6pm meaning both rally fans and local residents can get up close and personal with the crews and cars in Church Street car park. Organisers are hoping the townsfolk of Welshpool and the surrounding areas will take the opportunity of seeing the rally without necessarily having to trek off into the forests the following day.
Amongst the competitors who will be appearing are series leading Scottish pair David Bogie and co driver Kevin Rae who took the win on round one whereby they'll be hoping to get the better once again of fellow Mitsubishi pairing of Welshmen Tom Cave and his co driver Craig Parry on their local event.
Another Welsh pairing in the shape of Elfyn Evans and Andrew Edwards brought their Subaru home in third place on the opening round, just ahead of team-mates Adam Gould and Seb Marshall so they too will be looking to score maximum points on home soil.
With a quality entry assembled for the 51st running of the Wolverhampton & South Staffordshire Car Club Ltd-organised event which is sponsored by Bulldog Security Products Ltd of Much Wenlock for the 15th consecutive year, as well as the main BRC field, there are plenty of additional classes and championships being contested.
Estonian student Siim Plangi leads the British Formula 2 Rally Championship, Rally 2 and Junior classes in his Renault Twingo ahead of Finnish team-mate Mikko Pajunen whereas Rally 3 is headed by British driver Callum Black. Bogie heads Rally 4 and the Privateers Cup with Louise Cook in the lead of the Ladies Cup. In the one make series, Irishman Desi Henri leads the Citroen Racing Trophy with fellow countryman Craig Breen heading the Fiesta Sport Trophy. In the Teams Championship, Autosport Technology holds the advantage arriving in Welshpool.
In the Dunlop/WONAGO MSA British Historic Rally Championship, Welsh ace Julian Reynolds won the opening round in his Ford Escort but as well as the usual opposition, he'll face French ace Francois Delecour who will drive a Porsche 911 on the classic Welsh stages.
The event will be based for the second year at Welshpool Livestock Sales at Buttington Cross, which also hosts the finish on Saturday afternoon, and as well as the international rally, it also incorporates The Bulldog Historic Rally, The Bulldog Challenge Rally and The Bulldog National Rally. As well as the main British Rally Championship, the Bulldog International Rally of North Wales incorporates qualifying rounds of the Hankook MSA Welsh National Championship, BRC Challenge, Brian Dennis Welsh Historic Championship and ANWCC Championships.
Whereas the final closing date for the International event has passed, there is still time for Historic, Challenge and National competitors to enter before the closing date of Tuesday 29th March 2011.
A shakedown is scheduled for Thursday 31st March 2011 and will be run by PEC at Corwen, west of Llangollen on the A5. Documentation for competitors wishing to participate in the Recce will be at Rally Headquarters on the evening of Thursday 31st March 2011 and the Recce will take place from 08:00 to 17:00 approximately on Friday, 1st April 2011 and competitors will have two passes at each location.
Regs Available for Bulldog International Rally of North Wales
Posted: February 9, 2011 4:13 PM
With less than two months to go until the event, 2011 will see the third running of the Bulldog International Rally of North Wales which will be based in the market town of Welshpool for a second successive year.
The rally, which takes place on Saturday 2nd April 2011, is the second round of the Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship and regulations for the Wolverhampton & South Staffordshire Car Club Ltd-organised event are now available.
Once again offering a unique challenge to competitors as it follows a compact route around some of the best forest stages the United Kingdom has to offer, the 2011 event will be the 51st running since it started as a road rally in 1958 and for the last 15 years, the rally has been sponsored by Bulldog Security Products Ltd of Much Wenlock.
The event will be based for the second year at Welshpool Livestock Sales at Buttington Cross and as well as the international rally, it also incorporates The Bulldog Historic Rally, The Bulldog Challenge Rally and The Bulldog National Rally. As well as the main British Rally Championship, the Bulldog International Rally of North Wales incorporates qualifying rounds of the Dunlop/WONAGO MSA British Historic Championship, Hankook MSA Welsh National Championship, BRC Challenge, Brian Dennis Welsh Historic Championship and ANWCC Championships.
This year, the organisers have also formed a close partnership with Welshpool Town Council and are hoping to set up a number of activities for all ages on the run up to the event.
Final closing date will be Wednesday 23rd March 2011 with a Shakedown scheduled for Thursday 31st March 2011 and will be run by PEC at Corwen, west of Llangollen on the A5. Documentation for competitors wishing to participate in the Recce will be at Rally Headquarters on the evening of Thursday 31st March 2011 and the Recce will take place from 08:00 to 17:00 approximately on Friday, 1st April 2011 and competitors will have two passes at each location.
A media day is also being planned and further details will be advised once this is finalised.
Further information, including the comprehensive 'Rally Guide 1' which contains most information relating to the Bulldog International Rally of North Wales as well as media accreditation forms, marshalling and accommodation links is available at the official website:
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