2007 British Rally Championship

Posted: May 8, 2007 1:11 PM

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08/05/07
IRDC Performance Award recognises talent
The International Rally Drivers Club is pleased to announce a major initiative in conjunction with the 2007 Tesco 99 Octane MSA British Rally Championship. This is designed to recognise and reward championship contenders who show the greatest improvement in performance between rounds, with an overall prize awarded at the end of the season.

Club Vice President Malcolm Wilson says; “Since its inception the club has had the aim of supporting and helping international competitors both at home and abroad. I think this performance initiative is an ideal way to recognise the talent and progress made by individuals. With this type of support future talent will be recognised.”

The awards are split into two categories for the Silverstone Tyres Stars 1400 Rally Championship and the Tesco 99 Octane MSA British Rally Championship; competitors have shown a strong interest already and the first awards will be awarded on the Jim Clark Rally at the end of May.

Background
The IRDC competitor performance database has been providing performance data for rallies since the 1980’s. This year the system will be used to measure the performance improvement for each registered crew following each round of the championship. The crew that shows the greatest improvement in their performance will be awarded up to £200 at each round.

The more registered crews that enter the larger the award will be:
1-15 entries = £100 award
16-25 entries = £150 award
more than 25 entries = £200 award.
The performance is determined by a tried and tested algorithm that takes the stage times of each competitor and determines their improvement on performance on subsequent rounds. Consequently, the performance on the Pirelli International Rally will be used as the benchmark for the performances on the next event. The first IRDC award will be presented after the Jim Clark Rally.

Following the inaugural year of this award experience has shown year that each competitor won the award on at least one occasion during the 2006 season. It is anticipated that this award will encourage all crews, at whatever level, to make improvements on their own performances.

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10/04/07
Sky Sports extends British Rally Championship contract
Sky Television has extended its contract to televise the Tesco 99 Octane MSA British Rally Championship for the next 3 seasons.

  The new deal will see extended coverage from each round of the BRC increasing each programme’s duration to one hour, scheduled for Monday night at 7pm on Sky Sports immediately after each event. 

  Rallyzone continues and includes news, previews and features with coverage of several classes, including the inaugural Citroen C2R2 Cup, the Silverstone Stars Series and a preview to the following round of the Tesco 99 Octane MSA British Rally Championship.  

Isle of Man based Greenlight Television will continue to produce the programme for Sky and the popular duo Mike Brewer and pundit Robbie Head will continue as presenters of the main show.  

Championship Manager Mark Taylor commented; “Sky Television has been very supportive of the Championship and it is fantastic that the broadcaster is keen to continue its association adding the BRC to their list of predominant motor sport shows including British Superbikes, World Speedway and A1 Grand Prix. The production by Greenlight Television is world class and this deal comes at a critical time when we will see the Tesco 99 Octane MSA British Rally Championship strive to progress competitors to the world stage.”  

Announcing the coverage, Sue Ashworth of Sky Sports, said: “The Tesco 99 Octane MSA British Rally Championship is the breeding ground for young talent, with a variety of challenging courses testing their skills to the limit.  The likes of Colin McRae, Ari Vatanen and Richard Burns have all raced at this level and I’m sure the meetings will be fascinating viewing.”

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03/04/07

• BRC GOES LIVE IN BIRMINGHAM - (Fri) 13 Apr 07

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04/01/07
New Website for BRC:

www.rallybrc.co.uk
British Rally Championship

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11/01/07
Mitsubishi confirms continuation of two-car team for 2007 British Rally Championship
Mitsubishi Motors is delighted to confirm its continued participation in the British Rally Championship, again fielding two Group N Lancer Evolution IXs running under the UK works banner.

Having won last year’s Mitsubishi Ralliart Evolution Challenge, experienced former British Champion Gwyndaf Evans (from Dinas Mawddwy), together with his co-driver Huw Lewis (from Machynlleth), will be in one of the two Mitsubishis – the prize for winning the one-make series for Group N Lancers.

“I’m delighted to be back as a works driver. I really didn’t think it would happen again, but the Evolution Challenge has given me that chance,” said Gwyndaf. “I am raring to go and intend to make the most of my season with Mitsubishi. Make no mistake about it, I would really love to be British Champion again.”

The choice of team mate for Evans is yet to be decided, with a number of drivers, including last year’s works driver and 2005 Evo Challenge winner Ryan Champion, in the frame for the second works car.

“With very few works seats around, it’s a great opportunity for a driver,” said Paul Brigden, General Manager for Ralliart and Works Team Principal. “We are keeping our options open until after the Autosport Show, as we need to ensure that we create the strongest team we can this season.”

With both of last year’s works Lancers showing front running pace and after Champion secured victories on all three of the season’s gravel rallies, the team is optimistic about its chances this year.

“Our cars were regularly the quickest in the British Championship in 2006 and therefore our aim for this year is to win both the Team’s and Driver’s titles,” added Paul. “I’m confident that we can start this season as we finished the last and have a great chance of achieving our target.”



The two new Lancer Evolution IXs will be built by ADR Motorsport of Chesterfield, which has prepared all of the works Group N cars since the UK programme began in 2004. ADR is also responsible for running the cars on events and the ongoing development of the Production Class Lancer.

The cars appear at this year’s Autosport Show sporting their striking new Ralliart livery, which is designed to make them even more distinguishable this season.

The Mitsubishi Motors UK Works Rally Team is supported by HKS, Pirelli, Sparco, Speedline Corse, PIAA and Performance Friction Brakes.

• 2006 British Rally Championship

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03/11/06
Citroen C2 R2 Cup joins BRC.
Total Motorsport Solutions will run an exciting new one make category in 2007, the C2 R2 Cup will run in the Rally 2 class in the Tesco 99 Octane MSA British Rally Championship.  

Leeds-based Total Motorsport Solutions have secured a two-year deal with Citroen Sport to act as official distributor for their products, including the all-new C2 R2.  

“It’s been no secret that we have been working closely with the factory during 2006 developing the right hand drive version of the C2 R2 and undergoing test and evaluation for the UK market,” says Total Motorsport Solutions director, Simon Preston.  

Running the C2 R2 Cup in the UK is part of the deal and the Series will be included in the six-round Tesco 99 Octane MSA British Rally Championship.  

“The C2 R2 package is fantastic, it’s a well developed, good performance, value for money rally car and with longevity at International level,” says BRC Manager, Mark Taylor.  

“C2 R2 BRC competitors will be prime candidates for the Pirelli Stars Driver award, standing a great chance of winning that coveted prize drive in 2008. Together with the BRC cash prizes, reduced tiered entry fees and opportunities offered by Citroen Sport, up and coming young guns would be mad to go elsewhere.”  

The Cup will enjoy support from Citroen Sport and 12 cars have already been sold. An official Super 1600 test and driver evaluation session and an additional support programme in the Junior World Rally Championship will be available to the championship winner.  

Total Motorsport Solutions will debut their latest car on Wales Rally GB with regular driver, Luke Pinder, at the wheel.  

“The deal came together quite late but it’s what we really wanted to do with the car,” says Pinder. “The car has been through a lot of development since we debuted it straight out of the box on the Swansea Bay Rally so it will be interesting to see how it goes on Britain’s round of the World Rally Championship.”

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BRC Diesel Cup for 2007.
The Tesco 99 Octane MSA British Rally Championship has launched a Diesel Cup for the 2007 season.

  The move, a first for rallying in the UK, provides for an exciting new category of rally car and acknowledges the importance of diesel vehicles which now make up over a third of British road car sales and represent one of the automotive industry’s biggest growth areas.  

“Diesel cars are becoming more popular on the roads, more manufacturers are homologating them for motorsport and we want to recognise that in their own category in the Tesco 99 Octane MSA British Rally Championship,” says BRC Manager, Mark Taylor.  

“Rallying should still seek to provide car manufacturers and importers with a marketing opportunity by creating an environment where they can showcase their products. The high performance currently gained from modern diesel engines is phenomenal yet it is balanced by outstanding fuel economy. These cars should be very competitive and this class will help lift ‘oil burners’ into a new light.  

“There has been significant interest in this concept and we find the project extremely exciting in helping to develop alternative fuelled engines.”

  The diesel-powered cars will be homologated as Rally 4 (Group N4) cars, eligible for outright class and rally honours as well as having their own Cup series. The cars will be two wheel drive and those evaluated have shown very impressive performance, especially on asphalt surfaces.  

A control fuel for the category is under consideration with the emphasis on environmental concerns and biofuel is at the fore of these evaluations.  

“Environmental concerns are at the forefront of our minds with all developments for the Tesco 99 Octane MSA British Rally Championship and the diesel category will very much adhere to this principle,” says Taylor.  

Further information on the 2007 Tesco 99 Octane MSA British Rally Championship will be announced over the coming weeks.  

Subject to MSA approval of the Tesco 99 Octane MSA British Rally Championship sporting regulations due for publication on 1st January 2007.  

The following vehicles are currently FIA Homologated diesel cars:  

BMW 120d
BWM 330d
Opel / Vauxhall Astra H GTC
Renault Megane Coupe
Seat Leon TDI
Seat Ibiza TDI
Seat Cupra D
Skoda Fabia RS
Skoda Octavia TDI
VW Golf TDI

British Rally Championship

 

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04/10/06
BRC open for Super 2000.
Super 2000 pegged to GpN R4.

The Tesco 99 Octane MSA British Rally Championship will be open to Super 2000 cars for the 2007 season.

  Super 2000 cars will be allowed subject to a mechanism to ensure performance parity between them and Group N Rally 4 (R4) class of car that currently leads the Championship.

  Super 2000 regulation cars are four-wheel drive cars with naturally aspirated 2 litre engines with a maximum of 280 hp and 6-spd sequential gearboxes. They are based on a production model with a minimum of 25,000 produced.  

An independent assessment will take place to determine any weight penalty required to peg the performance of representative Super 2000 cars to the four wheel drive turbo-charged R4 cars. This will take place on both gravel and tarmac surfaces and will remain subject to ongoing review during the course of the season.  

The move opens the Tesco 99 Octane MSA British Rally Championship to the exciting new class which has had significant manufacturer interest whilst ensuring the close level of competition shown by the championship this season is not compromised.  

“It is important that we are open to this exciting new class of rally car but at the same time we do not want the championship to become a one horse race,” says BRC Manager Mark Taylor.  

“The FIA is currently conducting its own review of the competitiveness of Super 2000 and we will await their conclusions before we conduct our own performance parity tests.  

“We have been in discussion with a number of manufacturers including those currently entered in the championship regarding the participation of Super 2000 cars and we are eager to hear from any other teams who are looking at running cars in 2007.”

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28/09/06
Tesco 99 Octane MSA British Rally Championship 2007 calendar announced.
BRC continues with six rounds and Britain’s best rallies.

  The Tesco 99 Octane MSA British Rally Championship has announced the dates and events for the 2007 season.

  The championship will cover six rallies, starting with the Pirelli International Rally in April and ending with Wales Rally GB in December.

  BRC manager Mark Taylor comments:
“After the success of this year’s Championship we have decided to stick with the same rallies for the 2007 season. This provides a balanced calendar with three tarmac and three gravel events which provides great competition and a mix of disciplines. Ending the season with Britain’s round of the World Rally Championship is a fitting finale to the most exciting motorsport championship in the UK.”

  Tesco 99 Octane MSA British Rally Championship 2007 Calendar.

1. Pirelli International Rally - 20-21 Apr 07
2. Jim Clark Rally - 26-27 May 07
3. Rally Isle of Man (Manx) - 19-21 Jul 07
4. Ulster Rally - 31 Aug-1 Sep 07
5. Rally Yorkshire (Trackrod) - (Sat) 6 Oct 07
6. Rally GB - 30 Nov-2 Dec 07

All dates provisional

British Rally Championship

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Pirelli control tyre for 2007 Tesco 99 Octane MSA British Rally Championship
Tyre deal offers reward and progression for future BRC talent

Tesco 99 Octane backs MSA British Rally Championship until 2009.
Biofuel in driving seat as the cleanest fuel in motorsport makes its mark.

Details on:

• 2006 British Rally Championship