rally.ie - Stories - 2008 Irish Fiesta Sporting Trophy

Focused on the future

Posted: December 19, 2008 7:53 PM

M-Sport, the team behind the BP Ford Abu Dhabi Ford World Rally Team and the Fiesta SportingTrophy (FST) last week offered six lucky UK and Ireland FST drivers the opportunity to get behind the wheel of a Ford Focus RS WRC car, for a once in a lifetime test drive. The prize was developed to reward drivers that had started eight out of the possible 12 Fiesta rounds during the course of 2008.

The six drivers that were eligible for the prize driver were James Everard (22) from Hull, Kyle Orr (19) from Dromore, Co. Down, Elfyn Evans (19) from Machynlleth, Wales, Meilyr Evans (19) from Machynlleth, Wales, Barry Greer (21) from Belfast and Alastair Fisher (20) from Trillick, Co. Tyrone.

As the drivers arrived at the test venue they were greeted with dry but cold and slippery conditions. Each driver was briefed about the car controls and the layout of the test venue before they were strapped into Francois Duval’s Stobart VK M-Sport Ford Focus - fresh from Wales Rally GB.

The drivers were offered tuition on the day by current World Rally Championship driver Matthew Wilson. Each of the competitors made two familiarisation runs in the Focus, followed by a number of full speed laps with full anti-lag and differential settings, so that they could experience the full potential of the car they all aspire to drive.

First into the car was Meilyr Evans, a tentative start from the young Welshman was followed by an impressive show of car control with some fantastic drifting displayed. Meilyr was heard saying as he emerged from the car “I’ll be smiling for weeks now, that was simply amazing”.

Next up was Everard who had just returned from the final round of the East Asia Pacific Rally Championship where he had driven a four-wheel drive for the first time. Everard made a cautious approach to the test and listened closely to Wilson’s instructions. As the FST regular got into the swing of things, he picked up his pace and improved with every lap. After getting out of the car his first words were “We are selling the house: I need one of those! It’s an amazing car, it blows the four wheel drive I used recently out of the water!”

With the remaining crews brimming with excitement to get their try in the car, Orr and Greer stepped up for their test. Orr showed that his rally cross experience in similarly powered cars had helped him to prepare for the event and, with some guidance from Wilson, he was soon up to speed and loving the experience. Finally, young Irishman Greer sat in for his prize. With a similarly cautious approach as Everard, he too listened closely to instructions and was soon showing superb car control.

As these four drivers finished the test sessions jubilant and on a high, it was time for the remaining two drivers to have their extended test. Fisher and Evans had both been awarded the extra prize of a full test as a reward for being the strongest drivers in both championships. With each having over an hour in the car, it was a chance for them to hone their driving skills, with Wilson offering both drivers some helpful driving tips. There was even time at the end of the test their was even time for the two drivers to give their co-drivers a time in the Focus, giving them an insight into what it would be like to be a works pairing in a factory car.

As the day drew to an end, all competitors left the venue with an everlasting memory of their experience from the day. With all the crews pulling off some excellent car control it was a great sight to see and an even greater experience for the drivers - finishing off 2008 in style.

Opportunity of a lifetime for FST scholarship competitors

Posted: November 24, 2008 2:55 PM

Alastair Fisher (20) and Elfyn Evans (19) have been awarded a test by M-Sport in the Ford Focus RS WRC as the joint VK Fiesta SportingTrophy UK and Maxol E85 Ford Fiesta SportingTrophy Ireland scholarship prize winners. The young drivers from Trillick, Co. Tyrone and Machynlleth, Wales, respectively, will be offered driver tuition from current Stobart VK M-Sport World Rally Championship driver Matthew Wilson in December, with the added bonus of an invitation to dinner with M-Sport Managing Director Malcolm Wilson and double Ford WRC champion Marcus Grönholm.

Originally, the prize was designed to reward the strongest driver for his participation in both championships, but Malcolm Wilson found it impossible to split the performance of Fisher and Evans this year, so decided to award the prize to both. The pair finished the Maxol E85 Ford FST Ireland championship tied on points, with Evans only taking the victory by virtue of having won Round 1.

M-Sport developed the concept of the scholarship this year to try to support the commitment of drivers to both the UK and Irish FST championships. The experience gained by doing both the UK gravel series and the Irish asphalt series on their own pacenotes is excellent preparation for the next step of the ladder towards the WRC. Through this initiative, M-Sport hope to repay the commitment shown by the FST drivers and give them a glimpse of what they are aspiring to at the highest level of the sport.

Fisher has driven incredibly well over the course of the season in both the UK and Ireland and was so close to winning the Irish series for a second consecutive year, displaying some astonishing stage times throughout the course of the season. Outside of the FST championship, Fisher also recorded the first outright win for the Fiesta ST in his local 2WD event, an amazing feat.

Evans meanwhile secured both the UK and Irish titles in one weekend; his titles were the result of a mature and impressive performance on both tarmac and gravel. With this being Evans’ first full attempt at the FST Ireland series, it makes his achievement even more impressive.

Four other drivers from the joint-championship scholarship will also have a chance to get a taste of the Ford Focus WRC having started eight of the 12 qualifying rounds this season. They are Meilyr Evans (19) from Machynlleth, Wales, Barry Greer (21) from Belfast, James Everard, (22) from Hull and Kyle Orr (19) from Dromore, Co. Down.

Alastair Fisher said:
“To say that I am excited would be an understatement; a test session with Matthew Wilson in a works Ford Focus WRC is a dream end-of-season prize. Having no LHD experience, I wasn’t expecting this at all. It’s fantastic that M-Sport have recognised our commitment to FST and this is the best possible way we could have been rewarded. My good friend Derek Jobb has lent me his LHD car in preparation for the test!”

Elfyn Evans said:
“Being given the opportunity to drive a World Rally car is amazing. We will have a busy few days between the FST International Shootout and this drive - but it will be a fantastic end to the season. It will be the first time I will have driven a 4WD car, so it’s certainly something I am looking forward to. I am very thankful for this chance.”

Malcolm Wilson, Managing Director, M-Sport said:
“Having to choose one winner for the extended test was a real challenge. Alastair [Fisher] and Elfyn [Evans] have both showed some amazing performances throughout the year and to split them was just impossible, my only option was to offer the experience to both of them. With both drivers happily agreeing to this decision, it just shows that although the competition is incredibly close, the camaraderie and sportsmanship between the competitors is equally impressive. I look forward to seeing how they get on.”

Winners round up for 2008

Posted: November 19, 2008 6:08 PM

Last weekend saw Fiesta crews from all over the UK and Ireland come together for the Maxol E85 Ford Fiesta SportingTrophy IE end of season prize presentation. The awards ceremony was hosted by Killarney Motor Club at the Gleneagle Hotel on behalf of the TROA.

There were a number of awards up for grabs and the following winners were announced:

Dealer Cup - Gwyndaf Evans Motors, Wales

Best Presented Car Award - Paul Quinn

Paul Quinn’s Fiesta ST has been awarded the Best Presented Car Award of the championship. Paul’s striking orange Fiesta stands out amongst the other competitors and always turns up to events looking clean and professional no matter what Paul has done to the poor car on previous rounds. Paul wins a framed memento photo and a Karcher Pressure Washer. Spirit of the Championship Award - Meilyr Evans

Meilyr Evans picks up the Spirit of the Championship Award for his positive attitude and pleasant demeanour throughout the season. 2008 is Meilyr’s first year in the series and after a number of big accidents he has always returned with a fresh attitude and never once appeared down hearted. Meilyr has been a great positive addition to the series. Meilyr walks away with a framed memento photo and free registration to the 2009 Fiesta SportingTrophy Ireland series. Pacenotes Media Award - Barry Greer

Barry Greer picks up the Pacenotes media award for the championship in 2008. Barry has successfully designed, created and published his own professional looking website during the course of the year. Barry has also implemented a colourful scheme on his car to match the website design and expressed positive media presence throughout the year. Barry walks away with a framed personalised Pacenotes front cover and a voucher for a free full-page advert in a future issue of Pacenotes magazine. 3rd Overall - Paul Quinn and Jason Gillespie

2nd Overall - Alastair Fisher and Barry McNulty

1st Overall - Elfyn Evans and Gareth Roberts

More Details:

Fiesta Sporting Trophy Ireland

Fisher awarded shootout wildcard

Posted: October 28, 2008 3:17 PM

Alastair Fisher (19) from Trillick, Co. Down has been chosen as the wildcard entrant to represent Ireland at the forthcoming Fiesta SportingTrophy International Shootout 2008. The shootout will take place over the 9th and 10th of December. Fisher will be competing against a number of other hopefuls including FST UK and IE Winner Elfyn Evans for a chance to win a 12-month contract working hand in hand with the BP Ford Abu Dhabi World Rally Team during the 2009 WRC season.

This year’s shootout winner Adam Gould has seen great developments in his career thanks to the unique opportunity he was given this year, after a successful campaign in the British Rally Championship the year has culminated for Gould with nominations for both the UK and International Pirelli Star Driver competitions. Gould and the 2007 shootout winner Victor Henriksson have both enjoyed money cant buy experiences including acting as weather crew for the Ford WRC team, attending tests with the works drivers and learning how to build the Focus WRC cars. Fisher will be hoping he can gain similar success from the competition.

Fisher has performed impeccably throughout the season and has gained respect from many quarters due to some outstanding results including that of fourth overall in the National Rally during the Ulster rally. Fisher had a bad start to the season with a second on round one, due to a technical problem and a retirement on round two but he fought back on round three of the series, the Killarney Rally of the Lakes with a victory over season long rival Elfyn Evans by a margin of just 3.8 seconds. A second win on the Donegal Rally at round four saw Fisher back in the title race.

Evans fought back on round five the Ulster Rally to take victory, leaving Fisher needing maximum points in the season finale - The “Cork 20” Rally. Fisher duly did what was needed, winning the event by over 24 seconds from Evans, this left the points tied at 140 each with the title eventually falling to Evans with the victor being decided on round one standings.

It was the fight back from Fisher throughout the year and his ability to show that he can not only match the pace of the other title fighters but also drive to the result that is required. It is these qualities that have earned him his nomination for the shootout.

The two-day shootout will consist of physical, psychological and media tests before a gravel based driving test in Greystoke Forest.

Barry Johnson, M-Sport’s personal trainer will conduct the gruelling physical tests which will challenge the competitors to their maximum fitness ability The psychological test will assess the competitors mental strengths and weaknesses and determine whether they are capable of becoming a leading competitive driver The media interview will involve challenging questions from the sports leading journalists. It will allow the judges to see how the drivers react under pressure and if they are competent in front of rallying’s toughest critics. On the second day, the competitors will show their driving skills on a gravel stage at M-Sport’s very own forest test facility, Greystoke. The drivers will have three runs with their best two times being combined to give their stage time.

The five top competitors will then be selected for a one to one interview with Malcolm Wilson, Director of M-Sport. The winner of the shootout will then be announced at the end of the second day.

FST Co-Ordinator, Richard Millener said:
It has been great to see the battle between Elfyn [Evans] and Alastair [Fisher] this year, and with the title going down to a points tie at the end of the year it just shows how evenly matched these drivers are. With Elfyn winning the title the only choice was Alastair for the nomination, the two boys are in a class of their own and both should have the opportunity to compete at the shootout.

Alastair Fisher said:
It's great to be nominated for the shootout, I have had a mixed year both in Ireland and the UK and came so close to taking the title for the second time but it just wasn't to be, however being nominated as the wild card entry for the shootout is a great confidence boost. My driving and fitness levels have improved immensely from last season and coupled with the additional input to my motorsport career from the MSA Rally Elite Scheme I feel confident I can perform well on the day.

Points after Final Round

Posted: July 27, 2008 1:04 PM

Fiesta Sporting Trophy Ireland

FST UK and IE Combined Series Prize - WRC Chance for FST Drivers

Posted: June 5, 2008 1:41 PM

M-Sport, the promoters of the Fiesta SportingTrophy in both the UK and Ireland have created an incentive for the increasing number of drivers that register for both the UK and Irish FST series.

With more and more drivers seeing the advantages that regular competition on both sides of the water creates, M-Sport have acted to develop an incentive that will see more young drivers follow in the footsteps of the likes of Alastair Fisher, Jonny Greer and Elfyn Evans and combine the gravel series in the UK with the tarmac series in Ireland.

The incentive will give all drivers that start 8 of the 12 possible events in the UK and Irish series the chance to drive a Ford Focus WRC at a specially created drive opportunity in Cumbria in December 2008.

All those that start a minimum of 8 FST rounds in the UK and Irish series will be invited to come to Cumbria and get a chance to sample the experience behind the wheel of the car that currently leads the FIA World Rally Championship for Manufacturers, the Ford Focus WRC.

In addition, during the course of the year all the drivers will be assessed by a team from M-Sport and one driver will be offered an extended opportunity. The selected driver will have their travel expenses paid, they will be accommodated at a hotel in Cockermouth where they will be invited to dinner with M-Sport managing director, Malcolm Wilson. The following day, they will be equipped with a WRC replica overall and they will have an extended opportunity to test the Ford Focus WRC at a venue in Cumbria with coaching from a member of the M-Sport team.

Malcolm Wilson, Managing Director of M-Sport said:
This has been something that we have been trying to support as we have seen the benefit that the drivers have had from doing both the UK and Irish series. The experience gained by doing both the UK gravel series and the Irish asphalt series on their own pace-notes is excellent preparation for the next step of the ladder towards the WRC. Through this initiative we hope to re-pay the commitment shown by the FST drivers and give them a glimpse of what they aspire to - the top step of the ladder of opportunity.