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LinksWyedean - 13 Feb 10
Posted: February 15, 2010 9:03 PM - 10892 Hits
GMF Motor Factors
Wyedean Forest Rally -
Saturday
13th February 2010
Round 1 - 2010 BTRDA Rally Championship
Round 1 - 2010 MSA Welsh Rally Championship
Round 1 - 2010 English Rally Championship
Geoff Mayes Media
- Tv Times for Motors TV
- In Car
- Video Clips
- PEREZ ADDS WYEDEAN TITLE TO THE LIST
- Results
- Seeded Entry List
- Wright to start title defence on Wyedean Forest rally
- Wyedean Rally 2010: Nik Elsmore interview
- HISTORICAL INTEREST!...
- Entries Received
- HUNTING SEASON BEGINS!...
- ‘X’ FACTOR REVEALED FOR THE WYEDEAN!…
- Regulations / Details
PEREZ ADDS WYEDEAN TITLE TO THE LIST
Posted: February 15, 2010 3:04 PM
Former British National and Historic rally
champion Steve Perez finally added the prestigious Wyedean Rally to his
increasing list of successes when he took a hard fought victory on today's event
in the Forest of Dean.
Driving the Kick Energy-sponsored Ford Focus WRC07, along
with co-driver Paul Spooner, the Chesterfield driver made up for the
disappointment back in 2006 when he lost the rally by a mere three seconds, to
take a 29-second victory on the opening round of the BTRDA rally
championship.
Joint fastest on the opening stage, Perez and Spooner were
never headed throughout the day although the battle for the lead was intense and
in the first half of the event, only a handful of seconds separated Perez from
the Ford Focus of Hugh Hunter and Andy Marchbank and local aces Nik Elsmore and
Nige Gardner in their Mitsubishi.
After SS4, Perez's lead was just six seconds but a push on
the second loop saw him increase his advantage significantly and after setting a
consecutive fifth fastest stage time on SS5 in Speech House, Perez rolled off
the gas ever so slightly on the final two tests to seal the win.
"I've been trying to win this rally for a long
time so today is a special day. We were using the rally to test different tyres
and it was very close between Hugh and I until he had a spin in SS5 and that
allowed us a bit of a cushion going into the last two stages. This is a great
start to the season and as I've registered for the BTRDA series, it also means
I'm leading the championship," said Steve.
Both Steve and Paul will next be in action in just two
weeks' time when they contest the opening round of the 2010 MSA Gravel Rally
Championship which takes place with the Poole-based Rallye Sunseeker.
However, immediately after the finish, the ex Marcus
Gronholm Ford Focus was loaded up en route for Sweden whereby Perez flies out
tomorrow to attend the ice driving school run by East African Safari Rally
co-driver Staffan Parmander.
Results
Posted: February 15, 2010 2:59 PM
1 Steve Perez/Paul Spooner - Ford Focus WRC -
0:42:33
2 Hugh Hunter/Andy Marchbank - Ford Focus WRC - 0:43:02
3
Nik Elsmore/Nige Gardner - Mitsubishi Lancer EVO 9 - 0:43:23
4 Roger Chilman/Andrew
Sankey - Subaru Impreza - 0:44:17
5 Shaun Gardener/Ben Innes - Mitsubishi
Lancer - 0:44:19
6 Damian Cole/Craig Drew - Hyundai Accent WRC - 0:44:20
7 James Belton/Eurig Evans - Subaru Impreza WRC - 0:44:55
8 John
Lloyd/Adrian Cavenagh - Ford Focus WRC - 0:45:21
9 Andrew Barnes/Guy Simmons
- Ford Focus WRC - 0:46:04
10 Tristan Bailey/James How - Mitsubishi EVO 9 -
0:46:19
Wright to start title defence on Wyedean Forest rally
Posted: February 8, 2010 12:05 PM
Rally driver David Wright, from Bentham, will start his season next weekend on the Team GMF Wyedean Forest rally, the opening round of the 2010 BTRDA rally championship.
Wright, who won the BTRDA title in 2009, is aiming to kick off his year with a good result after battling through the snow on last years event.
“The conditions last year were very difficult and it was a relief to finish. It was a decent start to a fantastic season though,” said Wright.
“We’re hoping to take some outright event wins this year, it will be tough to beat the World Rally cars but we’ll be on maximum attack from the start.”
Wright and co-driver Michael Wilkinson will start the season in the same Giles Philips Motorsport prepared Mitsubishi Evo 9 as last year with support from Drenth, Kumho Tyres, Proflex and Grove Hill Garage.
“We’ve made a few tweaks but it’s pretty much the same car. Hopefully we’ll have a new car ready in time for the Somerset Stages in April which should be lighter and have a bit more power.”
The Wyedean Forest rally is based at Chepstow racecourse and will feature 45 miles of competitive action in and around the Forest of Dean, more information can be found on
HISTORICAL INTEREST!...
Posted: January 28, 2010 3:33 PM
With entries arriving by the day for the Team GMF Wyedean Forest Rally, the inclusion of three classes for ‘Historic’ vehicles, all of which must have been initially registered prior to the beginning of 1982, is proving to be of particular interest.
Forest of Dean residents, and 1996 Wyedean Forest Rally winners, Dave Jenkins/ Graham Cox have entered the event in a 2-litre Ford Escort. They were 8th overall last year in their Ford Escort World Rally Car and, this time, will be joined by former British Historic Rally Champions David Stokes/Guy Weaver in their Mark I RS1600. Stokes, from Dursley, was also the Castrol/Autosport National Rally Champion in 1976 and has been a regular competitor in the area since that time.
When the Ford Motor Company first began campaigning the Escort in rallying, it used a 1600cc Twin-Cam engine and Ron Taylor/Kevin Lane will be heading for Chepstow Racecourse in a car of similar specification.
Meanwhile, 1983 Motoring News Road Rally Champion Theo Bengry will be returning in the Opel Ascona 400 he used to such success over a quarter of a century ago. For much of the intervening period the car had lain dormant in the corner of Theo’s garage in Leominster until a couple of years ago when it was extricated in order to undergo a complete rebuild.
Cars eligible for Historic classes add variety to any event entry and, in addition to those mentioned above, the Saab 96 V4 of John Tatlow/Julie Westwood and the Volvo Amazon of Graham Waite/Gill Cotton will bring memories flooding back to those spectators ‘of a certain age’!
HUNTING SEASON BEGINS!...
Posted: January 15, 2010 11:04 AM
With entries for the Team GMF Wyedean Forest Rally already in excess of 50, one of the first to be received by the organisers is that of 2007 event winners, Hugh Hunter/Andy Marchbank. The North Walians will take the start in their Ford Focus World Rally Car, ahead of the crew that finished runners-up to them three years ago.
The Hyundai Accent WRC of Damian Cole/Craig Drew arrived back at the Chepstow Racecourse finish just half-a-minute behind the leaders on that occasion and the Hereford crew would relish the opportunity to reverse the tables at this early stage of the new season.
The Wyedean Forest Rally was voted ‘Best Event’ in the 2009 Silverstone Tyres BTRDA Rally Series and, as usual, forms the opening encounter in this year’s Championship. The event gives competitors their only chance to sample the forestry stages in the Forest of Dean and is traditionally one of the most popular events in the UK Rally Calendar.
One of the beauties of the sport of rallying is the all-encompassing class structure in that, whilst the likes of Hugh Hunter and Damian Cole will have outright victory in their sights, there will be any number of equally hard-fought battles going on throughout the entry. The up to 1400cc category, which runs at the front of the field, is likely to be responsible for a healthy percentage of the total – the Wyedean can cater for up to 180 cars! Having already made his intentions clear, 2008 winner Darren Pinchin will be co-driven by Forest of Dean resident Karen Watts in his Proton Satria
‘X’ FACTOR REVEALED FOR THE WYEDEAN!…
Posted: January 5, 2010 4:09 PM
The organisers of the Wyedean Forest Rally, Forest of Dean Motor Club Ltd., are delighted to announce that the event will be sponsored by GMF Motor Factors for the next three years. The company has been in the motor industry for more than a quarter of a century and has ten branches, employing 160 staff, spread between Llanelli and Cheltenham.
The directors of GMF Motor Factors, Ian & Adrian McNally, were brought up in Whitecroft in the Forest of Dean and are very pleased to be associated with the event. “The Wyedean has a long history and tradition – Ian & I both enjoy motorsport and we grew up watching the rally,” said Adrian. In deference to its new sponsors, the 2010 event, which takes place on Saturday 13th February, will be known as the GMF MOTOR FACTORS WYEDEAN FOREST RALLY. Regulations are now available to download from the event website :
Taking its base once again at Chepstow Racecourse, the rally route will contain 45 competitive miles in the Forest of Dean and lower Wye Valley. As a qualifying round of the Silverstone Tyres BTRDA Rally Series, and several other regional Championships, the organisers expect stiff competition for the 180 available places in the entry list. The ‘Wyedean’ is also included in the 2010 Brian Dennis Motor Sport Welsh Historic Rally Championship for the first time, and a strong showing from eligible vehicles will also boost the attendance.
“As a club we are very pleased to welcome GMF Motor Factors as title sponsors for the Wyedean for the next three years,” said Forest of Dean Motor Club Chairman Paul Willetts. “Both Adrian and Ian and a lot of their staff are keen motor sport fans and, no doubt, many of them will join those out spectating on the day. We have had a lot of interest from potential entries already – but we could do without the white fluffy stuff this year!..”
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