Nicky Grist (Quinton) Stages - (Sat) 9 Jul 22

CRONIN/GALVIN TO LEAD AWAY NICKY GRIST FIELD

Posted: July 7, 2022 7:30 AM

As the current leaders of the British Rally Championship, Keith Cronin and Mikie Galvin are seeded at Number 1 for Saturday’s Nicky Grist Rally, based in the Powys market town of Builth Wells. Fresh from a win on the Moonraker Rally in Cork last weekend, they will lead the BRC field away in their Volkswagen Polo GTi, to tackle eight stages, totalling 44 competitive miles, over the famous Epynt Ranges, and Halfway and Crychan forest complexes. The Welsh event marks the championship’s first loose surface gravel outing of the year, the first couple of rounds having been held on closed public roads in Essex and Scotland.

Second away from the Builth Wells start will be Osian Pryce and Noel O’Sullivan, also in a Polo, which will carry the number 100 to mark the occasion of Pryce’s one hundredth rally. They in turn will be followed by Elliot Payne and Patrick Walsh in a Ford Fiesta, with James Williams and Dai Roberts, who currently lie second in the championship standings, next away in an Hyundai i20.

Having recorded a second place finish on the Rally Tendring & Clacton, and victory on the Jim Clark Rally, Cronin and Galvin hold a ten point advantage at the head of the BRC leaderboard, but Cronin remains cautious about their prospects on Saturday.
“I don’t expect it to be easy at all, the Welsh forests are always an ‘away fixture’ for us, even though we’ve been there many times before,” said Cronin. “I know Osian will certainly be very strong there, James Williams has come on very much this season, and Elliot Payne won the Kielder Forest Rally a couple of weeks ago, he’s one to watch too. Hopefully we’ll be in the shake up with them”.

With there having being a nine month interval since the Killarney & District Motor Club crew last tackled a loose surface event, they entered last Saturday’s Moonraker Rally, a round of the Irish Forest Rally championship, to blow away the cobwebs and gather additional data regarding the optimum set-up options for the Polo. They were fastest on seven of the event’s eight stages.
“I’m glad we had the opportunity of doing the Moonraker to get back into the zone for gravel,” related Cronin. “It went well for us, obviously, it was nice to get the win on home ground, but it was also very useful for trying different settings and springs. The format was ideal for that in so far as we did two stages, and then repeated the same two, so it was perfect for comparison. There were two different stages then in the afternoon. Hopefully the work we did will pay off on the Nicky Grist, but you never know until you get there, what suits in Ireland may not always translate in Wales. You might say gravel is gravel, but there can be differences in the type of grading used in the forests sometimes, and the car can behave quite differently as a result.”

With some of the Historics and smaller class cars running first on the road, the BRC crews will enter stage one of the Nicky Grist Rally from 09:20am.

The British Rally Championship campaign of Keith Cronin and Mikie Galvin is supported by M O’Brien Group of Companies, Keohane Seafoods, Inver Energy, Cremin Coaches, Cronin’s HomeValue Hardware, Cronin’s Centra and Pirelli Tyres.

Max McRae to make British Rally Championship debut with Mac Kierans

Posted: July 7, 2022 7:22 AM

Max McRae will contest the third round of the Motorsport UK British Rally Championship next weekend, driving a Ford Fiesta Rally4 at the Nicky Grist Stages [9 July].

McRae, son of 1995 BRC champion Alister hails from Perth in Australia but has embarked on a mini-tour of the UK and Ireland, contesting the recent Donegal Rally, Goodwood Festival of Speed and McRae Rally Challenge ahead of his BRC debut.

His outings here in the UK are in addition to his Western Australian and Australian Rally Championship campaigns in which McRae pilots a Subaru Impreza WRX STi and has already shown his hand with the domination of the stage times leaderboard at the Winvale Stages in April.

Now, the 17-year-old has signed up to the ultra-competitive Junior British Rally Championship category for the Builth Wells based event and will go head-to-head with the likes of seasoned European Rally Championship ace and Norwegian pilot Ola Nore Jnr, as well as 2021 Junior BRC runner up Eamonn Kelly.

With the progressive youngsters vying for the opportunity to contest a World Rally Championship event in a Hyundai i20 N Rally2 in 2023, the fight for Junior BRC honours is as breathtaking as the BRC1 top-flight.

But McRae is relishing the opportunity to take on some of the fastest young drivers in the business and will contest some of the finest gravel stages in the world, as the Nicky Grist Stages hosts the first of four loose-surface events in the BRC calendar.

“It’s awesome to be competing on my first BRC event on the Nicky Grist Stages” says Max. “It’s going to be completely different to the events in Oz, but something I can’t wait for”.

With one of the most famous family names in rallying of the last four decades, Max was arguably destined to take up the mantle. With Grandfather Jimmy currently the only driver to win five BRC titles, his Uncle Colin was also able to secure back-to-back championship wins in 1991 and 1992.

Father Alister secured the British title in a Nissan Sunny GTi in 1995 as the series embarked on a two-wheel-drive period and now the next generation of McRae’s will head to Britain's premier rally championship in a very special one-off outing.

Despite being widely different from the F2 period his father contested, Max has enjoyed many tales about the iconic Welsh stages from the family and is looking forward to taking on some of the stages his elders blasted over during events in the past.

“Having watched videos and listened to my Dad and Gramps, the Welsh stages look like real driver stages. It’s going to be great to drive on the roads they’ve all been on”.

Reece Tarren, British Rally Championship Manager commented
“It’s a real honour to have Max join us in Wales and of course see the McRae name back in the British Rally Championship once again. To me, whenever anyone thinks of rallying, they think of the achievements of Jimmy, Colin and Alister so to be hosting the next generation of McRae’s at the Nicky Grist is fantastic. I’m excited to see how he gets on against the other Juniors but either way, it will be a great experience for Max, the fans and us!”

Alister is equally as excited to be returning to the series, some 18 years after his BRC title.
“It’s going to be great coming back to Wales,” he says.
“I’ve got some great memories from the Welsh forests, and we’ve all won rallies there, so for Max to get his first taste of the BRC, and the stages, is something I’m really looking forward to”.

BRC gears up for gravel at the Grist

Posted: July 7, 2022 7:12 AM

The Motorsport UK British Rally Championship makes its first foray onto gravel this season as the Nicky Grist Stages [9 July] offers up a scintillating mix of world-class forest tests for the series contenders.

The mid-Wales gravel stages are steeped in history, with iconic battles of the World Rally Championship elite played out on its daunting and unforgiving forest and moorland tracks over the decades. And now, eight stages and 44 miles of action will be on offer to the BRC contenders in a compact but action-packed day of rallying, from the Builth Wells town centre base.

Led by the BRC1 crews in a wide variety of Rally2 machinery, a sensational 160-car entry will line up to do battle, including progressive Junior and Academy drivers, each aiming to take the spoils on the first surface change of the seven-round season.

Two back-to-back asphalt events kicked off the 2022 campaign with Essex hosting the opener at the Corbeau Seats Rally Tendring & Clacton. The first visit to the region for the BRC saw a tantalising fight for the opening round spoils, with Osian Pryce and Noel O’ Sullivan claiming victory in the final throws of the event in their Michelin-shod Volkswagen Polo GTi.

But round two saw the return of a four-time British champion to the top step of the podium, as Irishman Keith Cronin was a tour-de-force at the Beatson’s Building Supplies Jim Clark Rally in May, blasting his Pirelli-backed Polo GTi to a popular victory, his and co-driver Mikie Galvin’s first BRC win since 2017.

With the opening two rounds on a sealed surface, Wales welcomes the gravel, and it will be BRC points leader Cronin who leads the crews away on Saturday morning. A non-championship forest event win at home in Ireland has set up him for the prospect, but he is well aware of the challenge he faces to stay ahead of the chasing pack and retain the BRC lead.

Pryce took a podium last season at the Grist and returns in the Melvyn Evans Motorsport run Polo for another shot at glory. A zero score at round two puts him on the back foot but with renewed fire in his belly and excellent experience over the stages, watch out for an on-form Welshman on home soil. Pryce also makes his 100th rally start, running 100 on the doors to mark the occasion.

Mr Consistent, James Williams has ticked almost every box so far on his debut full BRC1 season. Sensational performances in his Hyundai i20 see him sit comfortably in second in the championship and is arguably inches away from a first BRC victory. With Dai Roberts in the co-driver's seat, the duo will be balancing their quest for points with that desire for the elusive win.

Elliot Payne has been one to watch throughout the BRC this season and is likely to turn as many heads as his Fiesta Rally2’s livery at the weekend. With Patrick Walsh on the notes, Payne is perhaps more at home on gravel and with many forest event wins under his belt already, don’t be surprised if Payne takes his first BRC podium or better.

But the shift onto a loose surface will likely throw up some surprises. Ruairi Bell/Max Freeman have proved their pace on asphalt but haven’t converted that to results thanks to a run of misfortune, but could get their Skoda Fabia towards the podium this time around. A sign of their confidence comes with their Joker nomination being used at the weekend, a win gaining a potential five bonus points.

Garry Pearson/Dale Furniss will be firing their Hankook-shod Fiesta Rally2 down the mid-Wales Forest stages for the first time, as will Jason Pritchard/Phil Clarke in their Volkswagen Polo GTi. Pearson will be aiming to capitalise on a Jim Clark Rally podium and last weekends non-championship McRae Rally Challenge win, whilst Pritchard recently enjoyed a gravel baptism in the Polo with victory at a warm-up rally sprint.

The Grist marks a welcome return for Andy Davies who has rebuilt his Ford Fiesta after a sizeable shunt in Essex and will be joined by Michael Gilbey on the notes, Davies being forced to skip the Jim Clark whilst the car was repaired.

Niall McCullagh/Martin Brady join the BRC top-flight for the first time, piloting a Fiesta Rally2. McCullagh has an impressive back catalogue of results under his belt and moved into a Rally2 in 2021. Whilst he has never competed on the Welsh gravel before, the Northern Irishman is well versed in Ireland’s forests and could well impress on his BRC debut.

National Rally Champion
The fight for the National Rally Champion title has seen two winners from two rounds, Craig Jones/Ian Taylor taking the Essex win on their BRC debut and 2019 series runner-up Alan Carmichael/Arthur Kierans securing the Jim Clark spoils. That battle will resume on the gravel but sees Carmichael’s years of loose surface experience give him the upper hand in the Hyundai i20 whilst Jones admits to not being on gravel in four years and will use his usual Fiesta 4X4.

William Mains is joined by Pete Pennah in the rebuilt Nova and will be aiming for a solid result after a heavy off on the Jim Clark.

Junior British Rally Championship
The Junior British Rally Championship crews will undoubtedly be just as entertaining as the BRC1 contenders on gravel, with last year’s runners-up Eamonn Kelly/Conor Mohan enjoying a 15-point lead in the championship after their Jim Clark victory. But they will be chased hard by Peugeot 208 Rally4 crews Kyle White/Sean Topping and Ioan Lloyd/Sion Williams.

Johnnie Mulholland/Eoin Treacy will be aiming for another podium in their Ford Fiesta Rally4 whilst Kyle Mcbride is joined by Darren Curren and will be hoping for a cleaner run on the gravel after a testing two rounds in the Academy Trophy.

A new name on the Junior BRC entry list is perhaps one of the most famous names in the sport, McRae. Max, co-driven by Macartan Kierans will make his championship debut in Wales and is the nephew of the legendary Colin McRae and son of 1995 champion Alister. He will drive a Fiesta Rally4 on his first gravel event in the UK, making the trip from his home in Australia.

It's perhaps too early in the season to start making predictions in any BRC category, but one thing is for sure, the British Rally Championship pace will be sensational on the stages, and it will be a battle you won’t want to miss.

Seeded Entry List

Posted: July 7, 2022 7:04 AM

1 Keith Cronin/Mikie Galvin (Volkswagen Polo GTI R5) [BRC1]
2 Elliot Payne/Patrick Walsh (Ford Fiesta Rally2) [B14]
3 James williams/Dai Roberts (Hyundai i20 R5) [BRC1]
4 Garry Pearson/Dale Furniss (Ford Fiesta Rally2) [BRC1]
5 Ruairi Bell/Max Freeman (Skoda Fabia R5) [BRC1]
6 Tom Llewellin/Ross Whittock (Ford Fiesta Rally2) [Class 6]
7 Matthew Hirst/Declan Dear (Ford Fiesta R5) [B14]
8 Stephen Petch/Michael Wilkinson (Ford Fiesta) [B14]
9 Perry Gardener/Jack Bowen (Ford Fiesta R5) [B14]
10 Jason Tauber Pritchard/Phil Clarke (Volkswagen Polo GTI R5) [BRC1]
11 Dylan Davies/Mark Glennerster (Skoda Fabia R5) [B14]
12 Hugh Brunton/Drew Sturrock (Ford Fiesta R5) [B14]
14 Niall McCullagh/Martin Brady (Ford Fiesta Rally2) [BRC1]
15 Andy Davies/Michael Gilbey (Ford Fiesta R5) [BRC1]
16 Pat Naylor/Ian Lawrence (Mitsubishi Evo 9) [B13]
17 Will Hudson/Jamie Edwards (Ford Fiesta Rally2) [Class 6]
18 Richard Hill/Patrick Cooper (Mitsubishi Lancer) [B13]
19 James Giddings/Lee Taylor (Mitsubishi Evo 9) [B13]
20 Simon Rogers/James How (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6) [B13]
21 Bob Morgan/Ade Williams (Skoda Fabia R5) [B14]
22 Rob Wilson/Richard Morton Crozier (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 7) [B13]
23 Nick Elliott/Dave Price (Fiat 131 Abarth) [H3]
24 Eddie Lewis/Sion Cunniff (Ford Fiesta R5) [B14]
25 Charles Payne/Carl Williamson (Ford Fiesta Rally2) [B14]
26 Alan Carmichael/Arthur Kierans (Hyundai i20 R5) [Class 6]
27 Ben Friend/Cliff Simmons (Ford Escort) [H3]
28 Robert Ceen/Shaun Layland (Ford Fiesta) [B14]
29 Andy Davison/Tom Murphy (Sunbeam VXR) [B12]
30 Simon Webster/Alun Cook (Ford Escort Mk2 RS1800) [H3]
31 David Crossen/Ben Teggart (Ford Escort Mk2) [B12]
32 Michael McDaid/Declan Casey (Ford Escort Mk2 RS1800) [H3]
33 Michael O'Brien/Claire Williams (Ford Focus WRC) [Class 6]
34 Craig Jones/Ian Taylor (Ford Fiesta 4x4) [Class 6]
35 Nik Elsmore/Stephen McAuley (Mitsubishi Evo 9) [B13]
36 John Caine/Andrew Sankey (Subaru Impreza) [B13]
37 Benjamin Ceen/Caron Tomlinson (Ford Fiesta) [B14]
38 Rob Wright/Mark Fisher (Ford Escort Mk2) [B12]
39 Ashley Davies/Sam Fordham (Ford Escort RS) [B12]
40 Johnnie Mulholland/Eoin Treacy (Ford Fiesta Rally4) [BRCJ]
41 Eamonn Kelly/Conor Mohan (Ford Fiesta Rally4) [BRCJ]
42 Max James McRae/Macartan Kierans (Ford Fiesta Rally4) [BRCJ]
43 Paul Thompson/Josh Davison (Ford Escort) [B11]
44 Kevin Metcalfe/Ian Jones (BMW E30) [B12]
45 Nick Dobson/Philip Sandham (Ford Escort Mk2) [B11]
46 Boyd Kershaw/Keegan Rees (Ford Escort) [B11]
47 Paul Walker/John Tomley (Subaru Impreza) [B13]
48 Trevor Gamble/Phil Kenny (Ford Fiesta Rally2) [B14]
49 Petr Krizan/Stephen Link (Mitsubishi Evo 9) [B13]
50 Tim Jones/Liam Andrew Whiteley (Ford Escort Mk2) [B11]
51 Owen Mc Mackin/Sean Ferris (Ford ESCORT) [H3]
52 Matthew Jackson/Sasha Heriot (Ford Fiesta R2T) [R2]
53 Tony Simpson/Ian Bevan (Ford Fiesta R2T) [R2]
54 Jonathan Andrew Jones/Jez Rogers (Ford Fiesta Fiesta R2T) [R2]
55 Peter Baylis/Paul Godden (Mitsubishi Evo 9) [B13]
56 Lewers Firth/Shaun Lapper (Subaru Impreza) [B13]
57 Darren Craig/Harry Stubbs (Mitsubushi Evo 9) [B13]
58 Neil Andrew/Dominic Adams (Ford Escort Mk2) [B11]
59 Grant Inglis/Gavin Chisholm (Ford Escort Mk2) [H3]
60 Robert Gough/Sam Collis (Ford Escort Mk2 RS1800) [H3]
61 Paul Street/Ian Jones (Ford Escort Mk2) [H3]
62 Richard Ceen/Alun Hayward (Ford Focus WRC) [B14]
63 Tom McKeown/Neil Thomas (Subaru Impreza) [B13]
64 Sacha Kakad/James Aldridge (Ford Escort) [H3]
65 Yaniv Bar/Hannah McKillop (Ford Fiesta R2) [R2]
66 Wug Utting/Bob Stokoe (Subaru Impreza N12B) [B13]
67 Craig Cameron/Peredur Davies (Subaru Impreza) [B13]
68 James Lepley/Arwel Jenkins (Ford Escort) [H3]
69 Kyle White/Sean Topping (Peugeot 208 Rally4) [BRCJ]
70 Kyle McBride/Darren Curran (Ford Fiesta R2T) [BRCA]
71 Ioan Lloyd/Sion Williams (Peugeot 208 Rally4) [BRCJ]
72 Pauric Sheridan/Sean Brunton (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9) [B13]
73 David Tomlin/Keith Ashley (Ford Fiesta R5) [B14]
74 Jonathan Lightbody/Mark Swallow (Subaru Impreza) [B13]
75 Terry Pankhurst/Jamie Sparks (Ford Escort Mk1) [B12]
76 Mike Simpson/Dale Gibbons (Ford Escort Mk2) [H3]
77 Simon Dalton/Jamie Vaughan (Subaru Impreza N12B) [B13]
78 John Gribbins/Colin Blunt (Ford Escort RS) [B11]
79 Alun Jones/Geraint Mills (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 4) [B13]
80 Brynli Thomas/Sion Rowlands (Peugeot 306) [B11]
81 Dan Chester/Dylan Bargate (BMW E30) [B12]
82 Alan Desbois/Peter Littlefield (Peugeot 306 RWD) [B10]
83 Andrew Fox/Jaime-Lee Fox (BMW 325) [B12]
84 Aziz Tejpar/Steven davey (Ford Escort Mk2) [Class 5]
85 Michael Sawyer/Gareth Price (Datsun 1600) [B12]
86 Ron Morgan/Marc Clatworthy (Ford Escort Mk2) [H3]
87 Bill Grew/Simon John Rogers (Ford Fiesta R2) [R2]
88 Jack Thorne/Andrew Richards (Ford Escort) [H3]
89 Callum Griffiths/William Lewis (Ford Fiesta ST) [B10]
90 Colin Griffiths/Lucy Wilding (Subaru Impreza) [B13]
91 Robert Bradley/Kevin Booth (Ford Escort Mk2) [B11]
92 Matthew Steadman/David Read (Lancia Delta Integrale Evo) [B13]
93 James Brady/Daniel Morefield (Porsche 911) [H4]
94 Scott Sloan/David Sloan (Peugeot 208) [R2]
95 David Young/Alex Young (Ford Escort Mk2) [B11]
96 Roger Nevitt/Alex Booth (Ford Fiesta R2T) [R2]
97 Simon Smith/Andrew Lawson (Ford Escort) [B12]
98 Alun horn/Ian beamond (Ford Escort) [B11]
99 David Jones/Glyn Price (BMW E30) [B12]
100 Osian Pryce/Noel O'Sullivan (Volkswagen Polo GTI R5) [BRC1]
101 Geoff Phelps/Colin Jenkins (Ford Escort) [B11]
102 Nathan wearden/Ethan Thompson (Ford Fiesta) [B10]
103 Tom Naylor/Tom Bishop (Ford Fiesta ST) [B11]
104 Rob Aslett/John Flippance (Subaru Impreza) [B13]
105 Bob Morris/Dil John (Subaru Impreza) [B13]
106 Geoff Cottrill/Nathan Crewe (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9) [B13]
107 Mike Brown/Aled Davies (BMW E36 Compact) [B12]
108 Liam Griffiths/Daniel James (Ford Fiesta ST) [B10]
109 Martin Walters/Marie Fletcher (Honda Civic) [B10]
110 Graham Thatcher/Tim Samuel (Peugeot 206 GTI) [B11]
111 Philip Jones/Ryan Griffiths (Ford Escort) [B11]
112 Charlie Wright/Ashley Ramsey (Peugeot 106 GTi) [B10]
113 Charalambos Charalambous/Jordan Joines (Subaru Impreza) [B13]
114 Charlie jackson/Dylan thomas (Ford Fiesta Cosworth) [B13]
115 Lucy Wigley/Emma Cooper (Citroen C2 R2) [R2]
116 Giles Armitage/Josh Rhodes (Peugeot 205 GTi) [H3]
117 Michael Jenkins/Scott Dance (Peugeot 205) [B10]
118 Wil Armitage/Jeremy Pole (Peugeot 306 S16) [B11]
119 Mark Goodwin/Louis Goodwin (Vauxhall Chevette) [B11]
120 William Cooper/Archie Cooper (Mazda MX5) [B11]
121 Chris Gittins/Chris Arnott (BMW Compact) [B12]
122 Colin Minton/Bryan Hull (Ford Fiesta) [B14]
123 Justin Gunning/Steven Clark (Ford Fiesta R2) [R2]


202 Pete Gorst/Mark Twiname (Vauxhall Nova) [1400S]
203 Nigel Jenkins/Dan Petrie (Vauxhall Nova) [1400S]
204 Freddy Camp/Stephen Spear (Ford Escort 1600) [H1/2]
205 Jonathan Brace/Paul Spooner (Ford Escort Mk1 RS1600) [H1/2]
206 Neal James/Kevin Jones (Ford Escort) [H1/2]
207 Chris Skill/Jane Edgington (Ford Escort) [H1/2]
208 David Lloyd Roberts/Gerallt Davies (Ford Escort) [H1/2]
209 Gary Smith/Emma Clarke (Ford Escort Mk1) [H1/2]
210 Ben Smith/Steven Smith (Ford Escort Mk1 RS2000) [H1/2]
211 Andrew Stokes/Jonny Tad Evans (Ford Escort Mk1) [H1/2]
212 Alex Mark Waterman/Glyn Thomas (Datsun 1600 SSS) [H1/2]
213 William Mains/Pete Phennah (Vauxhall Corsa) [Class 1]
214 Lewis Hooper/Steven Brown (Nissan Micra) [RF1.4]
215 Ashley Francis-Adams/Justin Fowler-bishop (Nissan Micra) [1400S]
216 Chris Squires/Shaun Hughes (Ford Escort) [H1/2]
217 Hywel Davies/Iwan Thomas (Ford Escort) [H1/2]
218 Mike Robert’s/Ken bowman (Ford Escort RS) [H1/2]
219 Gareth Lewis/Ryland James (Ford Escort Mk1 RS2000) [H1/2]
220 Julian Birley/Emyr Hall (Talbot Sunbeam Ti) [H1/2]
221 Peter Hinton/Daniel Jones (Ford Escort) [H1/2]
222 Ian Beveridge/Paul Price (Toyota Corolla TE27) [H1/2]
223 David Hopkins/Callum Young (Talbot Sunbeam Ti) [H1/2]
224 Tony Jardine/Iain Tullie (Hillman Avenger) [H1/2]
225 James Dunkley/Jack Morris (Vauxhall Corsa) [1400C]
226 Luke Watts/Ryan Taylor (MG ZR) [1400C]
227 Richard Garnett/Stefan Arndt (Nissan Micra) [1400C]
228 Will Graham/Karen Graham (Ford Escort Mk1 RS1600) [H1/2]
229 Adrian Walk/Matt Walk (Ford KA) [1400C]
230 Alfie Hammond/Phil Boyle (Nissan Micra) [1400C]
231 Edward James/Charlie Mason (Nissan Micra Kit Car) [1400S]
232 Aaron Rix/Abi Haycock (Ford Escort Mk2) [1400S]
233 Edward Wain/Noel Murphy (MG ZR) [1400C]
234 Gethin Price/Matt Baddeley (Nissan Micra) [1400C]
235 Ian Barnes/Emma Morrison (Ford Escort Mk1 RS2000) [H1/2]
236 Jacob neal/Glen Mercer (Vauxhall Corsa) [RF1.4]
237 Jeremy Wells/Steve Suckling (Ford Escort Mk2) [H1/2]
238 Dale Glover/Sean Ward (Alfa Romeo Alfasud TI) [1400S]
239 Remy Thomissen/Christopher Davies (Ford Escort) [H1/2]
240 Ansko Pitkänen/Julia Perry (Suzuki Swift) [RF2.0]

Entries Received / On Line Entry

Posted: May 31, 2022 3:22 PM

www.rallies.info/webentry/2022/nickygrist/

Nicky Grist Stages set to welcome six major rally championships back to Builth Wells

Posted: May 10, 2022 8:41 AM

Quinton Motor Club is gearing up for what promises to be a fantastic festival of rallying in mid-Wales on Saturday 9 July when competitors from six major rally championships gather in Builth Wells for the 2022 Nicky Grist Stages.

The event will play host to the Motorsport UK British Rally Championship for the fourth time. Twice the winners of the Nicky Grist Stages – Elfyn Evans/Craig Parry (Ford Fiesta R5) in 2016 and Matt Edwards/Darren Garrod (Volkswagen Polo GTI R5) in 2021 – have gone on to become British champions in the same year, while the 2017 event winners Fredrik Åhlin/Torstein Eriksen (Škoda Fabia R5) finished runners-up.

This year’s Nicky Grist Stages will be the 37th consecutive time that the event has secured a place on the MRF Tyres BTRDA Rally Series calendar. Many of the previous event winners have also gone on to become BTRDA champions, most recently Euan Thorburn/Paul Beaton (Ford Focus WRC) in 2019.

The Pirelli Ravenol Welsh Rally Championship will not only bring some of the best Welsh rallying talent to Builth Wells, but from around the UK as well – with the likes Matthew Hirst (Ford Fiesta R5+), Dylan Davies (Škoda Fabia R5+) and Tom Llewellin (Mitsubishi Mirage) all expected to resume their close battle for the Welsh drivers’ title.

In addition, this year’s Nicky Grist Stages will be a round of the HRCR Rally Master Challenge. When the Historic Rally Car Register was founded in 1984 it was the first organisation of its kind, and today it’s the largest. It will bring a huge variety of historic rally cars to the event, all driven with the same commitment and determination as the modern-day machinery.

ANWCC Rally Championship will be coming to Builth Wells again this summer. Whilst it stands for the Association of North-Western Car Clubs, the ANWCC has over 120 member clubs covering the northern half of England, most of Wales, parts of Scotland and the Isle of Man.

Finally, the event will host a round of the Independent Paint Supplies (IPS) Rally Challenge, which is a hugely popular series which raises funds for the Wales Air Ambulance.

And it will be lucky 13 for the Nicky Grist Stages in 2022, as it celebrates 13 consecutive years of title sponsorship from Nicky Grist Motorsports.

Last year’s Nicky Grist Stages was the first major rally to run in Wales after the Covid-19 enforced suspension of motorsport events was lifted and it had to adhere to all Covid protocol rules and requirements. These included limiting the number of people allowed into the service area, no finish ceremony and, at the request of the landowners, no spectators.

All these restrictions will be lifted this summer.

With the support of Powys County Council, Builth Wells Town Council and the businesses and residents of Builth Wells, the 2022 event will move back into the centre of the famous market town. With the main high street a matter of metres away from the service area, rally teams will be able to buy food from the local shops – as well as tools, clothes, mobile phones and get their hair cut and restyled if they wish!

The start of the event will be held in Strand Street, outside the wonderful Strand Hall which will be rally headquarters. The mid-day service halt will be located on the nearby Builth Wells RFC pitch and the finish ceremonies will be in Groe Park, on the banks of the River Wye and with Builth Wells’ 18th Century bridge and surrounding rolling hills providing a stunning backdrop.

Scrutineering will take place the day before the event (Friday 8 July) at North Road Garage; the local Toyota dealership (owned by Eian Pritchard and his family) located just a stone’s throw away from the service area on the other side of the river.

The event will contain 44 stage miles, with a loop of four stages run in the morning and repeated in the afternoon. The compact route will have just 80 road miles.

“This summer we will run our tried and tested one-day event format featuring some of the very best classic gravel stages on the Epynt military range and in the Halfway and Crychan forest complex,” says Neil Cross, Nicky Grist Stages Clerk of the Course.

“With the full support and co-operation of the landowners, namely Natural Resources Wales and Defence Infrastructure Organisation Wales, this year’s stages will include a few interesting tweaks that will provide competitors with some new sections of top-quality roads, some of which have never been used on the Nicky Grist Stages before.

“The route survey has been done and we’re delighted with both the road conditions and the format of this year’s event, and we’re confident that it will be a great challenge befitting all the six major rally championships that the Nicky Grist Stages will host.

“We are also delighted to be moving back into the centre of Builth Wells, with the service area returning to the rugby pitch and the start and finish ceremonies taking place in the town centre as well. It should bring a great carnival atmosphere to the town and we must thank Powys County Council, Builth Wells Town Council and the residents and local business owners for all their continued support.

“And a big thank you to Nicky Grist for not just supporting the event as title sponsor for thirteen years, but for his friendship, knowledge and tremendous enthusiasm.”

“2021 will go down in the history of the Nicky Grist Stages as one of the greats because it was organised in very short time and with the huge challenge of Covid-19 rules and protocols, and Quinton Motor Club did an exceptional job,” says Nicky Grist.
“They have not been resting on their laurels and have been working hard to organise an even better event that will use the classic gravel roads on Epynt, Halfway and Crychan forests. Stages we know competitors enjoy so much.
“The Clerk of the Course has put together some great stages with some subtle changes in the route. Some of which have not been used for a long while and some sections have never been used on the rally before. The roads are in great condition and a brilliant day’s competition will be in store for everyone.
“Bringing the event back into Builth Wells is important to us and we encourage all visitors to the rally to use the cafes, coffee shops and other local amenities during the event. “I look forward to welcoming you to Builth Wells in July.”

Rally Guide 1 for the 2022 Nicky Grist Stages is now available to view and download on the event’s website (link below) and on the Sportity app (password: NGS2022).

2022 Nicky Grist Stages – important dates and times

Monday 23 May, 18:00 – Entries open for registered championship contenders and Quinton Motor Club members
Monday 30 May, 18:00 – Entries open for all entries
Friday 1 July, 20:00 – Seeded entries close
Monday 4 July, 18:00 – Final Instructions and route details available
Wednesday 6 July, 18:00 – Entries close
Friday 8 July, 15:00-20:30 – Scrutineering at North Road Garage
Friday 8 July, 15:00-19:00 – Recce
Saturday 9 July, 08.31 – First car starts
Saturday 9 July, 15:30 – First car finishes

Event Website / Details

Posted: May 10, 2022 8:29 AM

Nicky Grist Stages (Quinton Rally)
Quinton Motor Club