Scottish Rally - (Sat) 23 Jul 22

Seeded Entry List

Posted: July 22, 2022 8:11 AM

Scottish Rally - (Sat) 23 Jul 22 - SEEDED ENTRY LIST

RSAC Scottish Rally set for a thrilling battle in the forests

Posted: July 22, 2022 8:07 AM

The RSAC Scottish Rally makes a welcome return to the British motorsport calendar this weekend [23 July], as a blistering array of top-flight drivers will battle for honours throughout a challenging day in the Dumfries and Galloway forests.

The 76th running of the rally will take an impressive list of competitors through classic stages in the Castle O’er, Ae and Twiglees forest complexes during an action-packed day of flat-out competition.

Contenders in the KNC Groundworks Scottish Rally Championship, HRCR Northern Historic Gravel Championship and Army Land Rover Challenge will make up the majority of the field as they not only go head-to-head for the prestigious accolade but also maximum points for their season-long campaigns.

Leading the high-quality field away with number one on the doors will be the record-breaking local hotshot, David Bogie. Stepping into a Ford Fiesta Rally2 for the first time this weekend, the Dumfries driver has a staggering seven Scottish Rally wins to his name and will be aiming for an eighth with co-driver John Rowan alongside. They will also be aiming for a fourth Scottish Rally Championship maximum score in a row, having won the opening three events of the SRC season.

But it’s giant-killer Michael Binnie that will be chasing him down as the number two seed in his Mitsubishi Evo IX. The Cornhill driver has stood on the podium of each SRC round so far this season and is long overdue a win despite his ageing machine. Duns’ co-driver Claire Mole is on the notes and the pairing could well take the top spot in Moffat.

Fan-favourite Jock Armstrong is no stranger to the Scottish either, winning the SRC section of the event in 2017 and taking second place last time around. Back in his familiar bright-orange Subaru Impreza with co-driver Cammy Fair alongside, the Castle Douglas driver is well placed for a good result.

Behind the top three seeds, Freddie Milne will be very keen to have a trouble-free run in the forests this weekend. Along with co-driver Patrick Walsh, Milne is capable of a scintillating pace but needs to reign in his Fiesta R5 to turn that into a positive result, with small issues keeping the pairing away from the top step of the podium.

David Henderson and Chris Lees have enjoyed a busy year behind the wheel and are getting to grips with their Fiesta Rally2 after second place in Argyll last month. A runner-up spot on the gravel in the Scottish Borders in their older R5 Fiesta shows they are more than capable on both surfaces.

Bruce McCombie brings the noise with his raucous Ford Focus WRC at car six with Michael Coutts on the notes, starting just ahead of Dumfries driver Mark McCulloch with co-driver Michael Hendry who will tackle the event in their impressive Proton Satria Evo.

John Wink and Neil Shanks will be aiming to continue their impressive finishing record in 2022 in their Hyundai i20 R5, whilst Hugh Brunton and Drew Sturrock and Northern Ireland crew Joe Hegarty and David Turkington both pilot Fiesta R5’s to round out the top ten.

After being forced to run behind closed doors in 2021 the event is delighted to welcome spectators to the rally and fans will get the opportunity to witness the cars in action on the stages as well as up-close during the day.

From its Lockerbie Lorry Park rally base, crews will head out to tackle 42 miles of stages, spread across six tests with spectators welcome at the arnoldclark.com Castle O’er stage, just south of Eskdalemuir on the B723 with the first car due at 10:15.

The Bob Milloy Ae test near Ae Village kicks off at 13:30 with the Jacqueline Mack Rivox stage, just off the B7076, north of the A74(M) rounding out the day at 15:40.

The now traditional mid-event Regroup in Moffat Town Centre takes place at around midday where fans can chat to the drivers and get close to the cars, before welcoming the finishers back from 16:00 for the champagne spray and finish celebrations.

For the twenty-fifth time, the Scottish Rally will be backed by Dumfries & Galloway Council and will form part of the Council’s seven ‘signature events,’ covering everything from Burns Suppers to arts festivals and World Championship Ice Hockey.

It’s understood to be the longest-running partnership between a rally and a local authority anywhere in Britain, with the Council supporting nearly one-third of all the Scottish Rallies run since the first in 1932.

Previous winners of the event include World Rally Championship legends such Colin McRae, Ari Vatanen, Hannu Mikkola and Stig Blomqvist.

The Gravel Rash Returns with Iconic South West Stages

Posted: July 22, 2022 5:18 AM

The KNC Groundworks Scottish Rally Championship returns to the forests for round 5 of the 2022 season, the RSAC Scottish Rally. Although the entry is relatively small, the quality is there with all the main championship protagonists in attendance. Topping the entry list, championship leader and record 7 times Scottish winner David Bogie comes into his home rally on the back of a 3 event winning streak. With Irish co-driver John Rowan back alongside, David will be making his Rally 2 debut in McGeechan's new Fiesta.

Michael Binnie & Claire Mole line up behind the new Ford. The Evo crew are on an incredible run of form in 2022, finishing on the podium on every event so far this year. Michael currently lies 2nd in the drivers standings while Claire holds a slender 1 point lead in the co-drivers section.

They're joined in the M7 class by the returning Jock Armstrong. The Impreza pilot has had a difficult season so far and will be looking forward to getting back onto the gravel, while co-driver Cammy Fair is coming off the back of an overall win in Argyll.

Behind the top 3 come the army of Fords. Freddie Milne & Patrick Walsh are looking for a change in fortune after a season of great pace and no luck.

David Henderson is a last minute entry in his new Rally 2 Fiesta, fresh from 2nd overall on the Argyll with co-driver Chris Lees.

Bruce McCombie & Michael Coutts missed Argyll but were one of the crowds favourites at the recent McRae Rally Challenge despite constant power steering problems.

Mark McCulloch & Michael Hendry will be debuting the Proton with its' upgraded engine on gravel. The pace on the Clark, Argyll and the McRae very encouraging for the home built special.

John Wink & Hugh Brunton round out the top 9 ahead of the leading Albyn Garage Challengers.
ALM teammates Angus Lawrie & Willie Paterson resuming battle in their Evos once again, chased by championship sponsor Kevin Crawford & Andrew Stevenson.

Peter Stewart & Harry Marchbank top the Autoshop 2wd entries. The 208 R4 has the Historic Escorts of Stuart Egglestone & top Haddo Energy Super Seniors entrant Steve Bannister right behind it on the entry list.

After it's big off on the Snowman back in March Steven Wood's unique rear wheel drive 2-litre Fiesta is finally back together, hopefully Steven can rebuild his confidence quickly. The Fiesta has the Mk2s of John Crawford, Paddy Munro & Gordon Murray for company.

Keith & Mairi Riddick line up 2nd in the fwd ranks, just ahead of the 1st crews in the Moates Offshore Juniors.
R2 Fiesta pilot Justin Gunning lines up ahead of championship leader Robert Proudlock. The Adam driver will be making his 1st start on his home event.

Jordan Anderson & new co-driver John Shepheard top the 5 Star Subaru Cup entries, just ahead of championship supporter Mike Moates & Gary McDonald. Both are coming off the back of difficult runs in Argyll, although Mike & Gary did extend their lead in the series.

Cup winners in Argyll, Orrin McDonnell & Eoghan Anderson's persistence was finally rewarded., and with Orrin reckoning the car should be even stronger on the gravel they could be ones to watch for another victory.

In the ladies contest, 3 of the 4 contestants will be starting the Scottish.

Aileen Forrest leads the championship ahead of reigning champion Ashleigh Morris. The Evo and the Fiesta pilots with 2 wins apiece. Meghan O'Kane's season has been a combination of great pace but poor luck.

The Fiesta driver will be the 1st SRC driver on the road, the Scottish running all the 2 wheel drives at the front of the field in reverse seeding order.

Event Website / Details

Posted: July 22, 2022 5:17 AM

Scottish Rally