Thrills and Spills on Very Slippery NG Stages
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www.wheelswithinwales.uk Thrills and spills on very slippery NG Stages Published: 14th July 2016 Author: Peter Hughes Online version: https://www.wheelswithinwales.uk/thrills-and-spills-on-very-slippery-ng-stages/ Elfyn Evans and co-driver Craig Parry won the dramatic and incident filled Nicky Grist Stages last weekend. The fifth event of the seven round MSA British Rally Championship saw the DMACK British Rally Team driver make it three wins from five and his second ‘home’ victory in Wales this season. Fellow Welshman Tom Cave equalled his season best with a fine second while Desi Henry completed the podium after a tough two-day encounter. Based in Builth Wells, the Nicky Grist Stages is a unique event on the BRC calendar with the two days split into two surfaces. Biblical weather greeted the competitors on the opening www.wheelswithinwales.uk day with crews slipping and sliding through 45 miles of forestry gravel stages before tackling the famous Tarmac on the Epynt Ranges on the second day. It wasn’t just the crews inside the car who were tested this weekend as the service teams had just two-and-a-half-hours on Saturday evening to convert the cars from mud-slinging monsters into Tarmac-hugging weapons. Series leader Evans had a difficult start to the event, as the Ford Fiesta R5 driver was not to have it all his own way, with a spin on the opening stage and pop-off valve problems on the second. Undeterred by these early issues, the Welshman swiftly got back into his dominating stride, topping the time sheets on 12 of the event’s 15 stages to finish with a healthy 1 minute 11.4 second margin as the cars returned to Builth Wells for the Ceremonial Finish. www.wheelswithinwales.uk It was to be fellow countryman Cave in his Michelin-shod Ford Fiesta R5 who drew first blood, however, setting fastest time on the opening stage of the rally. Cave (right) would lead the event until an inspired Evans snatched the advantage on the third stage. Thereafter Cave couldn’t live with Evans’ pace but showed his own improvement in speed by recording another second place and his third podium of the year – a result that has helped him to leap-frog Fredrik Ahlin into second place in the championship points standings with two rounds remaining on the calendar. Ahlin missed out on a points haul after retiring on the opening day with a spectacular crash. Henry picked-up from where he left off in Scotland with another fine third position in his Skoda Fabia R5. The Northern Ireland driver started off cautiously but gathered pace as he flew through the gravel stages. It wasn’t to be plain sailing for the likeable Irishman, though, as he took a big cut on the opening day nearly sending the Skoda onto its roof. With the Fabia safely back on all four wheels, Desi pressed on – more so when the competition switched to his preferred sealed-surface. Eager to hold station, Henry chalked up a fastest time on stage 12, showing his asphalt form which, in turn, elevated him up the championship points table at the end of the mid Wales event. Scottish star David Bogie in his Pirelli-backed Skoda Fabia R5 has had a disappointing run of bad luck with two retirements since his podium on the Circuit of Ireland. The Dumfries- based driver suffered turbo issues on the final day but was pleased to score points once again with fourth overall. Circuit of Ireland winner Josh Moffett moved through the order on the Epynt Ranges to place his Fiesta R5 in fifth while rounding out the top six in his Citroen DS3 R5 was Ulsterman Jonathan Greer who also claimed a fastest section time on the Nicky Grist Stages. Greer will be looking for a strong result when the series returns to Ireland for the penultimate round of Britain’s premier rallying series. www.wheelswithinwales.uk Young-gun Rhys Yates took one of his best performances to date in his striking Fiesta R5 with seventh while Jamie Anderson was sadly the biggest loser on the second and final day. Nestled in fourth at the overnight halt, the Englishman Fredrik Ahlin retired in dramatic style from the first day’s action. Photo struggled with credit: Carl Banfield his limited Tarmac experience on the demanding, flowing stages – settling for eighth at the end of the multi- surface event. www.wheelswithinwales.uk Ollie Mellors was the top S2000 runner in his Proton Satria while Thomas Preston rounds out the top ten in his Skoda Fabia R5. In the DMACK Junior British Rally Championship, Vauxhall ADAM R2 driver Robert Duggan made it a hat-trick of victories this season. The Irishman drove a faultless event leading from start to finish, heading a Vauxhall Motorsport one-two as the cars returned to the Royal Welsh Showground. Teammate Mattias Adielsson struggled on his preferred gravel surface on the opening day, but woke up in inspired form with newfound Tarmac speed as he reeled in and overhauled Sindre Furuseth to take second. The Swede was playing his ‘Joker’ this weekend, thus doubling his points and putting him well into the title hunt. Scotland winner Furuseth in his Renault Twingo R2 held a solid second overnight but his first event on Tarmac was to be his downfall as he slipped back into the final podium position. www.wheelswithinwales.uk The Norwegian can take a lot of credit as he Cameron’s close call now has a day of asphalt experience under his Rising Llandovery rally star Cameron Davies belt as he heads into the final two Tarmac overcame a succession of problems to take a events. big step towards another Championship title. Local driver Meirion Evans (Ford Fiesta R2T) The issues for Cameron and co-driver Lee made it four fourth placed finishes in a row Taylor began when a mid-week test session while Josh Cornwell rounded out the top five revealed a problem with one of the competition among the Juniors in his Fiesta R2. suspension struts on their Ford Fiesta. Matt Edwards took the spoils in BRC2, the A last minute cross country dash by Cameron’s Welshman produced another stunning father secured a replacement part but when performance to get himself into the top 12 the team fitted it they discovered that they overall as well as the class win. were unable to adjust the ride height to give The Mitsubishi Evo 9 driver now has an the optimum set-up. unassailable lead in the BRC2 category and will Nevertheless, with four wins out of four in the be crowned champion at the season finale. previous rounds of the Fiesta ST Trophy, the BRC3 competitors Chris Wheeler and Yan pair headed out from the Builth Wells start to Griffiths in their Citroen DS3 R3T were looking the event feeling confident about the eight for another strong finish to consolidate their special stages ahead of them. However, they class lead before a heavy impact on Epynt quickly discovered a new problem, electrical forced them into retirement. this time, as Cameron explained. “Every time I The pair had to be extracted from the car and touched the throttle it would cut out for five taken to hospital but no serious injuries where seconds. If I touched the brakes it would cut incurred. out for two.” In BRC4 Tony Simpson was another driver to That issue plus a wrong tyre choice which saw take his third win of the season in his Kumho- them running on medium rather than soft tyres supported Ford Fiesta ST. slowed them throughout the morning but they Marty Gallagher who was competing in his first were hopeful of being able to fight back in the event outside of Ireland had a commanding afternoon. This wasn’t to be, however, Cameron lead at the end of the first day before a subsequently commenting, “Unfortunately the retirement early Sunday morning put paid to ruts determined our line through most of the his event. stages so we struggled with that.” National Rally Cup winner Robert Blomberg Irrespective of those trials and tribulations, made it back-to-back victories as championship however, when the pairing returned to the leader Donnie Macdonald retired with head- Royal Welsh Showground for the event finish gasket failure and with it went his place on the they had put in a strong enough performance to summit of the table. make it five successive victories in the Fiesta The winner of the SORT Oil Spirit of the Rally ST Trophy as well as claiming Class honours on Award on the Nicky Grist Stages was DMACK the event. Junior BRC competitor Blair Brown. The result also means that, despite missing the Every team was under pressure during the two- opening round of the series, the pair take the and-a-half-hour change over from gravel to lead in the Trophy with two rounds remaining. Tarmac specification. Blair and his small team The next round is the Woodpecker Rally, based only had three people including himself and it in Ludlow on 3 September, but Cameron will be would be a race-against-time for them to get back in competitive action at Castle Combe his R2T Fiesta into Parc Ferme – a feat which race circuit in Wiltshire next weekend racing they achieved with time to spare. the SVG Racing Sports 2000 car that he drove Brown also won the award for assisting a with considerable success last season. spectator who got stuck on the road section.