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DYLAN MAKES A COMEBACK WHILE TOM RETURNS TO NUMBER ONE
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Reigning Pirelli Motorsport UK Welsh Forest Rally Champion Dylan Davies returned to the sport after an eight month lay-off on Sunday (23rd June) and showed he has lost none of the pace that took him to last year’s title.
Dylan tackled the Red Kite Stages, organised by Amman and District Motor Club, in a hired R5 specification Ford Fiesta. With co-driver Mark Glennerster alongside him he led from the first to the final special stage, overcoming a late scare to take outright victory. The scare came on the final stage when the engine briefly cut out, costing the duo around 10 seconds before they got it fired back up.
Second place went to Russ Thompson and Andy Murphy following a rally long battle with 2018 Junior Champion Matt Hirst and co-driver Declan Dear. Thompson and Murphy had the upper hand for the opening two stages in their Mitsubishi Evo IX but following the first service halt of the rally Hirst and Dear moved ahead of their rivals and maintained their advantage until the final stage when a puncture on their Mitsubishi dropped them outside the top 10.
In addition to taking second place, Thompson and Murphy also claimed maximum Group N points ahead of Wug Utting and Bob Stokoe in their Subaru Impreza.
Third place overall and top honours in the two-wheel drive category, sponsored by Lightning House, went to Steve Bennett and Osian Owen in their Mark II Ford Escort RS1800. Second among the two-wheel drive runners were Rudi Lancaster and Guy Weaver with Tom Llewellin and Patrick Walsh making it an Escort 1-2-3 while Llewellin was top Junior driver.
With pre-event championship leader Scott Faulkner absent while his car undergoes some redevelopment work, it is Llewellin who also climbs back to the top of the overall driver standings, seven points ahead of second placed Matt Hirst. Russ Thompson is a further 10 points back in third place while Faulkner slips down to fourth.
Declan Dear tops the co-drivers’ table, 15 points clear of Jim Lewis with Andy Murphy a further two points back.
Wug Utting heads the Group N category while Russ Thompson moves past the absent Scott Faulkner and Zak Hughes and into second place. Bob Stokoe is top placed Group N co-driver ahead of Andy Murphy and Gareth Parry.
Tom Llewellin retains his lead among the two-wheel drive runners, now 21 points clear of fellow Escort driver Chris Powell while Hywel Davies climbs up to third in his Escort. Jim Lewis leads the way among the two-wheel drive co-drivers from Tom Murphy and Simon Jones.
Llewellin also extends his lead in the Junior driver category, sponsored by OnthePaceNote.com, with Gethin Price and Zak Hughes second and third respectively.
Tom Murphy leads the Junior co-drivers from Rhys Stoneman who suffered his second successive retirement from a Championship round. Third place is held by Keaton Williams despite his absence at the weekend.
Tom Llewellin holds a commanding lead in the drivers’ category of the RAVENOL Welsh Challenge with a 51 points advantage over Josh Taylor although only four points separate Taylor from third placed Andy Fox.
Things are closer in the co-drivers’ section of the Challenge, leader Tom Murphy just nine points clear of Simon Jones and Jessica Hockly a further five points back in third place.
The next round of the Pirelli Motorsport UK Welsh Forest Rally Championship is the Nicky Grist Stages. The Builth Wells based event takes place on 13th July. You can find put more about the event on the official website, www.nickygriststages.co.uk and about the championship at wnrc.wamc.org.uk, on the Championship Facebook page and on Twitter @WnRC.
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Issued 25th June 2019
Note to Editors: Image Credit: Paul Lawrence
Issued by Peter Hughes Media on behalf of the Pirelli Motorsport UK Welsh Forest Rally Championship.
THE SECOND HALF GETS UNDERWAY WITH EVERYTHING TO PLAY FOR
Competitors in the Pirelli Motorsport UK Welsh Forest Rally Championship begin the second half of their championship season this weekend (Sunday June 23rd) with their only visit of the year to the South Wales valleys for the Red Kite Stages
Scott Faulkner currently holds a one-point advantage at the top of the overall driver’s table. The Mitsubishi Evo IX driver took maximum points on the last two rounds of the Championship, the Rallynuts Stages and the Plains Rally, but still holds the narrowest of leads over Matthew Hirst, the overall winner of round two, Rally North Wales and the 2018 Junior champion. Currently in third place, a further three points back is early season Championship leader Tom Llewellin.
Unfortunately, Scott Faulkner will not be competing this weekend. His car needs further work following the last event and he plans to be back in action on the Nicky Grist Stages next month. So that means we are likely to see a new Championship leader on Sunday evening.
Matthew Hirst’s co-driver, Declan Dear leads the overall standings in his category, two points ahead of Gareth Parry with Bob Stokoe holding third place.
Meanwhile, reigning Champion Dylan Davies is scheduled to make his first appearance of the season, partnered by Mark Glennerster in a Subaru Impreza.
Faulkner and Parry also lead the Group N Championship, five points clear of Surrey based duo Wug Utting and Bob Stokoe in their Subaru Impreza. Zak Hughes and Tom Woods hold third place in their Ford Fiesta.
It’s Tom Llewellin, son of double British Rally Champion David Llewellin, who leads the two-wheel drive category in his historic Specification Mark II Ford Escort with a healthy 20-point advantage over fellow, for this event, Escort driver Chris Powell. Perry Gardener lies in third place.
Looking to make up ground in the two-wheel drive standings following a non-finish on the Plains Rally, his second of the season, will be BMW stalwart Colin Griffiths in his 2.8 litre Compact. Former two-wheel drive champion Andy Fox, meanwhile, has teamed up with Den Golding in the E30 BMW and should benefit from Den’s extensive knowledge of the South Wales stages. Also looking for a strong points haul on only their second Championship appearance of the season will be Rudi Lancaster and Guy Weaver in their RS 1800 Escort.
Top two-wheel drive co-driver is Jim Lewis, co-driver to Chris Powell, ahead of Caron Tomlinson and Keaton Williams.
Tom Llewellin also tops the junior drivers category from Gethin Price and Zak Hughes. Leading the junior co-driver standings is Tom Murphy with a five-point advantage over both Keaton Williams and Rhys Stoneman. Rhys is in the Subaru Impreza of Craig Cameron this weekend
It is Llewellin as well who leads the RAVENOL Welsh Challenge for drivers ahead of Perry Gardener and Tony Simpson. Heading the RAVENOL Welsh Challenge for co-drivers is Tom Murphy four points clear of Keaton Williams while Ian Bevan and Tom Woods are in joint third place.
The rally, organised by Amman and District Motor Club, starts from Rheola Mart with cars leaving from 9.00am on Sunday morning to tackle a total of six special stages. Competitors can see the teams in action on the Rheola stage, which runs twice from 11.22am and again from 2.22pm.
More information about the rally is available on the official website, www.redkitestages.co.uk and information about the Pirelli Motorsport UK Welsh Forest Rally Championship can be found at wnrc.wamc.org.uk, on the Championship Facebook page and on Twitter @WnRC.
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Issued by Peter Hughes Media on behalf of the Pirelli MotorSport UK Welsh Forest Rally Championship.
19TH JUNE 2019
Images Rallysportmedia.com
Faulkner is Fastest in the Forests
A second successive maximum points score means that Scott Faulkner leads the 2019 Pirelli Motorsport UK Welsh Forest Rally Championship by a single point as the series reaches its Halfway stage.
Having taken top points score on the previous round, the Rallynuts Stages, a similar performance on the weekend’s Plains Rally, organised by Knutsford and District Motor Club, moved Scott clear at the top of the table while co-driver Gareth Parry moves into second place overall in his part of the Championship.
From the start in Oswestry, competitors tackled five special stages in Dyfnant, Aberhirnant and Llangower. Scott and Gareth took the lead among the championship contenders on the opening stage ahead of Russ Thompson and Andy Murphy in a similar Group N specification Mitsubishi Evo IX. Third place was held by joint series leaders going into the event, Matthew Hirst and Declan Dear but they would be among a number of competitors to suffer punctures in stage 2, Aberhirnant 1.
That promoted Richard Hill and Patrick Cooper to third place in their Subaru Impreza although they conceded it to the Mark II Ford Escort of Ieuan Rowlands and Emyr Hall on the following stage. Hill and Cooper reclaimed the position on the following stage, holding on to it to the finish.
Fourth place was enough to ensure that Matthew Hirst left the event just one point adrift of Faulkner while his co-driver Declan Dear continues to lead that section of the Championship two points clear of Gareth Parry.
Another strong run in the Historic specification Ford Escort means that former series leader Tom Llewellin lies in third place, four points off the lead.
Faulkner and Parry also lead the Group N Championship, five points clear of Surrey based duo Wug Utting and Bob Stokoe in their Subaru Impreza.
Tom Llewellin leads the driver standings in the two-wheel drive section from Chris Powell and Perry Gardener although it was Callum Black and Michael Gilbey who took top two-wheel drive points for the second event running in their MG ZR. Top two-wheel drive co-driver is Jim Lewis ahead of Caron Tomlinson and Keaton Williams.
Tom Llewellin also tops the junior drivers category from Gethin Price and Zak Hughes. Leading the junior co-driver standings is Tom Murphy with a five point advantage over both Keaton Williams and Rhys Stoneman.
It is Llewellin as well who leads the RAVENOL Welsh Challenge for drivers ahead of Perry Gardener and Tony Simpson. Heading the RAVENOL Welsh Challenge for co-drivers is Tom Murphy from Keaton Williams while Ian Bevan and Tom Woods are in joint third place.
The next round of the Pirelli Motorsport UK Welsh Forest Rally Championship is the Red Kite Stages. Based in Resolven in the Neath Valley and organised by Amman and District Motor Club, the event takes place on June 23rd.
You can find out more about that event on their website, www.redkitestages.co.uk and about the Championship at wnrc.wamc.org.uk, on the Championship Facebook page and on Twitter @WnRC.
CHAMPIONSHIP UPDATE - May 12th 2019
Following Round 4 the Plains Rally the latest championship tables have been uploaded to the website and can be found by following this link or clicking on the Results Tab https://bit.ly/2WxSVsB
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