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Battle for the 2024 Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship titles begin on Rally North Wales
Matthew Hirst and Declan Dear will begin the defence of their Motorsport UK Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship titles - and attempt to win the series for a record-breaking fourth time - when they contest this weekend's opening round, the Get Jerky Rally North Wales on Saturday 16 March, in their Delta Salvage/Witham Motorsport Ford Fiesta R5.
The pair have an impressive record on Rally North Wales, having won the event three times - and each time they've won it they have gone on to become Pirelli Welsh champions! Rally North Wales was also the scene of their very first overall rally win in 2019.
Simon Rogers finished a career-best runner-up in last year's all-gravel Pirelli Welsh Championship after a very impressive and consistently fast season in his MacWhirter Motorsport-prepared Mitsubishi. The Evo 6 driver will be partnered on this occasion by Jack Bowen, who will this year be aiming for the OnThePaceNote / Restruct-supported Welsh Junior co-drivers' title.
James Giddings returns to the series - the Carmarthen driver was super-fast in 2022 and picked up second-placed Pirelli Welsh points on the Plains Rally, along with three other top six finishes. Co-driven by Aled Davies, the former Fiesta ST Trophy and Citroën C2 Challenge champion will be a title contender in his Fordpad/Sar Metals Mitsubishi Evo 9.
Paul Walker/Geraint Thomas are always quick in their Geoff Jones Motorsport-prepared Green Paw Engineering-backed Subaru Impreza STi N11 and will be keen to start the season with a good run on the Oswestry driver's home event.
Three retirements knocked Steve Hollis/Tim Currie down the points order last year, finishing lower than their speed and commitment deserved. They could well be title contenders given a few more clean runs in 2024, as they appear in their V6 Jaguar-engined Volkswagen Golf V R32, the sight and sound of which is something to behold in the Welsh forests.
Former Welsh Junior frontrunner Dan O'Brien makes a very welcome return to the series and will be partnered by Mark Glennerster in his O'Brien Group Ford Fiesta RS WRC, while Peter Baylis/Paul Godden return in their quick Artificial Lawn Company-backed Mitsubishi Evo 9.
Colin Minton enjoyed a high points-scoring run to the finish in last year's championship, which saw the Swindon driver net a top 10 overall finish. Partnered by the reigning Welsh Junior co-driving champion Bonnie Papper, he'll be looking for more success in his Ignition Motorsport Ford Fiesta R5.
Also challenging for a top overall result will be Wug Utting/Bob Stokoe in their Geoff Jones Motorsport-prepared Subaru Impreza N12b and David Tomlin/Keith Ashley in their Axon Ford Fiesta R5. Colin Griffiths/Marc Morgan will be aiming to carry on from the great season that they had last year in their ex-Mikko Hirvonen/Alister McRae Subaru Impreza STi, whilst fighting for overall and 57 Tyres Welsh Challenge points will be Paul Lomas/Mark Leader (Plant Speed Subaru Impreza STi), Michael Jenkins/Jordan Joines (Ignition Motorsport Fiesta), Adam Durston-Hillyer/Chris Davies (MacWhirter Motorsport/Saulire PC Rally Team Mitsubishi Evo 9), Keith Jones (co-driven by OnThePaceNote / Restruct Welsh Junior Robbie Sandford in the Grooms Garage Subaru Impreza), Geoff Cottrill/Nathan Crewe (Cottrill Transport Mitsubishi Evo 9), and Rob and Ashley Aslett in their Rigfone Electric Contractors Subaru Impreza.
There will be the usual big battles in the Hockly Motorsport-supported Two-Wheel Drive category.
Andrew Fox/Jaime-Lee Fox return to defend their class W12 title in their Xwatch Safety Solutions BMW 325 - resuming their close battle Dan Chester (co-driven this time by Steven Davey) in his Dan's Action Vehicles BMW E30(pictured below), Kevin Metcalfe/Ian Jones in their three-litre BMW E30 and Scott Walton/Ryan Jones in their Mid Glam Motorsport Escort MK2.
The Phelps brothers are back too, with Tim Phelps/Elwyn Manuel battling for class W12 glory in their Britpart Escort Mk2 and Geoff Phelps/Colin Jenkins aiming for class W11 honours in their Hartpury Farms Escort Mk2.
In his first year of rallying on gravel, 57 Tyres boss Lyn Davies clinched the highly competitive Historic class W9 title. His year the Newport driver's Escort RS1800 Mk2 will be prepared by Jonesport and, co-driven by Aled Richards, Lyn promises to be even faster this year!
Taking a W9 class win on Rally North Wales will not be easy, especially with the likes of Rudi Lancaster/Guy Weaver (Woolacombe Bay Holiday Parks Escort RS18000 Mk2), John Morgan/Llinos Jones-Edwards (Fairfield Motor Co. Escort Mk2), Peter Jones/Gareth Davies (Escort Mk2) and Rob Dennis/Andy Boswell (Escort Mk2) on the starting list.
Eddie Lewis, one of the leading challengers for the OnThePaceNote / Restruct-supported Welsh Junior drivers' title, is also taking part - co-driven by Sion Cunniff in his Mechanical Solutions Escort Mk2.
Defending class W8 champions Andrew Stokes/Jonny Tad Evans will be aiming for a good start to the series in their Stokes Rally Team Ford Escort RS1600 Mk1. They always enjoy a tremendously close battle with Jonathan Brace/Paul Spooner in their Dave Jenkins Motorsport-run Brace's Bakery Ford Escort RS1600 Mk1 and Gary Smith/Emma Clarke in their Escort Mk1.
Graham Thatcher gave his magnificent Pembridge Vehicle Management TR7 V8 its debut on last year's Wyedean Rally. Co-driven by Tim Samuel, he'll be hoping to get his challenge for the class W7 title off to a flying start. They'll have some stiff opposition, not least from Peter Hinton/Lewis Sim in their Escort Mk2.
Class W5 champions Julian Birley/Emyr Hall are also back to defend their title in their wonderful orange Talbot Sunbeam.
For the third year running, the top three finishers in each Historic class at the end of the season will be put forward for the David Stokes Historic Challenge award for drivers and the Guy Weaver award for co-drivers.
Two class wins should have netted Gethin Price more than fourth in last year's class W2 title race, so the Machynlleth driver and co-driver Iwan Thomas will be hoping for another winning start to the Hockly Motorsport-supported 1400cc class in their Keith Price Haulage Nissan Micra. Dave and Freddy Brick are also very fast and will be pushing their Vauxhall Nova to the limit and beyond in an attempt to score maximum points.
Martin Walters/Marie Fletcher have won the class W10 title for the last two years and will be aiming for an incredible hat-trick of trophies in their Digger Parts Direct Honda Civic. Always attracting a vast variety of cars, it's not an easy class to win - and aiming to stop the reigning champion's great run of success will be Greg Mills/Andrew Sankey in their 1.6-litre Toyota-engined Escort Mk2.
Double Cilwendeg Rally winner Chris Richmond Hand brings his two-litre DC Motorsport Escort into the woods in the class for 2WD road rally spec cars. The road rally ace will be co-driven on Rally North Wales by Pete Phennah.
As well as Pirelli Welsh Championship points, the much sought-after special Witham Motorsport awards will be up for grabs on Rally North Wales for registered 2WD, 4WD and Historic competitors.
Rally North Wales will be live streamed on the Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship's and Special Stage TV's Facebook pages during the event, featuring action from all the registered competitors.
Organised by Wolverhampton & South Staffs Car Club, this year's Rally North Wales will be based at the Welshpool Livestock Market, just outside the town - where the start, midday service and finish will be held. There will be two challenging loops of stages through Gartheiniog, Dyfi and Dyfnant forests, totalling around 45 stage miles.
Spectator information is available at: rallynorthwales.co.uk.
During the 2024 season, the Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship will be raising awareness of its official charity partner, The Osborne Trust (theosbornetrust.com).
Further details on the Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship can be found online at: wnrc.wamc.org.uk.
For more information, please contact:
Dave Evison
Secretary, Motorsport UK Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship
Paul Evans
Press Officer, Motorsport UK Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship
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Motorsport UK Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship announce expanded support packages for 2024 season.
This year's Motorsport UK Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship will have a bigger and better rewards package on offer for its many class categories - with expanded prizes and incentives for its Junior, Historic, Two-Wheel Drive and Welsh Challenge categories.
Pirelli will continue as title sponsor of the 2024 Welsh Rally Championship, in a partnership which goes back 13 years to 2012.
Jonathan Wells, Pirelli UK Motorsport Manager, said: "We are pleased to continue our long-standing relationship with the Welsh Association of Motor Clubs in support of the Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship. The club continues to organise a fantastic array of events with great depth of talent displayed across the competitor base, allowing us to showcase our excellent range of Pirelli Scorpion gravel rally tyres in many different conditions. We look forward to the fast-approaching 2024 season and expect another great year in the Welsh forests."
The buoyant Welsh Junior Rally Championship - which had 11 points-scoring drivers, six of which were still in contention for the title entering the final round, and eight points-scoring co-drivers last year - will be boosted in 2024 with Restruct joining OnThePaceNote as joint class sponsors.
The prize for the winning Welsh Junior driver will be a day with triple British champion Matt Edwards, who is one of the most sought-after rally tutors in the world, while the winning Welsh Junior co-driver will receive a goodie bag filled with some great kit that OnThePaceNote's Craig Parry used during his professional co-driving career.
OnThePaceNote UK's Craig Parry said: "For the 2024 prize we wanted to offer something that would benefit both driver and co-driver. Bringing Matt Edwards into the equation was a perfect fit with his experience of both competing and tuition, and to have a session with him will benefit any young driver. For the co-drivers, giving them the tools that benefited me over the years would hopefully help them while they are competing in the future. We are delighted to carry on our collaboration with Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship for a sixth year."
Restruct, which is owned by Welsh Historic rally driver Ron Morgan, and OnThePaceNote will come together to offer an exclusive driving training and media day during 2024, for all registered Welsh Junior Rally Championship competitors.
Ron Morgan said: "It gives us great pleasure to be associated with the Welsh Association of Motor Clubs and it is very exciting to be sponsoring the Juniors this year knowing how difficult it is starting out in rallying. We wish all the Juniors the best of luck for the forthcoming season and for many years to come - and hopefully finding a new Welsh champion among them."
Hockly Motorsport, one of Wales' most iconic and long-running motorsport operations, will continue to support the Pirelli Welsh Two-Wheel Drive and 1400 class categories.
Jess Hockly-Edwards, Hockly Motorsport Managing Director, said: "As a company we are delighted to have been given the opportunity to continue our support of the Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship. We have always prided ourselves on supporting clubman rallying and this championship is a true reflection of grassroots rallying, providing a class for all to compete in within a friendly and welcoming atmosphere. We wish all competitors all the very best for this year, and let's hope it's as competitive as last year."
Lyn Davies, the reigning Pirelli Welsh Historic class W9 champion, has come in as sponsor of the 57 Tyres Welsh Challenge. This very popular category is open to any driver and co-driver who did not finish in the top 10 overall on any round of last year's Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship (or any equivalent status championship event) and who has never previously been Welsh Challenge champion.
Lyn Davies said: "Last year was my first year competing on gravel, after many years of rallying on asphalt, and I really enjoyed it. The Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship is very professionally run, the events are great, there is a great camaraderie amongst the competitors and therefore I wanted to give something back. I'll be back out myself in my Escort Mk2 attempting to defend my Historic class W9 title, and with a bit of luck I'll be a lot quicker this year!"
The David Stokes Historic Challenge award for drivers and the Guy Weaver award for co-drivers will continue into a third year.
The registered crews that finish in the top three of each Historic class at the end of the season will be put forward and a judging panel (made up of representatives from the Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship, the Welsh Association of Motor Clubs, members of the Stokes family and Guy Weaver) will select the winners based on criteria such as sportsmanship, unflappable determination, performance improvement and how they go out of their way to promote motorsport in a positive and safe manner.
David Lloyd Roberts and Declan Casey won the awards in 2022, while Jonathan Brace and Jonny 'Tad' Evans won in 2023.
Witham Motorsport - which is part of the Witham Group, one of the UK's leading independent manufacturers and suppliers of automotive, commercial, and industrial lubricants and paints - will continue to offer its generous event-by-event rewards for drivers in the 4WD, 2WD and Historic categories.
Richard Scarbrough, Sales Director of Witham Motorsport, said: "We are delighted to be supporting the prestigious Motorsport UK Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship again for the 2024 season. We're eager to witness the thrilling competition and cheer on all the drivers and teams as they battle it out on the iconic Welsh stages. We look forward to contributing to the success of the 2024 championship."
The Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship is proud to announce The Osborne Trust (theosbornetrust.com) as its official charity, which is a new initiative for 2024.
The Osborne Trust is the only national charity dedicated to supporting the children of a parent going through a cancer diagnosis, cancer treatment, cancer recurrence, living with incurable cancer, a death of a parent from cancer and beyond. The Trust has been specifically set up to offer emotional and practical support to children aged 18 years and younger of a parent diagnosed with cancer. For these children, it is providing the opportunity to bring some normality back into their lives, for others it provides some respite from what they see when a parent is undergoing cancer treatment. But for all, at what is such a hard time for these children, the support The Osborne Trust offers reduces their feelings of isolation, lift spirits, bring families together and be a reason to smile.
Emma Osborne, founder of The Osborne Trust, said: "We are thrilled to have been chosen as the Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship's official charity for the coming year. Having support from such a fantastic organisation like this will help us raise awareness across Wales about who we are and the work we do to support children during their parent's cancer treatment and beyond. We look forward to working with them throughout the championship. We can't do what we do without fantastic support from organisations such as this and this will help us massively as we continue with our busiest year since we launched back in 2014."
Dave Evison, Motorsport UK Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship Secretary, said: "The closed season has been a busy but rewarding few months and it is brilliant to have the enthusiastic support of our sponsors as we head into the rally season. We have a real mix with long-standing supporters and some new sponsors for this season, which is fantastic as it enables us to offer that little extra to our contenders which in turn supports the events making up the series. We are also delighted to have a new partner in The Osborne Trust. Emma, who runs the charity, has done some fantastic work and we are delighted to support the charity and to spread the message to a new audience. Please do look up The Osborne Trust."
The Welsh Association of Motor Clubs organised 2024 Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship will start with the Get Jerky Rally North Wales on Saturday 16 March. Organised by Wolverhampton & South Staffs Car Club, the Welshpool-based event will have stages in Garth, Dyfi and Dyfnant forests.
More details on the 2024 Motorsport UK Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship can be found online at: wnrc.wamc.org.uk.
2024 Motorsport UK Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship
Saturday 16 March.......Get Jerky Rally North Wales
Saturday 13 April.......Rallynuts Severn Valley Stages
Saturday 18 May.......Plains Rally
Saturday 13 July.......Nicky Grist Stages
Saturday 7 September.......Phil Price Memorial Woodpecker Stages
Saturday 26 October.......Visit Conwy Cambrian Rally
Saturday 16 November.......Wyedean Rally
Dave Evison
Secretary, Motorsport UK Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship
Paul Evans
Press Officer, Motorsport UK Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship
Picture captions
Overall Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship title challengers: Bob Morgan/Ade Williams (Å koda Fabia R5)
57 Tyres Historic class W9 champions: Lyn Davies/Aled Richards (Ford Escort Mk2)
OnThePaceNote/Restruct Welsh Junior supporter and 57 Tyres Historic runner: Ron Morgan/Sion Jones (Ford Escort Mk2)
OnThePaceNote/Restruct Welsh Junior title challengers: Sam Mason/James Seymour (Ford Fiesta)
Hockly Motorsport 2WD champions: Andrew Fox/Jaime-Lee Fox (BMW 325)
Hockly Motorsport 1400 frontrunners: Dylan Fowler Bishop/Dan Evans (Nissan Micra)
Witham Motorsport: Richard Scarbrough presents Julian Birley with the Witham Group Historic special award at the 2023 Visit Conwy Cambrian Rally
Ozzy, The Osborne Trust mascot - official charity of the 2024 Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship
Pictures by Paul Mitchell. Please credit 'Paul Mitchell Photography' if used.
Nicky Grist Stages win Motorsport UK Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship 'Rally of the Year' Award
The Nicky Grist Stages has won the prestigious Motorsport UK Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship's 'Rally of the Year' award, as voted for by registered competitors.
The Speedsports Shield was presented to event organisers Quinton Motor Club at the annual Welsh Association of Motor Clubs gala prize giving.
Based in the centre of Builth Wells, with a ceremonial start on Strand Street, the service area on the Builth Wells RFC pitch, a champagne podium finish on the banks of the River Wye and gravel stages in the nearby forests of Llyn Login, Monument, Halfway and Crychan (allowing for minimal road mileage), the Nicky Grist Stages is a well-established and much liked round of the Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship - attracting one of the biggest championship entries of the season.
"The Nicky Grist Stages is one of those events you see in the calendar and can't wait for it to come around," says triple and reigning Pirelli Welsh Rally Champion Matthew Hirst.
"It really rewards commitment right from the outset. The rally has started for the last few years on the Llyn Login stage, which features some of the biggest crests and jumps you will come across in British rallying. You sit on the start line of it looking in awe at the scale of the first jump, and it does focus the mind. The rest of the stage is quite open with good sightlines, which gives you confidence.
"Crychan has a more traditional Welsh forest stage feel to it, with quite a few junctions and a nice flow. It's also got some technical narrow bits under the trees which can bite. I find it helps to have some good pace notes and previous experience of Crychan - me and Dec [Declan Dear, co-driver] try to spend some extra time on the notes in here.
"Halfway is a stage of two parts. The first section of the stage runs through a quarry which is quite wide, giving you confidence to move the car around and use all the space available. The stage then moves onto a stunning hillside section - at least to look at in photographs, less so as a crew focusing on the drop on the outside! Still, what a pleasure Halfway is to drive at speed, right on the edge at points it can feel a bit like being on a downhill ski slope. One corner just flows into the next and you can push properly hard all the way to the finish.
"The last stage Monument was a highlight for me last year. We were fastest through here on both runs by a decent chunk. There are a few corners where you can take some interesting lines. The profile of the road tends to work for you with quite a lot of camber in places which means you can carry an extra few miles an hour. The icing on the cake was the much-anticipated return of the jump after the crossroads. I think as photos and videos show, it was a welcome return for both spectators and drivers. I spent quite a lot of time before the event discussing how I was going to attack it and to be honest it was just a case of seeing how it felt on the day. I think in hindsight we actually took it quite well with just a small lift on the approach and then back to full power before take-off to keep the nose up. The problem wasn't with the landing, it's stopping in time for the hairpin left 120 metres down the road with a small right kink just on the approach.
"We had a great battle with Elliot Payne for the overall rally win on last year's event. Fair play to him, he was on some pace and took the win by eight seconds. This didn't detract from the day and I'm thoroughly looking forward to 2024's running of the event."
"Quinton Motor Club and the team behind the Nicky Grist Stages are delighted to be awarded the prestigious Best Event Award in the 2023 Motorsport UK Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship," said Neil Cross, Clerk of the Course for the Nicky Grist Stages.
"We strive to put on the best event possible and knowing it's been appreciated makes all the effort worthwhile."
"I am very pleased to learn that the 2023 Nicky Grist Stages has won the Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship Rally of the Year Award," said Mark Hammond, Mayor - Builth Wells Town Council.
"There can be no bigger accolade than to be recognised by the actual competitors themselves. It's well deserved.
"The organisers readily acknowledge that having the rally based in the centre of Builth Wells was a big contributing factor to this award, and from the town's perspective it is wonderful to have this acknowledged.
"The rally at Builth is a vibrant and stunning event, which makes the relationship between the town and the Nicky Grist Stages a real two-way partnership. The event draws in many visitors who make good use of all the shops, pubs, cafes and other great amenities that Builth has to offer, as well as the natural beauty of the town, particularly as it is situated on the banks of the River Wye.
"What I have also found equally impressive is their positive attitude to liaising with the Town Council, and particularly with the Town Clerk. The organisational skills and clinical attention to detail, especially where the safety of competitors and those watching are concerned shown by the Nicky Grist team, reflects the high-level professional approach needed where an event like this is concerned. It also keeps the disruption in the town to a minimum.
"Builth was really pleased to host the rally in 2023 and we are not only looking forward to this year's event, but all those in the years to come as well."
"It is always a difficult task choosing the best Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship event because all of the organising teams in the championship do such a fantastic job and very often there is little to choose between events," explains Dave Evison, Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship Secretary.
"In recent years the organising team from Quinton Motor Club have made small but effective changes and it's made the difference with a lot of very positive feedback from our contenders."
Details on the 2024 Motorsport UK Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship can be found online at: wnrc.wamc.org.uk.
2024 Motorsport UK Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship
Saturday 16 March.......Get Jerky Rally North Wales
Saturday 13 April.......Rallynuts Severn Valley Stages
Saturday 18 May.......Plains Rally
Saturday 13 July.......Nicky Grist Stages
Saturday 7 September.......Phil Price Memorial Woodpecker Stages
Saturday 26 October.......Visit Conwy Cambrian Rally
Saturday 16 November.......Wyedean Rally
Dave Evison
Secretary, Motorsport UK Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship
Paul Evans
Press Officer, Motorsport UK Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship
Picture captions
2023 Nicky Grist Stages - Motorsport UK Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship podium celebrations
Matthew Hirst/Declan Dear (Ford Fiesta R5)
Dan Jones/Cyril Jones (Vauxhall Nova)
Nicky Grist Stages service area in Builth Wells
Iwan Roberts/Daniel Jones (Ford Escort G3)
Ron Morgan/Sion Jones (Ford Escort Mk2)
Pictures by Paul Mitchell. Please credit 'Paul Mitchell Photography' if used.
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