News
Welsh Championship Joins Forces with Top Team
For the 2019 the Pirelli MSA Welsh Forest Rally championship has joined forces with “onthepacenoteUk”, a new partnership set up by 2016 BRC Champion co driver Craig Parry and Irish co-driver and established route note producer Killian Duffy.
The partnership will be the preferred note suppliers for each round of the Championship, offering registered contenders notes for each round in a variety of formats at a fixed price of £50 per event including p&p. A two camera angle DVD of every stage will also be available for £20 per event.
In addition to the notes, the duo will also be carrying out a second survey of the stages immediately before each event, with updated information being provided to customers at a briefing to be held at signing on.
Between them Killian and Craig have over 100 WRC starts giving them a wealth of experience in note-making and Craig will be sharing that experience with registered junior Championship contenders through a mentoring programme currently being developed with the series organisers.
The Welsh man was, unfortunately, forced to retire from competitive co-driving because of injuries sustained in a testing accident in August. Now he is looking forward to the next phase of his motor sport career.
Commenting on the tie up with the Welsh Championship, Craig said, “Killian and I are delighted to be linking up with such a popular series which has grown spectacularly in recent seasons.”, adding, “I am also excited by the prospect of working with the next generation of co-drivers and helping them develop their careers.”
You can find out more about Killian and Craig’s route note service by contacting them at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and about the Pirelli MSA Welsh Forest Rally Championship at wnrc.wamc.org.uk, on the Championship Facebook page and on Twitter @WnRC.
Image Craig flying high in Finland
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Issued 21st November 2019
Issued by Peter Hughes Media on behalf of Pirelli MSA Welsh Forest Rally Championship
DYLAN DOES IT
Llanon driver Dylan Davies has won the Pirelli MSA Welsh Forest Rally Championship but in one of the most closely fought seasons that the series have ever witnessed it took a tie-breaker to determine the destination of the crown.
Dylan and Caernarfon co-driver Llion Williams finished equal on points with former champion Matt Edwards of Llysfaen and co-driver Darren Garrod, from Pwllheli, but take the award based on the competitors’ performances within their respective classes.
Third place overall goes to two more former champions, Luke Francis, from Rhuddlan and John H Roberts with Roberts, from Colwyn Bay, also taking senior co-driver honours. The senior drivers category goes to Surrey driver Wug Utting.
Utting and co-driver Bob Stokoe miss out on the Group N award, however, by a single point. That award goes to Scott Faulkner and Aberystwyth’s Gareth Parry after a season long battle with their rivals. Parry also takes the junior co-driver title while top junior driver goes to Matthew Hirst from Doncaster.
Max Utting and Mike Ainsworth clinched the two-wheel drive category while front wheel drive honours go to Shropshire driver Dave Brick and co-driver Keaton Williams from Ludlow. Barry Jordan and Paul Wakely take rear wheel drive honours.
In an equally closely contested RAVENOL Welsh Challenge, top driver is Matthew Hirst ahead of Max Utting and Colin Griffiths. Declan Dear takes co-driver honours from Mike Ainsworth and Church Stretton’s Geraint Thomas.
Confirming the results, Championship co-ordinator Dave Evison said, “We are naturally disappointed that the scheduled final round of the championship, the Wyedean Stages will not happen as the event was set to provide a great climax to the season, but that doesn’t detract from Dylan and Llion’s achievement in what has been a hugely competitive season.”
The championship has attracted a record level of registrations this season, but Dave is adamant that the series organisers are not sitting back on their laurels. “We are looking at all aspects of the Championship to see if there are ways we can improve it and make it even more attractive to competitors. We will be unveiling further details very soon.”
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Issued 17th October 2018
Credit for the images RallySport Media.
Issued by Peter Hughes Media on behalf of the Pirelli MSA Welsh Forest Rally Championship
Matt's Deflation Turns to Elation
Matt Edwards and Darren Garrod overcame late dramas on Saturday’s (1st Sept) Eventsigns Woodpecker Stages Rally to take their fourth victory of the year in the Pirelli MSA Welsh Forest Rally Championship. That win also secured for them a free entry on Wales Rally GB, part of the Road to Wales initiative of IMS, promoters of the British round of the World Rally Championship.
The Llysfaen driver and his co-driver, from Pwllheli, opened up a 14 second lead on the first of the rally’s seven stages and maintained their advantage all the way to the finish of the event at Ludlow Racecourse. It could have been a different story however, with their Ford Fiesta picking up a puncture on the penultimate stage of the event. They were forced to drive five miles on the deflated tyre with the flailing rubber inflicting significant damage on the car’s bodywork. Despite that they managed to get the Fiesta across the finishing line to take the victory.
Second place went to former champions Luke Francis, from Rhuddlan and his Colwyn Bay co-driver John H Roberts. They were denied the chance to make a late challenge for victory when they too picked up a puncture on their Fiesta World Rally Car.
Third place went to West Country husband and wife team Martyn and Dawn England in their R5+ specification Fiesta while Dylan Davies, from Llanon and Caernarvon’s Llion Williams took fourth place in their Subaru Impreza, ensuring that they take a narrow lead into the final round of the Championship.
Fifth place for Matthew Hirst and co-driver Declan Dear was enough to ensure that the young Mitsubishi Evo IX driver, from Doncaster, takes the 2018 Junior Welsh title for drivers under 23. Group N honours meanwhile went to the similar, but less modified Mitsubishi of Scott Faulkner and Gareth Parry meaning that their Group N title fight with Wug Utting and Bob Stokoe also goes down to the final round.
Another crew to suffer late drama on the event were Max Utting and Mike Ainsworth. A track control arm on their Ford Fiesta ST snapped on the very last corner of the final stage. The duo managed to effect a makeshift repair and got back to the Ludlow Racecourse finish with just a few seconds to spare. That means that the Surrey driver has clinched this year’s two-wheel drive title although co-driver Mike Ainsworth will have to wait until the season finale to see if he can secure a title of his own.
Other title fghts to have been settled include the RAVENOL Freelander class which goes to Alex Howard and George Fleming. Perry Gardner, from Ludlow takes the driver’s title in class W2 with Class W3 driver honours go to Stanton Lacy’s Dave Brick. In Class W4 Steve Deeley from Stourbridge and Alan Proudman of Newport in Shropshire take the driver and co-driver titles respectively and the W5 co-driver’s award goes to Hereford’s Alan Jones. Finally, Treorchy’s Kalvin Green takes the Class N3 driver’s title.
Along with the overall title, Group N title and many of the class awards, the destination of the RAVENOL Welsh Challenge for both drivers and co-drivers will not be settled until the final round of the season, the Winner Garage Wyedean Stages Rally which takes place on November 10th.
The battle for driver honours features Max Utting, Matthew Hirst and Worcester driver Colin Griffiths while Declan Dear, Mike Ainsworth and Geraint Thomas will fight it out among the co-drivers.
Victory on the Woodpecker secured the BTRDA Gold Star title for Matt Edwards, He currently leads the British Rally Championship and is just five points behind Dylan Davies in the Pirelli MSA Welsh Forest Rally Championship.
All eyes are now on the Llysfaen driver to see if he can complete an unprecedented Triple Crown.
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Issued 4th September 2018
Credit for the images RallySport Media
Issued by Peter Hughes Media on behalf of the Pirelli MSA Welsh Forest Rally Championship
Nine Pine Their Hopes on Woodpecker Success
This weekend’s Eventsigns Woodpecker Stages (1st Sept) is the penultimate round of the Pirelli MSA Welsh Rally Championship with the fight for the title set to go down to the final round of the Championship, the Wyedean Stages on November 10thThe destination of at least one major award will be settled on this event, however. The driver leading the series at the end of the rally will receive a free entry to Wales Rally GB, which takes place from October 4th to 7th.
The award is provided by IMS, the promoters of the 11th round of the World Rally Championship, as part of their Road to Wales initiative and going into today’s event, no fewer than nine drivers retain at least a mathematical chance of taking the lucrative prize. The same nine drivers could also yet be crowned Welsh champion.
Two drivers are currently tied at the top of the Championship standings with Llanon’s Dylan Davies and Surrey driver Wug Utting both on 107 points. Their respective co-drivers, Llion Williams and Bob Stokoe also share the lead in their Championship category.
Utting and Stokoe also top the Group N standings for less modified cars ahead of Ron Hall and Phil Spilsted.
Third among the drivers is Llysfaen’s Matt Edwards. The British Rally Championship front-runner is 11 points back but has taken maximum points on three out of the four championship rounds that he has so far contested. With competitors dropping their two worst scores, Matt and co-driver Darren Garrod remain well in contention.
Fourth place is held by Matthew Hirst and the Doncaster driver also leads the under 23 category, eight points clear of Treorchy’s Kalvin Green. Welshpool’s Zak Hughes holds third place in the junior category.
Lying fifth overall, Max Utting also tops the two-wheel drive category. In his front wheel drive Ford Fiesta, Max currently heads the ranks of rear wheel drive machinery, among them the BMW Compact of Hereford’s Colin Griffiths and Barry Jordan’s Avenger.
Llangefni’s Keith Parry holds sixth place overall ahead of former Champion Luke Francis while Scott Faulkner and Osian Pryce also remain in contention for top honours.
The innovative RAVENOL Welsh Challenge recognises the performance of competitors who have yet to finish in the top 10 overall of a Championship round. With prizes worth more than £3000 available, it too is being fiercely contested. Max Utting leads the driver standings from Matthew Hirst with Colin Griffiths in third place.
Declan Dear leads the RAVENOL Welsh Challenge for co-drivers from Mike Ainsworth and Geraint Thomas.
Competitors on the event, organised by Sixty and Worcestershire Motor Club, will cross the start ramp at Ludlow Racecourse from 08:31 on Saturday morning, returning there from 16:45. Spectators are welcome at two locations, Haye Park near Ludlow and Radnor Forest in mid Wales. Access to the spectator car parks costs £10 per car and includes a Programme and Entry List.
The Haye Park car park entrance is on the minor road between Ludlow and Wigmore (OS Map 137 / 474732, post code SY8 2HE). Catering, toilet facilities and a commentary will be available. The cars visit twice, with first car due for SS1 at 08:45 and first car due for SS4 at 12:45. Please arrive and leave the car park from the Ludlow direction NOT via the Wigmore road.
The Radnor Forest car park entrance is on the A488 between Knighton and Penybont (OS Map 148 / 189683, nearest post code LD7 1PA). Parking is on forest tracks. The cars visit Radnor Forest twice, with first car due for SS3 at 10:20 and first car due for SS6 at 15:05The Eventsigns Woodpecker Stages Rally was chosen as the best event in the 2017 Pirelli MSA Welsh Forest Rally Championship and, with so much still to be settled in 2018 including the destination of many of the class awards, a strong contingent of Championship contenders are once again relishing an epic battle.
You can find our more about the rally on the official website, www.woodpecker-rally.co.uk and about the Pirelli MSA Welsh Forest Rally Championship at wnrc.wamc.org.uk, on the Championship Facebook page and on Twitter @WnRC.
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Issued 25th August 2018
Credit for the images below should be give to RallySport Media.
Issued by Peter Hughes Media on behalf of the Pirelli MSA Welsh Forest Rally Championship. For more information call 07768 095156.
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