William Creighton and Liam Regan added the Probite British Rally Championship to their impressive list of titles, claiming the coveted crown at the Lewis and Hunter Cambrian Rally [25 October] after a tense final-round battle on the world-famous gravel stages of North Wales.
It was Max McRae who claimed the rally win in spectacular fashion, adding the family name to the top step of a British Rally Championship event for the first time in 27 years, making it three generations of the family to claim the BRC spoils after grandfather Jimmy and dad Alister.
McRae and co-driver Cammy Fair were breathtaking on the North Wales stages in their MRF Tyres shod Skoda Fabia Rally2, clinching the win from the hands of Romet Jürgenson and Siim Oja on the very last stage. Meirion Evans and Dale Furniss rounded out their season with third in their Pirelli-equipped Yaris GR Rally2.
After a closely fought season, the fight for British rallying’s top honour went right down to the wire, and it was Creighton, in his Michelin-backed Toyota GR Yaris Rally2, who emerged victorious after a composed, calculated drive through unrelenting stages in the Brenig, Clocaenog and Alwen complexes.
Creighton, who narrowly missed out on the title last year, went into the finale with a slender championship lead and knew that a solid result would be enough. But on the notoriously tricky Cambrian stages, nothing could be taken for granted. He would need to put his experience to full use, drawing on all his knowledge from his Junior BRC and FIA Junior WRC campaigns, both of which netted respective championship crowns.
The Northern Irishman managed the pressure superbly. After settling into second place over the opening loop of stages, he would simply need to stay clear of trouble over the final three tests whilst keeping his rivals in check.
Battling with both championship rivals Romet Jürgenson and Castrol MEM team mate Meirion Evans, Creighton managed the afternoon impeccably with a measured drive, to finish fourth; enough to seal the title and etch his and Regan’s name alongside legends such as Colin McRae, Richard Burns and Ari Vatanen on the BRC trophy.
“What an amazing year”, said an emotional Creighton at the finish.
“This season has been the first with the Yaris, first time with Melvyn Evans Motorsport, in this iconic Castrol livery, it’s been fantastic. It’s taken a lot of work to get here, and I have to say a huge thanks to everyone who helps us, especially Liam, who’s done a great job all year”.
“You know, the journey we’ve been on, Junior BRC, Junior WRC and now this, it’s very special. I’m just so happy, even with missing a round, we’ve been able to win the championship. Yeah, it feels good”.
Much like the five rounds before, the battle for top spot saw a ruthless battle among the BRC1 contenders. McRae and Jürgenson duelled all day long, with Evans eager to muscle into the fight. McRae landed the first blow, storming to a sensational six-second lead over the opening Clocaenog test before Jürgenson responded on the next – albeit by 0.7s.
Enter Evans in Alwen, the self-proclaimed asphalt expert, took the scratch time to leap into third before service. It was then a three-stage dash to the finish with Jürgenson overhauling McRae for the rally lead and a final stage shoot-out.
McRae won in style. With a time nine seconds faster than the Fiesta pilot, an emotional 21-year-old finally stood on the top-step of the BRC podium, 27 years after his father, sealing the duo’s maiden BRC win, a first for the Skoda Fabia Rally2 and MRF Tyres.
“Wow, that’s great”, exclaimed a shocked McRae
“That’s pretty cool, I wasn’t expecting that. I was a bit down after the last stage and I didn’t push super hard in that last one. I just tried to keep it nice and clean, and here we are. I’m lost for words; I mean, it’s good, we’ve shown our pace, I don’t know how we did that time, I don’t know what to say”.
Jürgenson and Siim Oja were gracious in defeat in their M-Sport Ford Fiesta Rally2, capping off an impressive debut season for the Estonian pairing. Jürgenson’s pace throughout 2025 marked him as one of the rising stars of the championship, with his result assuring him the championship runner-up, having only started rallying three years ago; the future looks bright.
Local hero Meirion Evans, co-driven by Dale Furniss, gave it everything on home soil in his Yaris, once again standing on the BRC podium but falling just short in the championship race. Evans needed a non-finish from Creighton to keep his title hopes alive, but could take pride in signing off the year with an impressive performance in front of his home fans.
Further down the order, Garry Pearson and Hannah McKillop completed the top five in their M-Sport Fiesta Rally2, a time-zapping puncture ended all hopes of a top-result.
Robert Proudlock ensured co-driver Harry Marchbank could secure the BRC3 title after another sublime performance on gravel in their Ford Fiesta Rally3. Whilst they have lacked substantial competition in the Rally3 category, Proudlock has proven his ability to progress, jumping into the four-wheel-drive machine after last year’s Junior BRC title, taking the category crown back to Scotland.
The Junior British Rally Championship reached an equally dramatic conclusion, with Kyle McBride and co-driver Darragh Mullen taking the title after a season-long battle with Joseph Kelly/Killian McArdle.
Driving their Peugeot 208 Rally4, McBride and Mullen had played second fiddle to Kelly for much of the day, but when Kelly was held up in the Clocaenog test by a slower car, McBride moved ahead to secure the championship crown and the 2026 BRC free-entry prize package, worth over £6,000.
“Yeah, it’s good to get it, it’s not been an easy year”, remarked McBride.
“Winning the Junior BRC has been the main priority this year, and we’ve done it. Huge thanks go to Darragh on the notes; he’s done an amazing job all year. This really hasn’t sunk in yet. Fair play to Joe, too. It’s been a great battle pushing each other again.
A huge thanks to everyone who got me here, my family, my sponsors & the MI Rally Academy; it’s been a huge team effort”.
Their victory also secures them the Stellantis Motorsport Rally Cup prize drive in the FIA European Rally Championship in 2026. Sam Mason and James Seymour impressed with a strong end-of-season drive, rounding out the podium in third.
Another category to go down to the wire, the National Rally Title, delivered a breathtaking tussle for the crown in a two-way fight between Rob Cotton and Chris Richmond-Hand. It would be Cotton who clinched the crown in his Subaru Impreza after another assured performance on the Cambrian gravel. Cotton’s pace on gravel proved too much for Hand to try and live with, the four-wheel-drive machine perfectly suited to the conditions. Try as he might, the Toyota Starlet ace couldn’t quite do enough to claim the points required.
With the Open Rally Title already sealed, it was an all-out battle for the category win in Wales, which went the way of Matt Hirst and Declan Dear. The Skoda Fabia R5 pairing switched to the Open category to follow their gravel series aspirations, securing the Open win in the process. Alex Vassallo/Ross Whittock claimed second with Open champion Sam Touzel/Tommi Henderson making their gravel debut in fine style, rounding out the podium.
After a thrilling conclusion to the Probite British Rally Championship, attention turns to 2026 with next year’s calendar being released in the coming weeks.
*All champions are Provisional until ratified by Motorsport UK
