The fight for the Probite British Rally Championship crown will go down to the wire at the final round, after the merciless Welsh mountain stages of the JDS Machinery Rali Ceredigion saw a dramatic rise and fall of several title challengers at the weekend [30 Aug – 1 Sept].
The Aberystwyth-based event featured on the FIA European Rally Championship [ERC] roster for the first time and brought some of Europe’s fastest drivers to Wales to go head-to-head with the BRC regulars.
Two points scoring opportunities across the tricky three-day closed road event meant that the approach to the weekend for BRC contenders could well be a tactical one and two top scores for several of the front runners could significantly shape the championship standings. Points were allocated after Saturday’s stages, with another opportunity to score on the final day.
Over 184km of flat-out driving would ensure that crews would need to be on their A-game across the daunting asphalt tests and it was undoubtedly shaping up to be the toughest event of the year.
A qualifying session kicked off proceedings on Friday morning to determine road order for the following day and it was series leader William Creighton who took his Pirelli shod M-Sport Ford Fiesta Rally2 to third fastest overall and top BRC time against the ERC regulars.
After the afternoon’s sell-out ceremonial start on Aberystwyth seafront, two blasts around the promenade street stage were in order and the short sharp test saw Chris Ingram set the pace with two scratch times despite this event marking his debut on asphalt in the Michelin-backed Toyota GR Yaris Rally2.
Behind him, a fascinating battle for the overnight honours unfolded with ERC regular Jon Armstrong receiving a late call-up from the M-Sport squad to score points for the team and making an instant impression, taking second overnight.
Just 0.1s behind would be Creighton with an under-the-weather James Williams setting an impressive pace to finish the day fourth in his Hyundai i20 N Rally2. Keith Cronin escaped a first-stage clash with the stage furniture in his Fiesta Rally2 to round out the top five.
Whilst the opening day was brief, Saturday offered up a stark contrast with over 124km of special stages and eight tests providing the bulk of the competitive driving.
The opening Brechfa test saw a masterclass performance from Williams, who recorded a breathtaking time which was not only the scratch BRC time, but also the fastest time overall, his maiden European stage win. Sadly, that would be all undone on the very next test when he and co-driver Ross Whittock left the road, tipping the Hyundai i20 N Rally2 onto its roof.
Punctures for William Creighton and Jon Armstrong over the opening loop of the day threw the leaderboard into chaos and positions would change with every passing stage.
Heading into the mid-point service it was Ingram out front, Cronin second and Osian Pryce in third with Ingram almost 19s to the good from the Irishman.
Armstrong would be the man of the moment over the repeat loop, setting the fastest BRC time over each one of the afternoon’s five tests but his earlier puncture meant that fourth would be the best he could manage.
Despite just one stage win, Ingram was uncatchable and ended the day in second overall, giving him his third maximum BRC score of the season.
“I’ve been so careful this afternoon with so many guys getting punctures,” said a delighted Ingram.
It’s been tough to keep everything together today and keeping it clean and tidy has been important. Scoring maximum points today means the pressure is off slightly [for tomorrow] but we can have a push”.
Ingram and co-driver Alex Kihurani’s result meant they headed into the final day with the BRC title within reach; a win would be enough to seal the crown. Second went to Cronin and Mike Galvin with Osian Pryce and Rhodri Evans rounding out the podium in third.
With the clocks reset for points purposes, Sunday would be a short, sharp blast of just four stages, kicking off with the treacherous Bethania test. Creighton was one of the first on the road and would set the pace but behind him, the drama unfolded in spectacular fashion.
Braking for a fast right-hander, Ingram’s Yaris rear end stepped away and launched him off the road and into instant retirement. If that wasn’t enough, just a few minutes later Cronin clipped the inside of a wall and rolled his Fiesta spectacularly, meaning once again the BRC leaderboard was thrown into disarray.
Eager to capitalise, Armstrong was quickest on the next test to move into the lead for Sunday’s points. Three-time British Rally champion Matt Edwards’ return to the series was a testing one, but the fastest overall time on the Bethania repeat was some consolation for a difficult weekend in his Fiesta Rally2.
Another scratch time from Armstrong on the final stage of the rally gave him the win on paper, before electing to check into the finish time control late to incur a 20second penalty – enough to hand teammate William Creighton the round six win and a vital top score for the Irishman’s Championship aspirations.
“It’s been great to be here and compete against the BRC regulars and compare our pace, especially William [Creighton] & Matt [Edwards], said Armstrong.
Equally happy was Creighton, who heads to the final round in the lead of the championship by just one point from Ingram.
“Yesterday wasn’t great from me, some small mistakes that had costly errors and that put us behind, but we reset ahead of today and we’ve done a pretty good job” he said. “Thanks to all the team who got behind us after yesterday’s issues.”
Edwards did enough to clinch third with Pryce fourth. Meirion Evans hurled his Yaris to fifth over the closing day, with plenty to take away from a good performance over this home event.
The title fight now goes down to the wire at the Cambrian in October, where a handful of BRC1 contenders still have a chance of clinching the crown.
Junior British Rally Championship and BRC4
Home hero Ioan Lloyd was unstoppable in the Junior BRC, taking his Peugeot 208 Rally4 to a convincing round-five victory with Sion Williams alongside. The Welsh pair finished a staggering 1m 17s ahead of Ryan MacHugh in his Fiesta Rally4 as early contender Keelan Grogan exited early with an off-road excursion. Kyle McBride rounded out the podium in third after switching to an Opel Corsa Rally4 for the weekend.
MacHugh enjoyed the top spot on Sunday’s sixth round, with Lloyd electing to take it easy and maximise his chances of a top Stellantis Motorsport Rally Cup IRE & UK score, eventually taking second place. McBride’s Opel suffered a water pipe failure, taking him out of third and ensuring Grogan could leave Wales with some points for his efforts. Robert Proudlock and Steven Brown still head the championship standings with one round remaining.
In BRC4, James Lightfoot and Ula Budzyńska completed their first international rally and in the process became class champions in their Fiesta R2T.
Open Rally Title & National Rally Title
Callum Black and Jack Morton were unstoppable in the Open Rally Title, claiming both round five and round six wins in their Fiesta Rally2. Eventual second-placed man Neil Roskell mastered the Aberystwyth Street stage to lead overnight on Friday before Black hammered in fastest stage times throughout Saturday to end the day with over 2m 34s in hand and newcomer Dylan Davies rounding out the top three.
The sixth round was a carbon copy, which means like its BRC1 counterpart, the title race goes to the final round of the season.
In the National Rally Title, Nathan Evans and Rhys Edwards took their Renault Clio RS to victory at round five, following it up with second spot on Sunday. Sunday’s victory went to Nathan Bolton and Phil Kenny in their Mitsubishi Evo. Series leader and Vauxhall Nova driver William Mains secured third on both occasions, to come within a hair’s breadth of the title.
The last round of the season heads back to the gravel and the popular Visit Conwy Cambrian Rally in October. With one and a half times points available, it’s all set to be a thrilling final encounter.
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