Cars That Go Fast: Evans ahead in British Rallycross Championship

Evans ahead in British Rallycross Championship
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Julian on 28 July, 2006 12:00:00
 
With four of the eight events completed, the Quaife MSA British Rallycross
Championship is at its halfway stage as it heads to Knockhill for round five on
July 30.
Christopher Evans (Wicklow) is the championship leader and completed a hat
trick of event wins when he took victory in round four earlier this month. The
Opel Astra driver started the year with a second place finish, but has since had
the measure of his championship rivals and is now 13 points ahead in the title
race. Although Evans won round four, his post race comments revealed that he is
firmly focused on the end of year prize: "I’m driving for the
championship now and when I was second in the first lap I thought that would
okay, just get a finish and add more points. Then Dermot Carnegie [the race
leader] slid a little wide and I had an easy chance to take the lead, it just
went my way today and I hope I can carry on like this for the rest of the year,"
Evans said.
While former champion Carnegie (Dublin) continued in second place and
maintained his position as Evans’ closest rival in the championship,
round four turned into a miserable event for leading English racers Pat Doran
(Milstead) and Andrew Jordan (Sutton Coldfield). Defending champion Doran was
knocked out in the first qualifying heat when the engine in Ford Fiesta ST
failed and Jordan was out just moments later when a crash ripped both left
wheels off his Ford Focus RS. Both are expected to return to the championship at
Knockhill, but having failed to add to their points tally in round four have
slipped to seventh (Jordan) and eighth (Doran) in the championship.
Round four was also disappointing for John McCluskey (Dublin) who was the top
qualifier among the Supercar drivers but who missed out on a start in the
Superfinal [where British championship points are won] after his Citroën
Xsara WRC got a puncture in the last lap of the A final. Former rally driver
Steve Hill (Aylesbury) continued to impress in his first year on the Quaife MSA
BRC trail and scored a personal best third place finish with his Mitsubishi
Lancer to climb to sixth in the championship.
Drivers in the SuperModified (two-wheel drive) category are also eligible for
British championship points and best of this group is Dave Bellerby
(Northallerton) who has worked his way up to third place in the championship
with a string of outstanding performances in his Lotus Exige.
Bellerby has won the SuperModified A final in all four rounds so far and has
established a large 32 point lead over closest rival Mike Turpin (Hereford) who
has taken second place in each event to date with his lightweight Vauxhall Nova.
Michael Boak (Newcastle upon Tyne) holds third place in the SuperModified class
battle and fifth in the overall British championship with his unique Audi TT.
The first half of the year has also seen a closely matched battle for honours
in the Yokohama Stock Hatch category where Julian Godfrey (Heathfield) and
current champion Rodney Green (Bromley) have each scored two win. Godfrey holds
the class lead by a single point and the two are comfortably clear of the rest
of the class. Tony Lynch (Wigan) holds third place ahead of Simon Horton
(Clitheroe).
Junior Rallycross with Bill Gwynne Rallyschool International
The Bill Gwynne Rallyschool International Junior Rallycross Championship (for
drivers aged 14 to 16-years driving 1000cc Minis) has a clear leader in Kyle Orr
(Dromore) who has won the final and taken the bonus points for setting fastest
time in all four events. Orr’s closest rival is Ben Rennison (Richmond)
who is proving impressive in his first season of racing and has been in the top
four at every event. Rennison is 21 points ahead of Liam Harrison (Oakley) who
failed to add to his score in round four after his car suffered problems, with
fourth-placed Ben Power (Welshpool) a further two points adrift and working hard
to regain ground lost in round one where mechanical problems prevented him from
scoring points.
Also featuring the BTRDA Clubmans championship
The support races at the Quaife MSA British Rallycross Championship are
provided by the BTRDA Clubmans Rallycross Championship. Experienced drivers and
Supercars are not permitted in the clubmans series, but other than this the
format is the same as in the BRC event.
Stock Hatch racer Steve Heppenstall (Settle) has won all four rounds of the
BTRDA Clubmans Championship and holds a narrow three point advantage over Junior
racer Ben Rennison (Richmond).