Rally retirement robs Wright of championship win

Bentham’s David Wright had a disappointing end to his BTRDA rally championship last weekend when driveshaft failure forced him into retirement on the Cambrian rally.

Going into the Llandudno-based event Wright was leading his class championship and he had high hopes of taking the title but a good finish was required for him to achieve his goal. Sadly his victory chances were wrecked just three miles into the opening stage when the driveshaft broke on his Kumho Tyres, Proflex, Drenth, Grove Hill Garage and York Brewery-backed Mitsubishi Evo 9.

“It’s a sad way to end the BTRDA season, I was confident that we could win the class and take the championship but it was not to be”, commented Wright. “I’m pleased that we took four class wins in the season, that shows that we had the pace to beat all the other crews in the class but the retirements we have suffered have cost us dearly.”

Wright is planning to end his 2011 rally season with an outing on the Grizedale Stages in November before commencing work on a new car which he is hoping to use in 2012.

“I love the stages in Grizedale forest and it’s my local event so it’s a nice way to end the year. We’ve gone well there before so hopefully we will have a good event. We’re going to build another Evo 9 in tarmac specification and we’re planning to do a few tarmac rallies next year in addition to the forest ones.”

Clutch failure ends Harry's rally season on Cambrian rally

Bangor on Dee rally driver Harry Morgan had a disappointing end to his 2011 season when for the second event running he retired due to clutch failure.

Morgan was contesting the Llandudno-based event for the second time and he had been aiming to finish his season in style after retiring on the previous BTRDA championship round in September.

The rally started with two stages in Penmachno forest and on the first one Morgan was third in class despite being held up by a slower car. The chances of a good result ended though after his Nissan Micra landed in a ditch on the second stage with the clutch being severely damaged when trying to get the car back on the road.

“The first stage was very rough,” said Morgan, “I was pleased to be third in class after being slowed by another car.”

“Stage two was going well, we were setting a good place but then we came across a stranded car again which held us up. Unfortunately we got lost in the pacenotes, I was going too quickly for a tight hairpin and we went straight on into a ditch. Thanks to some friendly marshals and spectators we were able to get the car out but the clutch was wrecked. We managed to get a little further on in the stage but then it failed completely.”

With his season finished Morgan now plans to upgrade his car for 2012 with a better clutch and possibly a 1300cc engine to replace the current 1000cc unit.

“I do not have the budget to do a full championship season next year so my plan is to do a few selected events throughout 2012. I want to put something back into the sport also by marshalling on some events and getting involved with rally organisation.”

Please visit www.harryrally.co.uk for more information on Harry Morgan’s rallying.

Harry targets end of season success

Bangor on Dee rally driver Harry Morgan will complete his first full season of rallying next weekend when he takes part in the final round of the BTRDA championship, the Cambrian rally.

After a disappointing retirement on the previous round in September Morgan is hoping for a good run on the Cambrian to end his season in style and he’ll be putting the experience gained from competing on the event last year to good use.

“I enjoyed the rally last year, the stages in North Wales were great and I think having previous knowledge will be an advantage for me”, commented Morgan.

“The event this year will have two stages around the Great Orme tarmac road which was not run last year so that will be a new and interesting experience. My only other competition experience on tarmac was the Porlock stage on this year’s Somerset Stages.”

“I’ve been very busy working on the car since the last round, the broken clutch has been replaced and there have been various other maintenance jobs to do but we’re all ready to go and I’ll be aiming for a strong finish in my class.”

Morgan will once again be partnered by co-driver James Ford for the event. Ford faces a busy week as he will head straight from the Cambrian to the Isle of Mull where he will swap seats to drive on the Mull Rally.

The Cambrian rally starts from Llandudno with most of the competitive action taking part in the forests of Penmachno, Clocaenog and Alwen before the crews head back to Llandudno for the final stages around the Great Orme.

Please visit www.harryrally.co.uk for all the latest news and photographs.

Wright aiming to end rally season on a high

Rally driver David Wright, from Bentham, is aiming to end his BTRDA season on a high by taking the class B13 championship on next weekend’s Cambrian rally in North Wales.

Wright presently leads the championship by five points and he needs a good result on the Llandudno-based event to ensure he wins the title in his Kumho Tyres, Drenth, Proflex and Grove Hill Garage-supported GPM Mitsubishi Evo 9.

“We’ve had four class wins in the championship so far which has put us into a good position going into the final round”, commented Wright. “However, with 20 points for the win we still need to perform well on the Cambrian to win the championship.”

“The car will be in a very similar specification to the previous round, we’ve done some work to improve the cooling after the overheating issues we had last time out. I’m hoping that we will be on the pace of the World Rally cars and I’m aiming to get a podium finish as well as taking another class win.”

The rally will start in Llandudno before heading to the forests of Penmachno, Clocaenog and Alwen for the bulk of the competitive mileage. The crews will then return to Llandudno for two runs around the Great Orme.

“I’m really looking forward to the rally, the stages are some of my favourites and I am confident we will have a good event.”

Broken driveshaft denies Fiesta victory for Cristofaro

Milford Haven rally drive Nick Cristofaro had a disappointing end to his British Rally Championship season when a broken driveshaft led to his retirement from the Trackrod Rally Yorkshire while leading the Fiesta SportTrophy class.

Having successfully tested his Genpower UK, Ginsters, Cristotec, Autoglym, Millers Oils, Nicky Grist and Elite Remapping-supported Ford Fiesta ST in Hamsterley before the event Cristofaro had high hopes of ending his season in style with a Fiesta win on the Scarborough-based event.

The rally kicked off with a 14 mile stage in Dalby forest, a forest where there are several long straights which suit the more powerful Fiesta R2 cars rather than Cristofaro’s older ST model. Despite this he managed to finish the stage in third place in the Fiesta class.

“We had a good test session and the pre-rally recce went well, it gave me the opportunity to get used to having Janice Moore as my co-driver again,” said Cristofaro. “I knew I’d have to push really hard in Dalby to try and keep up with the newer Fiestas and I was pleased not to drop much time to them.”

The next four stages, two runs of Gale Rigg and one of Cropton and Staindale were shorter and more technical. Cristofaro overcame his relative lack of power to storm to three fastest Fiesta times and one second fastest, a performance which saw him head the Fiesta SportTrophy leaderboard.

Sadly the chance of a Fiesta win for Cristofaro vanished when a loud bang at the start of the next Langdale stage signalled a broken driveshaft which forced him out of the event.

“Gale Rigg, Cropton and Staindale went really well, I was delighted with three fastest time although it could’ve been four but for a slight collision with a bank. Langdale was another long stage and I was confident that we could pull a good lead out over the other Fiesta crews but the snapped shaft put paid to that. It was really gutting as I think we were on for the win and that could’ve meant a possible nomination for the Pirelli Star Driver prize as well as taking the Fiesta championship but it was not to be.”

“I just hope that potential sponsors will see that I have the pace and commitment to compete at the top level of British rallying so that I am able to drive a TEG Sport Skoda Fabia in 2012. The Fiesta is now for sale and I’ll be working as hard as I can to get the funds together so I can continue in the British Rally Championship next year. Thank you to all the people who have supported me in 2011.”

Please visit www.nickcristofaro.co.uk or join the Facebook group www.facebook.com/NickCristofaroRallying for all the latest news and photos.