Championship Round 2 - Brick & Steel Border Counties Rally, Jedburgh - 20/21 March 2009

Defending champions Marcus Dodd and Andrew Bargery claimed the honours for a second time as they won this weekend's Brick & Steel Border Counties National Rally. After non-scoring in the opening round on Rallye Sunseeker, the pair, in their Hyundai Accent WRC, took maximum points in the second round of the 2009 Pirelli MSA Gravel Rally Championship as they finished a narrow five seconds ahead of the Ford Focus WRC of former champion Steve Perez and co-driver Paul Spooner on the Jedburgh-based event.

"I'm pleased with the win. The rally's been good and the stages were the smoothest I've seen them in a while. I've enjoyed it," Dodd said.

Perez and Spooner had carved out a 28 second lead by stage four but an overshoot in the fifth test cost them around 30 seconds and Dodd/Bargery took advantage and never looked back, despite a ten second penalty for a cone infringement on stage five.

Another pair of former champions, Paul Bird and co-driver Ian Windress, finished third in their Ford Focus WRC despite a puncture on the final stage after Bird gained in confidence following on from their accident two weeks ago on the Cumbria-based Malcolm Wilson Rally.

The 2009 Pirelli MSA Gravel Rally Championship will return with the Carlisle-based Pirelli Tour of Cumbria Rally on Saturday 17th April.

Results

1 Marcus Dodd/Andrew Bargery (Hyundai Accent WRC) 57:33.7        2 Steve Perez/Paul Spooner (Ford Focus WRC 07)  57:39.43 Paul Bird/Ian Windress (Ford Focus WRC 07)  57:58.2  4 Daniel Barry/Martin Brady (Mitsubishi Evo 9)   59:09.9  5 Simon Hughes/Craig Parry (Mitsubishi Evo 9)   59:56.4  6 Willie Bonniwell/Neil Ewing (Subaru Impreza)   1:00:16.0  7 Alan Cookson/Julian Wilkinson (Subaru Impreza WRC) 1:02:16.2  8 Owen Murphy/Dai Roberts (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9) 1:03:22.4  9 Alan Carmichael/Ivor Lamont (Mitsubishi Evo 9)  1:05:08.4  10 Nik Elsmore/Craig Drew (Mitsubishi Evo 9)   1:05:53.0