ASPHALT RALLYGPR MSA ASPHALT RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP
In what has been a very competitive season, John Price won the Asphalt Rally Championship title for the 12th time in his career. Prior to the start of the final round in Northumberland, there were two drivers fighting it out for the overall title and fourin the hunt for the runners-up spot.
Caroline Price had already secured the Co-Drivers’ category – her fifth title – on the penultimate round but her husband John still had it all to do on the Cheviot National Rally finale. “I couldn’t leave Caroline to go up to collect her awards by herself,” joked John after narrowly seeing off the challenge of Steve Fleck’s Subaru Impreza WRC. Fleck had led the series outright in mid-season but a couple of retirements put Price, who maintained a 100 per cent finishing record in his MG Metro 6R4, into the ascendancy. Although Fleck actually finished ahead of Price on the Cheviot, the gap was not great enough for the Subaru driver to take his first national Championship. However, a point has been madeand we now look forward to next season. Chris Davis finished third overall in the Championship in his two-wheel drive Darrian T90, while John Stone (MG Metro 6R4) just pipped Steve Simpson (Hyundai Accent WRC) for fourth place on the final round.
CHAMPIONSHIP:1. John Price 109pts2. Steve Fleck 106pts3. Chris Davis 83pts4. John Stone 81pts5. Stephen Simpson 78pts6. Tony Davies 75pts7. Mark Jasper 70pts8. Julian Wilkes 68pts
2005 Asphalt Rally Champion John Price:“It’s been a tough season - and the last round was thehardest, but the Championship has moved up a gear thisyear, especially with the first trip to the Ulster Rally.”
Championship Co-ordinator Andrew Haill:“You cannot engineer a grandstand finish – it comesfrom the competitiveness within the Championship andthat is exactly what we have had. Although the title fighteventually came down to two drivers, there are a numberof others contesting the series who have improvedsignificantly during the year, and I look forward towatching their progress in 2006.”
G RAVEL RALLYMSA GRAVEL RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP
The 2005 MSA Gravel Rally Championship went down to the wire and to be fair, the final stage of the season, after a battle royal all year long between many of the country’s leading drivers. Eventually, it was Stobart Motorsport’s Paul Bird and his codriver Ian Windress who emerged victorious from Dyfnant forest in mid-Wales to be crowned champions after winning the final round of the series, the Bulldog Rally, to top off a superb year in their Ford Focus WRC. As ever, ANCRO had assembled a healthy contingent to contest the 2005 series over seven classic rounds and with reigning British Champion David Higgins taking victory on Rallye Sunseeker, the rest knew it was going to be a battle.
Higgins went off to drive a Mitsubishi in the BRC thereafter leaving the Subaru of Barry Johnson and Stewart Merry to claim deserved victory on the Brick and Steel Border Counties Rally. Roger Duckworth and Mark Broomfield (Subaru WRC) took honours on the Roush Manx Rally before Marcus Dodd and Andrew Bargery (Hyundai Accent WRC) got the win on the Mutiny Rally to make if four different winners from the opening four events. Johnson scorched to victory on the Swansea Bay Rally to move into the lead of the series ahead of the consistent Bird but the British Superbike Championship boss responded by winning the Park Systems Stages Rally in Scotland to place one tentative hand on the trophy. Johnson and Duckworth both needed to win the final round in order to win the championship but it wasn’t to be and Bird stormed to his second win of the year.
CHAMPIONSHIP:1. Paul Bird 133pts2. Barry Johnson 121pts3. Roger Duckworth 119pts4. Stuart Jones 97pts5. Phillip Morrow 96pts6. Steve Perez 94pts7. Ryan Champion 90pts8. Marcus Dodd 85pts
2005 Gravel Rally Champion Paul Bird:“The team has done a fantastic job and it’s been aprivilege to have driven for them this season.”
ANCRO Chairman John Trevethick:“Once again, the championship provided the thrillsand the drama right up until the end. We hope towelcome them all back and more in 2006. We areplanning a number of major improvements to whatis already the success story in recent years.”Bird in his Ford Focus WRC on the Bulldog Rally
