Marcus Dodd heads to the closed public roads of the Isle of Man this week, determined to grab a strong result on the RBS International Manx Rally.  The Flitewise.com backed rally driver from Poole in Dorset will be looking to take his first ever win on the small Island, and is confident of doing well after a successful recent test in his HPM Motorsport run Hyundai Accent WRC.Supported by Sunseeker Powerboats and Pirelli Tyres, Dodd will be looking to co-driver Andrew Bargery's extensive local knowledge to give the team the edge in what looks like being another fiercely competitive contest in the MSA National Gravel Rally Championship.  Marcus and Andrew have been the form team in the Championship so far.  They held a commanding lead on the opening round, Rallye Sunseeker, before mechanical problems forced their retirement.  With the Hyundai repaired, Dodd then crushed the opposition on the recent Border Counties Rally to take a fine win in the worst of winter conditions. Tarmac has never been the kindest of surfaces to Marcus, but improvements to the handling and gearing of the Hyundai Accent WRC in recent testing have given the multiple National Rally Champion a major confidence boost ahead of the event.  As such, Marcus is looking to get as many points as possible on the board on the Douglas based event, which runs over two days on May 5th and 6th.'This could well be one of the closest battles of the year' said Marcus.  'Clearly there is lots of competition on the event from the usual National Championship contenders, and also some of the Irish and National Tarmac contingent are also coming out to play.  It should make the battle at the sharp end of the leaderboard quite intense.  I'm confident with the car at the moment, and having Andrew's local Manx knowledge is equally valuable on such a specialist rally.  The car has performed really well after some recent tarmac testing, so I think we can really give some of the more established tarmac regulars a run for their money - or at least that is the plan anyway!  Championship wise we need another good points haul to keep things on track, so that is the most important thing for the weekend'.Marcus will not be alone this weekend.  HPM Motorsport are running two more cars, one for Harry Dodd, father of Marcus, and also a Group N Subaru for the Dorset Police Rally Team.  The all Police duo of Shaun Cronin and Colin Bell will also have a new backer for the event - Road Angel - designed to promote safe driving on public roads.  With further support from Petards, the pairing will be keen to make the most of their first ever trip to the Isle of Man - a daunting prospect for any rally team!Harry Dodd and Scottish co-driver Roy Campbell will be fielding their identical Hyundai Accent WRC to the one driven by Marcus. Harry is also being featured in the event's rally programme in an article on the more senior drivers contesting the National Gravel Rally Championship.  At 68, Dodd is one of the most senior drivers contesting the rally, but age is the last thing likely to be on Harry's mind as he looks to get some points on the board after a frustrating start to the season.