Kevin Davies was just pipped for victory on the second round of the Fiesta SportingTrophy this weekend.  The 21 year old Welshman from Llanfihangel-ar-Arth near Llandysul finished second, just 10.2 seconds behind winner George Thomas after 45 testing miles on the Pirelli Trophy Rally, based in Carlisle. After finishing a fine third on the opening round of the series, Davies was keen to continue the good form with his Ford Fiesta ST150.  A frenetic battle was expected on the Scottish borders, and Kevin was looking to collect another solid points haul ahead of home turf in Wales in three weeks time.  Davies and co-driver Emyr Jones of Llandysul were hoping for another podium finish in the famous Kielder Forest, well known for its capacity to catch competitors out.Backed by KJ's Eden Tours, David Harries and Co, and MM Ford of Aberystwyth, Kevin suffered a major fright on the opening stage as he only just held onto a huge slide over a crest in the 150 horsepower Ford.  Davies certainly had his wake up call at that moment, and the MSA British Rally Elite Academy driver dropped a handful of seconds to fastest time.Davies picked up the pace over the next loop of stages as he kept in close contact with rally pace setter George Thomas.  The former BTRDA 1400 National Rally Championship rivals were involved in a strong battle as Davies continued to cement his podium position.  The rallycarsforsale.net and X-Cite Motorsport Supplies backed Fiesta was working superbly under the careful eye of preparation experts Geoff Jones Motorsport, and Davies maintained the pressure on Thomas to the end.  Just 10.2 seconds would separate the pair after nearly 45 miles of high speed gravel roads.  At the finish, Kevin was delighted to have finished on the podium once more, taking over the championship lead as a result of his consistently quick performances:'Things could not have gone better today' said the Welshman.  'We were on the pace from the start, although we had a BIG scare on the first stage over one crest.  I didn't have quite the correct line and it made things a little scary!  Apart from that, all was good and the car never missed a beat all day.  We pushed hard where we could, but I was very mindful of punctures.  The Michelin tyres were superb though, and we had lots of grip and no loss of air - which is the main thing in Kielder!  I'm a little surprised to be leading the championship after two rounds, but I think our plan of action has worked very well so far.  We're still not 100% flat out yet, and there is more to come from me and the car.  George was on top form today and he deserved the win - so I have no problem with that.  The time gap between us was extremely low, so that is encouraging for the next event.  We aim to stick to the plan of going quickly enough to be in contention whilst not risking putting the car off.  After two rounds, it has served us very well indeed.'Davies can look forward to home soil in three weeks time.  The Severn Valley Clubman Rally will offer 45 miles of prime Mid Wales forestry roads.  Davies has excellent experience of the roads near to the event base in Builth Wells, and the young Dragon will be determined to maintain his championship lead on June 3rd.