Dunlop/Gambia MSA British Historic Rally Championship

Report, round four: Mid Wales Historic StagesA tremendous battle between Jimmy McRae and Julian Reynolds was the highlight of the Rally Marketing Mid Wales Historic Stages, round four of the 2007 Dunlop/Gambia MSA British Historic Rally Championship over the weekend (23/24 June).

While McRae/Andy Richardson took overall victory, David Stokes/Guy Weaver retained their overall title lead with a measured drive to victory in category 2 and Patrick Watts/Elgan Davies won category 1.Category 1

"I'm trying hard, but I don’t want to go off," reckoned Watts as he started the second day. After the opening three stages on Saturday afternoon, the Tiger was only 13s clear of Philip Atkinson/Simon Coates, who were pushing on as hard as ever in their Lotus Cortina.However, a strong run through the 10-mile Hafren North stage on Sunday morning helped Watts build his margin. "That was a bit of a wake up," said Watts after the stage that received widespread acclaim. By the time the cars headed back to Newtown after Sunday's six stages, Watts was 1m18s clear of the rest.

Atkinson took second in category 1 and victory in class B4 and was pleased to head Dessie Nutt/Geraldine McBride home by nearly half a minute. The Porsche 911 crew lost time on the last stage on Saturday after the water splash in Sweet Lamb. "It was all the way up the hill before we could see anything," said Nutt. Fourth went to Neil Calvert and Arlene Cookson (Lotus Cortina), while a stirring drive from Graham Waite/Gill Cotton ended when the Volvo Amazon suffered a front hub failure.

"It's better out of the corners but we're losing out on the straights," said Clive King after changing the carburetor on his Mini Cooper, but it was still quick enough to win B2 by over a minute from Terry Cree/Richard Shores. Concerns about head gasket problems failed to slow their Mini Cooper S. "We carried water just in case and we weren't going to back off," said Cree.John Parker and Robert Harrison won class B1 in their Saab 96 of after a typically energetic performance in the two-stroke car, while Nick Pinkett/Alex Lucking (Saab 96) ran alone to victory in class B3 in their four-stroke Saab version.Category 2

With several of the leading Porsche crews absent, including Richard Tuthill and Steven Smith, Stokes/Weaver were able to take a measured pace to ensure another maximum haul of championship points. "It's driving for the championship rather than the rally, and we're not as spectacular as usual," said Stokes. Knowing that a steady run would get the result they wanted, Stokes resisted the temptation to try and fight with the Mk2 Escorts in category 3. The only scare for the Hydegate Rallyesport car was when the clutch played up going into the final stage on Saturday, but chief engineer Wayne 'Eric' Ball and the crew sorted that out at service.

Into second in category 2 and best of the Porsche 911s was that of Tom Mason/Graham Wild, who had a great run. "We'll have a push today and see if we can worry the old man," said Mason heading into Sunday. Only a drama with a misted screen after the Sweet Lamb ford hindered their progress.A tremendous third overall in category 2 went to the 1600cc Escort Mexico of John Worthing/Bill Robertson. "We're back to our Robin Hood pace," said Worthing, who carried a spare wheel into parc ferme on Sunday morning after worries about punctures on Saturday. But all was well and they delivered a great result, heading home many more powerful cars in the process. They ended the rally 44s clear of Vince Bristow/Dean Mitchell (Escort Mk1).

C3 went to South Wales crew Neal James/Kevin Jones (Ford Escort Mk1), while Neil and Chris Parsons had an excellent run to second in C5 in their Escort Mk1. Graham Samuels/Tony Phillips ended a troubled rally by rolling their Escort in Hafren South, while Ian Rix also crashed out of the C5 contest.

"Neil started to recover some confidence on the Severn Valley and this progress continued on the Mid Wales, with still more to come," said Chris Parsons of his brother after they finished just two seconds behind the flying Worthing. Hugh and Debby Myers battled to the finish in their Datsun 240Z after a series of dramas and won the 'spirit of the rally' award for their perseverance.Category 3

The pack of Escort Mk2s dominated the contest for overall victory and it was Gareth Lloyd/Ryland James who led overnight after a mighty start. "We've carried some confidence forward and we're attacking better," said Lloyd after the first three stages, having gone10s clear of Reynolds and McRae overnight.

Unfortunately, their fine run ended on the first stage on Sunday morning in Hafren South when the car clipped a bank and rolled. Damage was not too bad, and they later drove the Escort out of the forest.

Now it was a straight fight between McRae and Reynolds, with both drivers pushing to the limit on the superb flowing stages. Eventually, it was McRae's slightly better pace on the longest stage through the Sweet Lamb complex that decided the result. However, Reynolds had shown outstanding pace in his first event with the car. "I very much enjoyed that," he said.

It could easily have been a three-way fight for victory involving Irish crew Martin McCormack/Liam Moynihan. But they dropped almost a minute in the Sweet Lamb ford on stage three when water got onto the electrics. "That was our first water splash and I hope it's our last," said McCormack. They took three fastest times on Sunday to win back some time, but with McRae and Reynolds flying along the final result was Scotland, Wales and Ireland.

Fourth was a fine result for Terry Brown/Den Golding. "Not bad for two old men," said Golding, while the leading English crews were Dick Slaughter/Geoff Dearing and Rob Archer/Peter Field, who both had strong runs to take top six finishes in the category.

The competition in D3 was superb, and it was David Lloyd Roberts/Dei Jones (Ford Escort Mk2) who took the class by just one second from Richard Lane/Frank Richer. Mark and Brett Clifford were not far away in third and also headed Simon Hawthorn/Lorna Hill by a single second as less than half a minute covered the top four cars after over 70 minutes of rallying.