Former works BTCC racer Patrick Watts made his rally debut on the opening round of the Armajaro MSA British Historic Rally Championship. Partnered by historic racer Nick Leston, Watts took his Sunbeam Tiger to an excellent sixth overall on the Robin Hood (6/7 March) and now plans to contest this weekend's Rally of Kent.
"I've the car sitting in the garage for a long, long time," explained Watts, who last raced in the Australian Touring Car Championship in 1998. "It's just for a bit of fun and we're both rally virgins. If it goes OK, we'll do some more," he said before the start.
Watts settled into his new environment in style and overcame overheating problems to score a strong finish. "I've not driven on gravel before," he admitted before the start. "I've done a few gravel traps, but they don't have trees in them!"
Watts, a works BTCC racer for Peugeot, was inspired to look at historic rallying by fellow racer Ray Bellm. "It was Ray Bellm's article in Autosport where he told everybody that he wished he'd discovered historic rallying earlier that fired my interest," says Watts. "I thought it was absolutely fantastic fun, but I think all the people that went quicker than me are mad!"
The event didn’t start too well, however. "We wrong slotted at the start and got lost within 30 seconds of leaving the hotel! We ended up parked next to the bird sanctuary in Clumber Park. We were a bit late for the first stage, but within our lateness."
However, once into his stride, Watts set some impressive stage times and absolutely flew through his first full forest stage on Saturday evening. Despite catching a Saab in Clipstone South, Watts was just a second slower than the Porsche 911 of Dessie Nutt. "I was a bit worried about being able to see in the dark, but I was quite encouraged by our night-time performance."
On Sunday, engine temperature was a concern at one point. "We had the engine up to about 150 degrees before the final service," admitted Watts. "But we used some historic cardboard and some tank tape to make some ducting and it wasn't a problem thereafter."
Watts ended the event vowing to be back for more rounds of the BHRC. "I don’t think we're going to be beating the Porsches just yet. Respect to the quick guys, they must be totally flying."
