Winners of Wales Rally GB’s Road to Wales initiative pitted themselves against the best in the world for the 2013 WRC finaleEight national rally drivers who had proved themselves in the British Rally Championship (BRC) and The British Trial and Rally Drivers Association (BTRDA) series were offered a prize drive by Wales Rally GB organisers, International Motor Sports Ltd (IMS), to compete in the only British round and finale of the 2013 World Rally Championship (WRC).The top three drivers in the MSA British Rally Championship - Jukka Korhonen (Finland), Osian Pryce (Machynlleth, Powys), and Tom Cave (Gwynedd, north-west Wales), plus the BRC RallyTwo Championship winner Daniel McKenna (Clones, County Monaghan) - were all invited to compete in Wales Rally GB lining up alongside the WRC contenders in the revived four-day event (14-17 November).It was Tom Cave and co-driver Ieuan Thomas who really impressed, finishing an incredible 12th overall and fifth in the WRC2 class, which was won by former British Junior Rally Champion and home hero Elfyn Evans and co-driver Daniel Barritt.Jukka Korhonen had a superb drive finishing 28th overall and winning the WRC3 class, with Welsh duo Osian Pryce and co-driver Dale Furness just behind them in 30th overall, despite an alternator failure on Friday.Daniel McKenna, with co-driver and fellow Irishman Arthur Kierans, completed Wales Rally GB in 35th overall despite several set-backs, including nobly stopping to assist a competitor after an accident, lending them a fire extinguisher! Daniel finished second in the R2 class to Manchester’s Chris Ingram, who had issues of his own with a clutch problem.Also awarded a prize drive was the current MSA British Junior Rally Champion, Benjamyn McKay along with co-driver Jason McKay (Oswestry, Shropshire). Ben had a great start to the rally, leading his class up until special stage 11, when unfortunately, the father and son team rolled out of Wales Rally GB. It wasn’t all bad though, as former F1 star and newly-crowned WRC2 Champion, Robert Kubica, had crashed out in the same place and was on hand to help the pair out of the car. Ben did not have time to dwell on things as it was straight off to France for the duo, who are currently competing in the Rallye du Var - an arrive-and-drive prize for also claiming the Twingo Renaultsport R1 Trophy this year.NGK Spark Plugs BRC Challenge runner-up, Richard Sykes (Stourbridge, West Midlands), received a surprise entry into the three-day National Rally when the overall series winner, Russ Thompson (Clitheroe, Lancashire), was unable to accept the prize drive. The three-day event was run on exactly the same stages as the last three days of the World Championship event. Richard, the 2012 BRC Challenge champion, alongside co-driver Jonathan Boucard, finished an impressive 13th and second in their class.Joining them in the three-day rally was winner of the BTRDA premier Gold Star Championship, Euan Thorburn from Duns, Berwickshire. Euan and co-driver Paul Beaton dominated from the start, winning the first six stages and a total of nine out of all 13 stages. The duo had a superb, near-perfect rally to take the win.The final prize drive was for the two-day National Rally and went to the BTRDA Rally First Champion, Joe Evett (Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire). Joe and co-driver Calvin Houldsworth overcame gearbox and fuel issues to finish a fantastic seventh and won their class.The overall rally was won by World Champion Sebastién Ogier, who ended his spectacular season with a ninth win and his first ever victory in Wales Rally GB.Andrew Coe, Chief Executive of IMS said, “My congratulations go to all of the Road to Wales winners. We are delighted to have been able to offer them the opportunity to compete in Wales Rally GB against the best in the WRC on the world stage and they all did brilliantly. We can see some real talent coming through from the British championships, and I feel sure we have some future WRC stars amongst them.“This year’s Wales Rally GB was a great success, with an enormous number of fans coming to support all the teams. There was a real buzz in north Wales and the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. I would like to thank all of the staff, marshals and medical teams, without whom the event would not have been possible.”WRC3 winner Jukka Korhonen commented, “We had a brilliant time, it was a great experience for us. Winning the British Rally Championship meant we got the free entry into Wales Rally GB and without that, we simply wouldn’t have had the budget to compete, so we are very happy.”