This Saturday sees the new Motorsport Direct Cup make its third appearance in the UK rally calendar, as the Vauxhall Nova and Corsa men take to the fast and furious stage of the Mutiny Cub Rally.  The rally is also the third round of the Kumho Clubman Rally Championship, which the Motorsport Direct backed Cup is an integral part of.

The opening rounds of the series have both gone to the experienced Vauxhall campaigner Andy Gwynne, who, with Holly Robinson alongside, is sitting pretty at the top of the Championship table after the most recent event on the Astra Stages.  Despite some problems along the way, the GwynneSpeed run Corsa Kit Car kept the pair ahead of the chasing pack as they made it two from two in the inaugural season for the new Cup.

If Gwynne is setting the pace, then the battle just behind him is anything but predictable.  The Motorsport Direct Cup has attracted a diverse number of drivers for its opening year, with backing from a number of trade suppliers, including Martin Bowyer Developments, Safety Devices, Compomotive Wheels, and JemSport PR.

Chasing Gwynne hard will be the talented Ludlow youngster James Wozencroft.  Also running his Nova 1400 in the BTRDA series, Wozencroft is setting the pace in the 1400 section of the Motorsport Direct Cup.  Unfortunately for the youngster, he recently blew the engine on the Nova on a BTRDA event, and it is still uncertain as to whether James can contest the Mutiny Rally this weekend.  If Wozencroft does make the start, he will be a driver to watch – and will be keen to pick up the pieces if any of the 1600cc drivers make a mistake.

Civil Service Motoring Association backed David Beesley is one of the 1600cc drivers that Wozencroft will be keen to battle with.  The experienced Beesley has started the season steadily and is keen to remain in the Championship battle as the season moves into its mid point.  The Corsa 1600 will be well suited to the smooth wide open stages in Mid Wales.  Fellow CSMA backed driver John Brooks brings his similar looking machine to the event, although Brooks’s attention will be focused on the battle for 1400cc class honours in his smaller capacity car.  The two experienced CSMA men will certainly be at the forefront of the Championship battle after this weekend.

Fellow 1400cc battlers Colin Hope and Brian McGuinness bring their Vauxhall Novas to Mid Wales keen to improve their points tallies as well.  Suffolk based Irishman McGuinness is certainly enjoying his debut year in the Motorsport Direct Cup, despite suffering a number of minor mechanical problems on the opening round. 

Motorsport Direct proprietor and fellow 1600cc class rival Iain Shirlaw was pleased with the progress of the Cup so far:

“The competition has been strong so far and has certainly increased the competitiveness of the Kumho Clubman Rally Championship this year.  The likes of Andy Gwynne and James Wozencroft are really setting a strong pace in both the 1400 and 1600cc categories of the Cup, and I know that the other drivers are enjoying the competition.  The cash prize fund on offer at each round has also been popular, and our end of season prizes are well worth competing for.  I’m sure that the Mutiny Rally will prove to be as competitive as the previous two rounds, and I’m already looking forward to going up against the Motorsport Direct Cup crews on the event – it should be a great day’s rallying.”