The defending WA Rally Championship team of Hynes and Percival blasted their way into the lead of the West Australian Rally Championship after taking out round three of the series the Expert Cup Rally.
The Subaru pairing had a slow start to the season with dramas on the opening round, the Quit Forest Rally, but have surged into contention for back to back championships with two wins from two starts on the second and third rounds.
The Experts Cup round would see the championship back on the pacenote format and for Hynes, he would devastate the opposition, taking every stage bar one.
The only hiccup was a broken drive shaft near the end of the second last stage. Hynes needed to run the last stage with this problem, but with the massive lead built up, he could afford to nurse the WRX home sixth fastest and still take the event by over two minutes.
“Naturally we are very pleased with the win and to be leading the championship again, but it's one of those rallies that drivers really love. The road conditions were nearly perfect and the car just handled superbly all day,†Hynes said.
For the former points leader, Derek Reddie, it was an event to forget. Clipping a corner just a fraction too tight on special stage two resulted in him rolling his Galant VR4. Although he ended up back on all four wheels and continued on, a damaged front drive shaft would smash the timing cover resulting in engine failure.
With no points from this round, he has now dropped to third place in the series.
Second place on the event went to John Macara. He was consistently the best of the rest and finished in the runner up position by a big margin. Macara is well known for his speed on this event over the years and again proved he still has good pace over some of the younger crews.
Making a welcome return to the championship was Chris Anderson. Co-driven by the experienced Toni Feaver, the pair put together a cautious approach and took a well deserved third outright and first in Group “Nâ€. This was a great result considering it’s been over a year since Anderson was behind the wheel.
Making up the top five were the two black Subarus of Wilde and McIlroy. The Wilde pairing continued their fight back in the championship after a big roll on the opening round of the season and from the time sheets would appear to definitely enjoy the night stages, putting in third fastest on each of those tests and eventually finishing fifth outright.
McIlroy would unfortunately not enjoy a trouble free run having boost issues with the WRX. That said, he and co-driver Chris Parish, did well to salvage fourth spot and continue their good run in the championship, now moving up to the runner-up position on the ladder.
The Chudleigh brothers brought home their Toyota Sprinter to claim the award for the first two wheel drive, with the Clubman Cup section of the event going to up and coming star Travis White.
The WA Rally Championship takes a break for just over three months with round four, the Donnelly River Rally, scheduled for September.
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