The fully pacenoted Donnelly Rally will re ignite the West Australian gravel rally scene after a lengthy mid season break. The super fast roads just outside the southwest town of Bridgetown will play host to the second last round of the championship.
Defending champions Hynes and Percival should be favoured for the win however there will be good competition provided by others in the top group of entries.
John Macara will debut his newly acquired EVO 9 Lancer. The performance increase over his previous EVO 6 machine will be exploited by this very experienced competitor. A change of co-driver also likely to be a big advantage with former state co-driver champion Dianna Madlener making a return to the pointy end. Her knowledge of the area and calling the notes sure to make this pairing one to watch out for.
Chris Anderson will make his second outing in as many events after taking a break from the sport. He showed in round three that the pace is still there and he will be looking to take it up a notch and ring every last bit of speed out of his well-sorted WRX. Ben Searcy will continue with co-driving duties, this paring also likely to shake up the podium challengers.
Championship contenders and early leaders Lee Mcilroy and co-driver Ash Ridden have certainly not given up on winning the series. They have a sizable points deficit on Hynes but one slip up front and they will be very much back in the hunt. The black beast will again be their weapon for this outing. The WRX STI has proven reliable all season and certainly capable of running at top three pace.
The battle for third in the series is hotting up with 3 crews locked in a good fight.
Reddie, Wilde and Travers separated by just 5 points, and with all three crews entered for this weekends event it should make for a great points tussle.
Other notable entries include the return of Albany Subaru man Chard Marshall. Blair Pugh is firing up the potent Escort, Shane Eather and David Burton will keep the top five honest with their entry, Karl Drummond and Jack Flanagan also back to the series for this rally.
Round 4 will include the Clubman Cup series. A healthy field of the 2 wheel drive runners have entered testament to the popularity of the roads in this area of the state. The event kicks off on Saturday afternoon and moves on into the night. Organisers providing very good spectator points to get close to the action.
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