Toyota Racing Developmentā€™s Simon Evans has continued where he left off in 2007 taking out Heat One of the Quit Forest Rally, the opening round of the 2008 Australian Rally Championship season.
Ā 
By taking the Heat Evans has stretched his winning streak to 14 Heats in a succession, and has recorded the first ever heat win for a Super 2000 in the Australian Rally Championship.
Ā 
The Busselton Toyota Super Special Stage kicked started the QUIT Forest Rally and Heat One last night, with TRDā€™s Neal Bates once again proving he is the man to beat on the tarmac stage taking the win from Evanā€™s Motorportā€™s Eli Evans with Simon Evans only 0.1 second behind.
Ā 
However it was TRDā€™s Simon Evans who got the jump this morning not looking back, winning the Heat by 1 minute 28.2 seconds. However, while dominate he admitted he was having some teething problems with his new car.
Ā 
ā€œIt feels good to be the first driver to win an ARC heat in an S2000 car, but we didnā€™t do it easy out there, even if it might look like it.Ā  The stages are incredibly challenging and weā€™re still gelling with the car, got a few issues but I canā€™t complain look at the times,ā€ said Evans.
Ā 
ā€œEither way this is a fantastic result for Toyota and for the S2000 category ā€“ itā€™s something I love and I am really pleased Sue and I have made the transition and done so fairly smoothly. We are going to make a few changes ahead of Heat 2 but it wonā€™t be anything too far from what we have now.ā€
Ā 
Bates, struggled at times with the slippery conditions brought about by the unique West Australian road surface, but as the Heat went on he found some pace finishing the Heat comfortably in second.
Ā 
I didnā€™t have the best run and Michael Guestā€™s roll-over helped secure me second ā€“ these things come your way every once in a while so you have to take them when you can. All-in-all it was a great day.ā€
Ā 
ā€œThe roads were really good again but we were a bit off the pace. It is nothing that I can pinpoint at the moment but weā€™ll have a think about it and make some changes to try and improve things before we hit the forests again tomorrow.ā€
Ā 
Local West Australian driver, Redline Oilā€™s Alex Stone was consistent across every stage and was rewarded with third outright for the heat, a fantastic effort which has surprised even the crew themselves.
Ā 
ā€œWeā€™ve got a diff setup in the car to how weā€™d normally run it and I didnā€™t expect to be as quick because I have to drive it differently so to be where we are is such a surprise,ā€ said Stone.Ā  ā€œWeā€™re just going out there and having some fun!ā€
Ā 
Current Victorian Rally Champion Activ Hardwareā€™s Justin Dowel sits in fourth for the heat, but will tonight sit third outright in the ARC points, as Stone is not registered for the Championship in full.
Ā 
Pirtek Rally Team LWRā€™s Michael Guest was the major victim of the day, sitting comfortably in second before he left the road and hit a hidden rock causing him to roll on SS8, ending his Heat and potentially his rally.
Ā 
Locals from the Busselton and Nannup regions showed their support with Event Organiser Ross Tapper saying there has been a boost in numbers since the 2007 event.
Ā 
ā€œWe are very pleased with the crowds at all the spectator points out here in the forest today,ā€ said Tapper.Ā  ā€œAttendance at all major spectator points were significantly up from last year, as was the support from local community groups who put on sausage sizzles and the like throughout the day.ā€
Ā 
Heat One results:
Ā 
Simon Evans (Toyota Racing Development) 1:05:50.7
Neal Bates (Toyota Racing Development) 1:07:18.9
Alex Stone (Redline Oil) 1:09:36.1
Justin Dowel (Activ Rallysport) 1:10:25.8
Darren Windus (Japanese Wholesale Spares) 1:12:08.2
Eli Evans (Evans Motorsport) 1:12:16.7
Brenton Kaitler (KME RS Rallyesport) 1:12:37.9
Roman Watkins (Secure Glass) 1:15:22.5
Mark Butcher (Driver Skills Australia) 1:20:29.0
Barry Kirk (Barry Kirk) 1:35:13.1
Spencer Lowndes (Access Hardware) 1:12:06.7

SUBSCRIBE BELOW TO READ THE FULL STORY

RallySport Magazine Subscription
Select Subscription Level
Select Subscription Length
Recurring Subscription Cost
A subscription to RallySport Magazine give you access to all our rally content from Australia, New Zealand and around the world ā€“ with news, features and experiences nobody can match. Our team are dedicated to providing an unrivalled experience which shares, supports and promotes the sport of rallying.
Already have an account?

By clicking "Subscribe Now" you agree to receive news, offers and updates on RallySport Magazine. If you do not wish to receive marketing communications, you can update your preferences in My Account.

We will commence charging your payment method after the 7 day free trial expires. If you cancel after expiry of your trial, cancellation will take effect from the end of your current monthly subscription period. You will not be refunded any fees paid to RallySport Magazine unless otherwise set out in the terms and conditions.

Account Details
Payment Information

By clicking "Subscribe Now" you agree to receive news, offers and updates on RallySport Magazine. If you do not wish to receive marketing communications, you can update your preferences in My Account.

We will commence charging your payment method after the 7 day free trial expires. If you cancel after expiry of your trial, cancellation will take effect from the end of your current monthly subscription period. You will not be refunded any fees paid to RallySport Magazine unless otherwise set out in the terms and conditions.

Show Your Support

Author

Title

Go to Top