Although the event started slightly poor for Tyler, things quickly improved in the following stages and he admits the event holds its own string of challenges.
“I just went too hard and underestimated the lack of grip in the first stage; we slid wide on a few corners and stalled the car twice but surprisingly still set a competitive time.
“It’s hard in an event like this with no pre-event testing or media day to be right on the money from the get go, but once we got warmed up there was no stopping the Clio,” Tyler said.
With the afternoon stages looming, rival competitor Neville Whittenbury was forced out with a mechanical drama, fundamentally helping Guy and co-driver, Damian Reed into a commanding position against fellow young driver, Henry Nott.
“It was disappointing to see Neville have problems, we knew the pressure was off, but we continued to push hard anyway.
“Although we could afford to lose up to 30 seconds to Henry going into the night stages, I decided to push on regardless and really prove to everyone what we and the Renault could do,” Tyler added.
Guy and Damian’s success continued into the evening as the pair, who set the 3rd, 4th, and 4th fastest outright times and moved from seventh to fourth overall for the event. This proved even more impressive as Guy and Damian became the only top five finishing crew in the last four years to better their daylight times in the dark.
“This was such an enjoyable event; it was good to finally have a clear run in the car and to prove what we are really capable of. I would like to thank all of our service crew and sponsors who have made this result possible, and to all the amazing officials for sacrificing their time so we can enjoy the sport we love,” Tyler explained.
This result marked Guy's best ever rally result and couldn’t be a better confidence booster heading into the teams next big challenge, Australia's round of the World Rally Championship held in Coffs Harbour, NSW.
“I just can’t wait to get back out there and have the opportunity to show the world’s best what we’ve got, bring on Rally Australia,” Tyler concluded.
The team would like to add their condolences to a fellow competitor's family and friends who unfortunately passed away during the event due to a suspected heart attack.
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