The fifth round of the Onslow Contracting Western Australian Championship did nothing to widen the gap between championship leaders, with the point score now as tight as ever going into the final round next month.
The six stages and almost 100 competitive kilometres that made up the Wheels on Yirrigan Kumho Tyres Kirup Stages course didn’t disappoint in producing the slippery, muddy forestry terrain that competitors were expecting.
Dylan King and Abbey Hayes set the fastest time on all stages. Photo: Tim Allott]WARC
Dylan King and Abbey Hayes produced the fastest time in all six stages of the round to win the event in the DK Earthworx Subaru Impreza STI. This secured them the top spot on the championship and co-driver’s championship leaderboard.
Co-driver Hayes said the team is proud of the results they are producing this year.
“Going into this event only ten points behind the championship lead we had one aim and that was to focus on our own rally and finish,” said Hayes. “Coming first was a bonus and we are thrilled with our result.
“There were a few panic attacks on Friday afternoon when Dylan found some issues we didn’t know existed while performing the final checks, but like always our crew pulled together and ensured the car was ready to go. With each event we are reminded just how much a team sport rallying is - it's pretty special.
“Saturday saw some very slippery conditions which were a bit unpredictable in areas, so you had to be on the ball.
“Being up the front of the field is a whole new ball game, but I'm thoroughly enjoying every second in the seat. I’m proud of how well we have done this year.
“We don’t have a strategy for the final round, we just plan to go out there and do the best we can do, and if that's good enough on the day then we might even come home with the championship! You never know with rallying- that's just the nature of the sport. We are looking forward to the challenge.”
For the first two stages King and Hayes had father and son team John and Tahni Macara chasing their tail, until the Macaras pulled out of the event on the third stage after a rough landing on a large jump caused mechanical issues in their ASIAT Instruments Mitsubishi Evo 7.
From the remaining stages it was Doug Tostevin and Tammy Adams who claimed second-place in the S Technic Specialist Subaru Garage Subaru Impreza STI. They finished just over 2 minutes behind the leaders.
The event for John O’Dowd and Tom Wilde was a mixed bag due to a raft of mechanical issues which saw their Maximum Motorsport Subaru STI completing some of the event without boost. Even with the challenges the team were presented with they managed to claim third, 4 minutes and 28 seconds behind the leaders.
“We battled with a lot of mechanical issues this event, but even if everything had gone right I still doubt we would have caught Doug and Dylan,” said O’Dowd. “They had fantastic pace and we were just lucky to finish the event – and extremely fortunate to finish in third!
“This is the first time I have had Tom Wilde as a co-driver, and he did brilliantly.”
2WD
In the 2WD Championship it was Razvan Vlad and Daymon Nicoli who drove the MAXYrally.com.au Ford Fiesta to take a clean sweep of first place in all stages. Never far behind the category leaders was Shane Harmer and Nicholas Anyan in the Onslow Contracting Holden VH Commodore. Harmer and Anyan set a time on the fourth stage within one second of the leaders.
“I’m not a fan of the muddy surface,” said Vlad. “I’ve never done very well at this round, and the fact that I had the wrong tyres on for the first four stages didn't help.”
“The goal for the weekend was to get maximum points in the 2WD championship without taking too many risks, and we did just that.
“I could not back off too much because Shane Harmer was there to take advantage of that, so it was more of a mind game than going flat out everywhere.
“With Ben Searcy and Tracy Dewhurst not competing this weekend, Daymon also had the chance to climb up to third in the co-driver’s outright championship - and with us finishing sixth overall he looks good to keep that place at the end of the year. He says it is because his side of the car goes faster!
“So a good weekend overall - no car problems, and we now have a more comfortable lead in the 2WD championship there will be the chance of winning the title at the next round!”
Harmer and Anyan finished 2 minutes 14 behind the leaders, and third place father and daughter team, Greg and Deeann Flood finished with almost a 3 and a half minute gap to the leaders in their Greg Flood Electrical Mitsubishi Lancer.
Clubman Cup
It was very close competition in the Clubman Cup category, with just over half a minute separating the top three teams. The Wheels on Yirrigan Kumho Tyre Kirup Stages consisted of four stages for the Clubman Cup category, and it was the consistency produced by Kiel Douglas and Ashley Burton that saw the team win the round.
Mitchel Clarke and Stuart Clarke claimed second, a narrow 24 seconds behind the leaders in the Bunbury Sharpening Service Datsun 1600. The Clarke’s have been producing some good results this season, including a round win at Expert’s Cup.
“Another good run for us,” said Mitchel. “We were pushing a lot harder at Kirup and setting some good times.
“It wasn’t too muddy, although there were a few spots that kept you on your toes. I’m not going to lie, we had a couple of ‘moments’ on the course, but we recovered them well.
“There’s nothing much to do to the car for the next round – I might see if I can push a little bit of power out of it. I need to stop working so much so I have time to work on the car!”
After a hiatus after the Forest Rally round, Alex and Lisa White were back to claim third in their Sigma Data Nissan Silvia S13, 36 seconds behind Douglas and Burton.
The Onslow Contracting Western Australian Rally Championship is supported by Onslow Contracting, Healthway and the Quit message, Verandah Apartments and Auto One.
For full Wheels on Yirrigan Kumho Tyre Kirup Stages results, please visit www.rallywa.com and follow the links to the results page.
The Carrington’s Safari Rally will be the final round of competition for the 4WD competitors in the Onslow Contracting Western Australian Rally Championship, and the penultimate round for 2WD and Clubman Cup category competitors. The Carrington’s Safari Rally will be held in the vicinity of Childlow and Mundaring on October 15, and will offer some great spectating opportunities.
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