Fiesta SportTrophy UK and IE championships combine for penultimate round

The penultimate round of the 2010 Fiesta SportTrophy UK (FST UK) and Fiesta SportTrophy Ireland (FST IE) championships take place next weekend (20-21 August) on the Rally Northern Ireland and Ulster Challenge Rally.

The Junction One shopping outlet-based event kicks off with a ceremonial start on the evening of Friday 20 August at the recently renovated Antrim Courthouse. The crews will then battle it out over 14 stages and 127 competitive miles across two days before returning to Junction One for the podium ceremony on Saturday evening. The FST UK event takes place over the full Rally Northern Ireland international event, while FST IE and Fiesta SportChallenge (FSC) events will be decided over the Ulster Challenge Rally. The Challenge event takes place over nine of the 14 stages used in the full event with a total of 81 competitive miles.

Having won all five FST UK rounds so far in 2010, championship leader Elfyn Evans (21) from Machynlleth, heads to event as clear favourite to secure his sixth success of the season. However, Evans only need to finish the event to secure the 2010 FST UK Championship title and that will no doubt be in the back of his mind as he tackles the challenging Irish stages. Should Evans win the 2010 title, it will be his third FST crown having won both the FST UK and FST IE titles in 2008. Evans and co-driver Andrew Edwards will once again use the Fiesta R2 they campaigned on the Isle of Man, before returning to their familiar Fiesta ST for the season finale, the International Rally Yorkshire.

After a challenging event last time out, 20-year-old John MacCrone from the Isle of Mull will be hoping to rediscover the form he showed on the opening Tarmac event of the year, the Jim Clark Rally. MacCrone and co-driver Stuart Loudon currently hold third in the championship standings, just one point behind John Boyd and co-driver Craig Wallace. A finish in the Northern Irish event would move the pair up to second in the standings after rivals Boyd and Wallace opted to skip the event.

Having won the FST IE championship on the previous round in Donegal, Stephen Wright (20), from County Monaghan heads to Antrim free from the pressures of a championship battle. Despite having not been in a rally car since Donegal, Wright and co-driver Paul McGee will be out to do battle with the FST UK regulars and claim top FST honours on Rally Northern Ireland. The pair will also use the event as a warm up for the Tour of Flanders Rally in Belgium, which they will tackle in a M-Sport prepared and run Fiesta R2 as part of their prize for winning the championship.

Championship regular Stephen Baxter took his maiden FST IE victory last time out in Donegal, with the help of new co-driver Martin Brady. Baxter will be hoping for a repeat performance in Antrim to boost his chances of gaining second in the overall standings. Baxter currently holds third, 17 points behind Dara Leonard, with two rounds remaining. With Leonard opting to skip Rally Northern Ireland Baxter is well placed to gain the upper hand on his rival.

Two new additions make their FST IE debut in Antrim, Damien Smith and Philip Ewart taking part in the Ulster Challenge Rally and competing for FST IE honours against Baxter and Wright. Smith has been a regular in the UK based FSC championship this year in his Fiesta ST. Having nominated to score points on the Isle of Man Challenge Rally, Smith is not eligible for FSC points in Ulster. However, after being forced to skip the Isle of Man Challenge Rally due to unforeseen circumstances, Smith and co-driver Frazer Hutchinson opted to compete on the Ulster Challenge Rally to improve their experience on Tarmac ahead of the 2011 season.

Philip Ewart joins the FST IE championship having competed in the Northern Ireland Rally Championship (NIRC) so far this season in a Fiesta ST. Ewart currently holds second in Class 1 of the NIRC at the halfway point of the championship. The 23-year-old from Craigavon will be co-driven by Scott McMahon who only began co-driving ten months ago. By registering for the championship, both Smith and Ewart are eligible for a share of the €2,500 Kick Energy prize fund available to FST IE competitors on each event.

Despite Jonathan Cunningham having wrapped up the Fiesta SportChallenge Drivers’ championship on the Isle of Man Challenge Rally, the Co-drivers’ title is still up for grabs. Cunningham’s co-driver Richard Millener currently leads the standings, but having competed in his final points scoring round of the season, both Chris Williams and Sara Price can overtake him in the standings.

John Pritchard currently holds second in the Drivers’ standings with a slender two-point advantage over Richard Parry-Jones, with Alex Laffey a further four points behind. Having not competed on Tarmac in over 15 years, John Pritchard and Chris Williams struggled to match the pace of the front-runners on their last appearance in the championship, the Jim Clark Challenge Rally. The pair will be hoping for an improvement on the Ulster Challenge Rally if they are to secure second in the Drivers’ championship standings and win the co-drivers championship.

Currently holding third in both the Drivers’ and Co-drivers’ standings are Richard Parry-Jones and Sara Price from Abermaw. Parry-Jones has consistently featured in the top five of the FSC this season and will be looking to improve on his fourth place finish on the previous round if he is to close the gap to John Pritchard and claim second place.

20-year-old Alex Laffey has steadily improved his pace over his debut season in the FSC, culminating in a podium finish on the Jim Clark Rally. Laffey and co-driver Peter Martin recently competed on the Isle of Man Challenge rally to give Laffey more experience competing on sealed surfaces. After setting some competitive stage times early on the first day, the pair crashed on the sixth stage, causing considerable damage to their Fiesta ST and forcing them out of the event.

18-year-old Jamie Brown heads to the Ulster Challenge Rally keen to improve on his eighth place finish from 2009. Brown and co-driver Craig Burgess put in a consistent performance on the Jim Clark Rally to make it to the finish on what was only the second Tarmac event Brown had competed on. The pair will be hoping to end their season on a positive note next weekend.

As well as the €2,500 FST IE and the £2,700 FST UK/FSC prize funds, competitors in both championships will have the chance to win the Muc-Off Motorsport Cleaning Best Presented Car Award. The driver who posts the highest number of fastest stage times in the International event will also collect the Castrol Hard Charger Award.
– Credit: M-Sport.