February 25/26 will see Rallye Sunseeker International begin the 2011 Dulux British Rally Championship, when on the Friday night the event is launched at Poole Quay.
With crowds on the Friday last year of over 7,000 people, the crews on this year’s event will have a special atmosphere awaiting them when they begin their 2011 rally campaign. Equally the thousands of expected fans are in for a real treat when the stage action gets underway on Saturday morning and runs through the day in the Forests of Dorset and Hampshire.
Leading the crews off the ramp this year will be number one seeds Craig Breen and Gareth Roberts in their Ford Fiesta R2. Craig comes to Bournemouth and Poole this year fresh from a stunning 15th overall on the Swedish Rally last weekend, itself the opening round of the World Rally Championship. Craig will start the event as favourite and has a hectic year’s rallying planned with 17 events in his R2 Fiesta scheduled for completion.
Following Craig off the ramp will be the two car team run by Autosport Technology, with drivers Mikko Pajunen and Siim Plangi both running R2 Renault Twingos. Mikko won three of the R1 rounds on last years championship, along with an R2 round, so will be one to watch this year as he is back for another attempt. His team-mate Siim, was sixth overall on Rally Scotland in 2010, so the British forests will not be strange to him this year. Both drivers are confident of a good year in the BRC.
Callum Black will follow in his Suzuki Swift S1600, partnered by Paul Wakely, and as the 2010 BRC Challenge Champion will be worth watching as well. Running a works spec car, in what is his only second year of Rallying, Callum is aiming for the F2 title this year and with the added backing of his Prize Drive which he won last week will aid his Championship attempt through the year.
Highest seeded Citroën crew at number seven are Desi Henry and John Rowan form Northern Ireland. This is their first visit to the BRC, having competed in Ireland last year, in the Citroën Racing Trophy and Fiesta Challenge.
Following them off the ramp are fellow Citroën crew of Mark Donnelly and Barry McNulty also from Northern Ireland. Barry is the 2010 BRC Co-Driver champion having navigated Keith Cronin to success last year.
Other entries come from John MacCrone, Molly Taylor and John Boyd, while TEG Sport have entered Nick Cristofaro in a Ford Fiesta ST.
Top four wheel drive seed is the Scottish favourite David Bogie, in his Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX and Kevin Rae calling the notes on this event. David is no stranger to the BRC, and as 2010 Scottish Champion will certainly be seen as one of the favourites on this event, and for the title.
Running behind David, is another former BRC competitor who has caused a bit of a stir this year in that he has swapped his Mitsubishi Evo for a Skoda S2000, and that is Northern Ireland’s Jonny Greer. Jonny will have Dai Roberts in the navigator’s seat on Sunseeker and good support from his father Davy, himself a former Irish Champion who helps run the car on events. Certainly Jonny can rightly be seen as one of the favourites for this year’s championship, following some outstanding performances last year.
Another Skoda S2000 mounted driver is Robert Barrable from Swords, near Dublin with Damien Connolly calling the notes. They had a superb year last year, winning the Billy Colman awards as well the British and Irish Citroën Racing Trophies.
Elfyn Evans joins the Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship again this year, but this time in the Pirelli backed, TEG Sport run Subaru and will run behind Greer. He tested the car at Sweet Lamb a few weeks ago, and ran as a course car on the Wyedean Rally to familiarise himself prior to this weekend.
Tom Cave and Daniel Barry will start Rallye Sunseeker International in a pair of Mitsubishi Evo 10s. Tom recently competed on the Wyedean Rally in preparation for this weekend and came home 7th overall. Barry meanwhile is normally seen on the IRC but enters Rallye Sunseeker International with legendary Irish Co-Driver Rory Kennedy calling the notes.
Other BRC entries come form Jason Pritchard, Adam Gould, Alan Cookson and Alan Carmichael amongst others and a last minute entry from Euan Thorburn.
The action on Saturday begins for the BRC crews at 9.00am when they leave the Start at Elliott Canford Arena; the rally visiting the service area at this location twice during the day. The finish ceremony will be at Bournemouth Pier at 17.30 hours.
– Credit: www.rallyesunseeker.co.uk