Entries are pouring in for the Beatson’s Building Supplies Jim Clark Rally, Round 4 of the 2023 Protyre Motorsport UK Asphalt Rally Championship – and the event promises to be a cracker.
The top four points-scoring crews on the opening East Riding Stages – David Henderson/Chris Lees (Ford Fiesta Rally2), David Wright/Paula Swinscoe (Ford Fiesta R5), Elliot Payne/Tom Woodburn (Ford Fiesta Rally2) and James Ford/Neil Shanks (Citroën C3 Rally2) – have all put entries in.
Also on the unseeded entry list are Stephen Simpson/Patrick Walsh (Ford Fiesta Rally2), Neil Roskell/Andrew Roughead (Ford Fiesta Rally2), Hugh Hunter/Rob Fagg (Ford Fiesta Rally2), Chris Ford/Michael Hendry (Citroën C3 Rally2) and Steve Wood/Dale Bowen (Ford Fiesta RS WRC).
The two-day closed road Scottish Borders event offers around 67 miles of competitive action and will have its now traditional Duns town centre start on Friday (26 May) evening before crews head out to tackle a double run over the daunting Longformacus moorland stage, with the second pass likely to be under the cover of darkness.
After an overnight halt, Saturday (27 May) will be unfamiliar to many, as six stages in Edrom, Ayton and Fogo, situated to the west of Duns, are introduced into the itinerary to test the crews to the limit before an early afternoon champagne spraying finish celebration back in Duns town square.
Steeped in history, the Jim Clark Rally first ran in 1970 and past winners include Roger Clark, Billy Coleman, Ari Vatanen, Russell Brookes, Mark Higgins, Tapio Laukkanen and Gwyndaf Evans.
Last year James Williams and the eventual Protyre Asphalt co-drivers’ champion Dai Roberts scored maximum Protyre Asphalt Championship points on the Jim Clark in their Hyundai i20 R5.
The event is named after Jim Clark OBE, the two-time F1 champion and Indy 500 winner.
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