Callum Black produced a super-fast masterclass performance to win the JDS Machinery Rali Ceredigion National (30 August – 1 September) and extend his lead in the Protyre Motorsport UK Asphalt Rally Championship as the series heads to the final round in two weeks’ time.
The 586 Sport driver set 11 fastest times over the 14 stage event, which included an incredible time on SS13 that beat all the FIA European and British Rally Championship competitors contesting the international section.
The defending Protyre Asphalt rally champion clipped the scenery on both passes of the Nany y Moch stage on Saturday, but apart from that it was a copybook performance by Callum in his Pallas Connections Ford Fiesta Rally2, with the result giving Jack Morton the co-drivers’ title for a third time.
“Rali Ceredigion has been a long three day event, but very rewarding and enjoyable,” said Callum.
“We made a few brave tyre decisions that paid off, we’ve not had a big moment all rally, Jack was spot on as normal and it’s just been a brilliant event for us. I wanted to try and get a top five overall stage time this weekend, but to get a fastest time is something that I can hang onto for the rest of my life – I’m very chuffed with that!
“The battle for the Protyre Asphalt title now goes down to the final round. The Hills Ford is my local rally, although I’ve never done it before and I’ve no idea of where the stages are! I’ll do a bit of homework between now and the event and we’ll be going there to try and win it.”
Neil Roskell set the fastest time on the opening stage on Friday night around the tight and twisty Aberystwyth town stage, but a long ratio gearbox in his ND Civils/Burdens/Witham Motorsport Fiesta Rally2 didn’t help as the event moved onto the technical country roads of mid and west Wales.
There was a drama in midday service on Saturday when a bolt sheared on a rear hub and he had to replace the entire unit in rapid time. He and Rob Fagg finished Leg 1 in second position, 2mins 34.9secs behind Callum.
An inspired tyre choice on Sunday saw Neil put spare Michelin wets on the front as the heavens opened on SS12 and with a large gap to first and third he eased off to cruise to a very well-deserved runners-up spot, 3mins 55.8secs behind Callum. This keeps Neil second in the points table, with it all to play for on the final Hills Ford Stages.
Sam Touzel led the Rali Ceredigion National by 2.3 seconds after the opening two Aberystwyth town stages on Friday night and continued that impressive run over the entire weekend. The Jersey driver had to slow to make sure another crew were okay on SS4 when he came across a car that had just rolled, and then had a huge moment himself when he overshot a hairpin on SS6 and flew up a bank, losing 90 seconds.
He and co-driver Max Freeman were third in the Protyre Asphalt standings after Leg 1 and maintained that position throughout a tricky Leg 2 to score a magnificent first Protyre Asphalt podium finish in their Smart Scaffolding/Express Auto Parts Fiesta Rally2.
Mike English/Simon Hunter scored a top 10 overall and class B15 podium Protyre Asphalt finish after a great run in their Proact Fiesta Rally2. It was the Altrincham driver’s first rally since the Beatson’s Building Supplies Jim Clark Rally in May, and he bettered that fine points score with his best result of 2024 so far.
It was Roger Moran’s first rally since the Legend Fires North West Stages in March, although he has been keeping match fit by contesting hillclimbs in his Moran Motorhomes Škoda Fabia R5 and leading the class. With Daniel Petrie back in the co-driver’s seat, he never put a scratch on the car on his way to 11th-place Protyre Asphalt points.
Kevin Davies/Owain Davies were hoping for a good result on their home round of the series but retired on Saturday’s morning loop after suffering two punctures and broken suspension in their Melvyn Evans Motorsport-run Cobra Hydraulics Volkswagen Polo GTI R5.
Huw James/Lewis Sims stormed to victory in class B13 and took home fourth-place overall Protyre Asphalt points in their A&D Tyres Escort Mk2. They were the top-placed 2WD crew throughout, even on Saturday afternoon when an alternator cable came off twice. Huw lives right in the middle of the Bethania stage (SS11/13) and drives half of the stage on his way to work, so he wasn’t going to ease off – not even lifting as he passed the debris left by Chris Ingram’s accident! Local knowledge also saw him take two spare wets when others didn’t see the rain coming, which resulted in a superb Sunday to cement a tremendous performance.
Darren Atkinson has retained his class B13 title for a third consecutive year, and retakes the lead of the Escort Challenge, after another magnificent drive in his Haldane Fisher Escort Mk2. With co-driver Phil Sandham standing in as a late replacement, the Lancaster ace had an alternator failure on Saturday morning, but luckily it happened close to midday service and he didn’t lose any time. He finished second in class and took home fifth-place overall Protyre Asphalt points.
Gordon Morrison enjoyed his first rally in Wales and flew in his Lochwinnoch Motors Heavy Haulage Escort Mk2. He got engine builder Roy Millington out of bed on Saturday night as he needed a part that nobody else had after a search around the service area, and that delivery allowed him and Ian Parker to complete the class B13 and 2WD podium and take sixth-placed Protyre Asphalt overall points back to Scotland.
Aled Wyn Morgans/Ian Taylor borrowed Lee Edwards’ Jaguar V6 engined Escort G3 after crashing their normal Aberystwyth Motorsport Escort Mk2 the week before Rali Ceredigion. They quickly got used to it and set up very impressive times – just finishing outside the B13 podium and collecting eighth-place overall Protyre Asphalt points (with only a 10 second penalty denying them seventh position).
Tim Cole was slowed by a cracked rear diff mount on his Manx Automobile Assistance/MAA Logistics/SOM BMW E36 Compact which meant that the Isle of Man driver had to be very careful on jumps and compressions. That caution was somewhat temporary as he and co-driver Dave Sutcliffe decided to put on a show for the fans on Sunday and oversteered their way to a great finish.
Max Murray/Matthew Owens completed the event but were down the order thanks to skipping a stage on Saturday when a turbo pipe burst on their BVS Vehicles/Manx Rally Sport Citroën DS3 R3T. Max is quickly getting used to the new left-hand drive car and completed Sunday’s stages without an issue.
Adrian Spencer/Richard Sutcliffe won class B14, despite a frustrating Saturday in their Subaru Impreza S11 WRC replica with a puncture in the morning and electrical problems in the afternoon hampering their progress. They flew through Sunday’s stages to collect their first class victory of the season.
Nathan Bolton/Phil Kenny finished second in B14 despite clipping a kerb and damaging their Monza Installs Mitsubishi Evo 9 on SS5. The wheel still didn’t feel right when they left midday service and having received penalties for three jump starts they decided to call it a day. They restarted on Sunday and collected some good points.
William Hill/Richard Crozier suffered brake failure at the end of a long straight on SS3 and flew into a ditch. They were lucky not to roll their Hills Ford Fiesta Rally3 and spent the rest of the day repairing the car for Sunday’s stages. Unfortunately, Leg 2 was spent on the wrong tyres as the changeable weather outfoxed them, and the event turned into one of those rallies where nothing went right. Until, that is, the points were calculated and William was declared 2024 class B14 champion!
Nathan Evans/Rhys Williams Edwards won class B11 (and their class on the event by over eight minutes) after a wonderful run in their 911 Sport/The Kitchen Installers Renault Clio 3 RS. Nathan also finished seventh in the overall Protyre Asphalt points standings and won the Dynamic Fluids Best Presented Car Award, selected by championship scruntineer Geoff Doe and presented by championship co-ordinator Paul Morris.
Neil Jones/Alan Thomas lost well over a minute when they were red flagged on a stage and couldn’t get their lost time back. That was annoying, but it didn’t prevent them from claiming second place in B11 in their smart #TeamPitStop/Auto Spares Wales Vauxhall Astra.
Michael Harbour/Cameron Dunn still lead B11 after finishing third thanks to a troubled Leg 1. They had to stop and change a puncture in Saturday’s morning loop and then had to complete the afternoon loop with front brake caliper problems in their Aldosport/Hamilton Haulage/VS Pro Pressure Washing Services Escort Mk2. Sunday was a lot better as they reached the finish with no further issues.
Ben Crump/Ian Beamond remain second in the B11 points but snapped a bottom arm and broke a compression strut when they crashed their Coltech Escort Mk2 on Saturday and were unable to restart, while George Heighway/Paul DeBono retired their Toyota Corolla with an incurable engine misfire.
Will Mains/Tomos Whittle clipped a bank and broke a bottom arm on their Vauxhall Nova on SS4 and despite limping out of the stage couldn’t continue. They returned on Sunday and their efforts were rewarded with a class B9 win.
Rory and Paul McCann have clinched the class B10 title after another magnificent run in their Metalways Honda Civic. The Isle of Man crew were raving about how fantastic the Welsh stages are and were deservedly delighted with their cracking result.
Kyle Casement/Liam McCann didn’t have the best of events and after a few problems crashed their BVS Vehicles Citroën C2 on the final stage.
Nikki Addison is the 2024 Protyre Asphalt Ladies’ Challenge champion after another stunning drive in her A Robertsons Electrical Controllers/Electric Center Honda Civic Type-R. Co-driven by Iain Thorburn, the Inverness driver is also third in class B11.
Emma Morrison has won the Ladies’ Challenge co-driver’s title, having scored a now unbeatable three class wins and a second-place finish.
Charlie Wright won the R2 class in his Ford Fiesta, which is run by the students from Harper Adams University. He and co-driver Adam Westerby lost time in a ditch on SS5 but got their #RallyingTheWrightWay car to a well-deserved finish.
Will Rowlands/Emyr Hall lost their chance of taking the BTRDA Historic Asphalt Cup and class H3b lead after putting their Escort RS1800 Mk2 off the road on Nany y Moch 1.
Maxwell Jones (co-driven by Robbie Sandford) won class H2b in their Escort Mk2.
Mark Holmes was making his debut in a gorgeous Historic-spec Escort Mk1 that he’d built during Covid and had only previously driven to work! Co-driven by Bonnie Papper, he stopped on Saturday afternoon after breaking a half-shaft after hitting a compression hard on Llyn Brianne 2 and returned to have a good run to the finish on Sunday.
Mark Manning/Laura Christmas were running last car on the road on Sunday, having skipped a few Saturday stages with an ignition problem in their 1275cc Mini. They pressed on and were rewarded with maximum Plastics4Performance Mini Challenge points.
Action from Rali Ceredigion is available to view on the Special Stage TV Facebook and YouTube channels, plus specialstage.tv.
The eighth and final round of the 2024 Protyre Motorsport UK Asphalt Rally Championship is the Hills Ford Stages (14/15 September).
Rali Ceredigion National – top 10 registered 2024 Protyre Motorsport UK Asphalt Rally Championship finishers:
1. Callum Black/Jack Morton (Ford Fiesta Rally2)….1hr 43mins 57.8secs
2. Neil Roskell/Rob Fagg (Ford Fiesta Rally2)….1hr 47mins 53.6secs
3. Sam Touzel/Max Freeman (Ford Fiesta Rally2)….1hr 49mins 18.5secs
4. Huw James/Lewis Sim (Ford Escort Mk2)….1hr 53mins 27.9secs
5. Darren Atkinson/Phil Sandham (Ford Escort Mk2)….1hr 54mins 53.3secs
6. Gordon Morrison/Ian Parker (Ford Escort Mk2)….1hr 56mins 23.1secs
7. Nathan Evans/Rhys Edwards (Renault Clio RS)….1hr 57mins 52.0secs
8. Aled Wyn Morgans/Ian Taylor (Ford Escort G3)….1hr 57mins 57.3secs
9. Rory McCann/Paul McCann (Honda Civic)….1hr 58mins 22.8secs
10. Mike English/Simon Hunter (Ford Fiesta Rally2)….1hr 58mins 46.0secs
2024 Protyre Motorsport UK Asphalt Rally Championship – top 6 drivers’ overall after Round 7:
1. Callum Black….166pts
2. Neil Roskell….157pts
3. Darren Atkinson….138pts
4. Simon Bowen….126pts
5. Sam Touzel….123pts
6. William Hill….113pts
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