Evans Finds Way Out Of Cave To Bag More Rally Success

Elfyn Evans spearheaded a Welsh one-two as he extended his British Rally Championship lead with victory in the Nicky Grist stages.

The Dolgellau-born flier and co-driver Craig Parry made it three wins from five as he claimed his second ‘home’ victory in Wales this season.

Aberdyfi’s Tom Cave equalled his season best with a fine second in the event which is based at Builth Wells.

Evans had a difficult start to the event with a spin in his Ford Fiesta R5 on the opening stage and pop-off valve problems on the second.

But the 27-year-old swiftly got back into his dominating stride, topping the time sheets on 12 of the event’s 15 stages.

Evans finished with a healthy 1 minute 11.4 second margin as the cars returned to Builth Wells for the Ceremonial Finish.

He now leads the standings by 39 points.

WRC ace Evans said: “We are happy with how the event went and it wasn’t easy as the conditions were very challenging.

“We had a spin on the first stage and from there we had to bring it together.

“When we got the lead, and when things were difficult, I had spare capacity to keep it calm.

“In rallying anything can happen and with double points on the Isle of Man finale, this will leave it open until the last round, so we have to keep on it, keep pushing and keep winning.”

Cave, in his Michelin-shod Ford Fiesta R5, had drawn first blood setting the fastest time on the opening stage of the rally.

And Cave would lead the event until an inspired Evans snatched the advantage on the third stage.

Thereafter Cave couldn’t live with Evans’ pace but showed his own improvement in speed by recording another second place and his third podium of the year.

The result helped him to leap-frog Fredrik Ahlin into second place in the championship standings with two rounds remaining on the calendar. Ahlin missed out on a points haul after retiring on the opening day.

Cave said: ”I am very pleased with second as it is good for the team and for the championship.

“Things have progressed even more this weekend, more than we had hoped.

“Our pace on both surfaces was encouraging especially on Tarmac on the second day.

“We knew it would be difficult to beat Elfyn but I have learnt a lot from chasing him and want to be even closer on the Ulster next time out.

“Second in the championship is good but we will keep working hard and keep making progress forward.”

The Nicky Grist Stages is a unique event on the BRC calendar with the two days split into two surfaces.

Biblical weather greeted the competitors on the opening day with crews slipping and sliding through 45 miles of forestry gravel stages before tackling the famous Tarmac on the Epynt Ranges on the second day.

It wasn’t just the crews inside the car who were tested this weekend as the service teams had just two-and-a-half-hours on Saturday evening to convert the cars from mud-slinging monsters into Tarmac-hugging weapons.

There was more Welsh success in the BRC2 category as Matt Edwards took the spoils, finishing inside the top 12 overall as well as getting the class win.

The Mitsubishi Evo 9 driver now has an unassailable lead in the BRC2 category and will be crowned champion at the season finale.

The next round of the BRC is the Ulster Rally on the August 19/20.