Fast rising rally star Tom Cave of the Llandysul based Spencer Sport rally team earned his group its best BRC finish of the season so far when he and co-driver James Morgan brought their Ford Fiesta R5 home into second place in the RSAC Scottish Rally .
click here for full story and Scottish rally action shots:-
And there was further joy for the West Wales team in the National Rally Cup when Jamie Jukes and David Williams doubled up with a podium place in their Spencer Sports car after they clinched the runners up spot.
The exciting one-day Scottish Rally provided a thrilling backdrop for the fourth round of Britain’s premier rallying championship which set off to the sound of traditional bagpipe player.
Crews set off from the Ceremonial Start in the centre of Dumfries – heading into 62 miles of fast and furious forestry action. Classic gravel tests including Castle O’er, Gubhill Rig and Burnfoot provided an exciting day of rallying action with dust being a particular challenge in the morning loop while heavy rain showers made the competitive stages slippery in the afternoon.
Before the rally Cave and Morgan played their joker, which meant their points score would be doubled for this event. They started the rally lying fourth in the championship standings behind Fredrik Ahlin and eventual winner Elfyn Evans, all in Fiesta R5s.
For Tom and James the rally started well as they set two third-fastest times before the first service halt of the day. Another pair of third-fastest runs then followed, but Tom had felt the Fiesta lose power during stage three and therefore, at the second service halt of the day after SS4, the Spencer Sport crew got to work. The problem was soon traced to a faulty FIA turbo-boost pop-off valve and, once the offending part had been replaced, normal service was resumed.
With Ahlin retiring in stage four, Cave and Morgan went in pursuit of Evans and local hero David Bogie. Another third and second fastest time on stages five and six respectively, followed by the cancellation of stage seven, meant that it was all down to the final stage.
A huge push from Cave and Morgan saw them set the fastest time and, in doing so, claim second place behind Evans and ahead of Bogie, who had encountered problems at the end of the stage and, due to a broken radiator, was unable to make it back to his home town of Dumfries for the finish.
“This result just goes to show that it’s not over until it’s over”, said Cave. “When the engine started to lose power we feared our challenge might be over, but a great job by the Spencer Sport and M-Sport engineers meant we were back in contention. We really pushed hard in the afternoon to make up for any lost time and I’m extremely pleased to have set the fastest time on the final stage and to have taken second place, although I did feel sorry for David (Bogie). Once again for us, it was a great all-round team effort.”
On the Mitsubishi side of the team, the event was equally – if not more – successful. Right from the word go, Jukes and Williams led the National Rally Cup category of the event, with Blomberg and Andersson a close second. This pattern continued right up until the sixth stage, when a puncture slowed Jukes and Williams by 30-seconds. Only a few seconds behind, Blomberg and Andersson seized the opportunity and took the lead.
With just one stage left to go and with both Mitsubishi Mirages very equally matched, there was little Jukes and Williams could do to reverse the situation before the end of the event and whilst the Spencer Sport liveried car was the runner-up on this occasion, for Spencer Sport – who are the official distributors of these cars in the UK and Ireland – it was a very satisfying result.
At the finish, Spencer Sport owner Jamie Jukes commented on what was a very successful day for the team: “For Tom and James to take the fight to the likes of Elfyn Evans was an impressive feat and I must congratulate them on their result.
“I’m also delighted with the performance of the two Mitsubishis. To score another first and second place in the National Rally Cup this season is proof that the Mirage is a highly competitive package for national and regional rallies. I’m proud of what all of us as a team has achieved this weekend and I would like to thank everyone involved for their commitment and professionalism.”
The next outing for the Spencer Sport team is at the fifth round of the MSA British Rally Championship: the mixed surface Nicky Grist Stages Rally that takes place on 9th & 10th July on the gravel and asphalt roads over the Epynt Military Ranges in South Wales.
The Spencer Sport team would like to thank its partners: Spencer ECA, Michelin, Oil 4 Wales, Reeds Construction & Engineering, Trefeddian Hotel, PIAA lights, Speedline wheels, Rugbi Industrial Supplies, Nicky Grist Motorsports, Omega Lubricants and Atech Racing.