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RALLY NEWS NO.5
Hexham service/Saturday 11am
UNOFFICIAL LEADERBOARD AFTER STAGE 7 Highfield
1st (24) Guy Wilks/Phil Pugh (Ford Puma) 53.33.7
2nd (1) Mark Higgins/Bryan Thomas (Clio) 54.06.1
3rd (11) Tapio Laukkanen/Miikka Antilla (Impreza WRC) 54.37.7
4th (8) Jonny Milner/Nicky Beech (Corolla WRC) 55.23.8
5th (2) Gwyndaf Evans/Howard Davies (MG) 55.27.0
6th (21) Martin Stenshorne/Clive Jenkins (Ford Puma) 58.09.0
7th (4) Simon Hughes/Calvin Cooledge (Clio) 58.26.4
8th (25) Mirco Baldacci/Giovanni Bernacchini (Punto) 58.48.0
9th (23) Kris Meeke/Chris Patterson (Corsa) 58.58.9
10th (31) Dougie Hall/Steve Egglestone (Lancer) 59.05.8
11th (26) Leon Pesticcio/Tim Sturla (Punto) 1.00.19.5
12th (19) Barry Johnson/Stewart Merry (Impreza WRC) 1.00.53.5
Fastest man through the stages this morning has been Tapio Laukkanen, setting
a time of 6.32.7 through stage 6, Jonny Milner was 6.39.1. James
Thompson was 6.44.3. Through stage 7 again Tapio was fastest, the only man to
break 10 minutes for the 11.42 mile test. Tapio's time was 9.52.6. Jonny
Milner was 2nd fastest with a time of 10.12.7 and Finnish driver Latvala was
just one tenth of a second slower.
What a difference in the conditions from last night, dry and sunny, but the
stages are very fast. Mark Higgins commented "We went well, but we
were on the rev limiter, flat in 6th for quite a while."
Simon Hughes in the sister Clio spotted the oil temperature rising and he
backed off slightly. Gwyndaf Evans said "Not a bad run, lost a
little time with a half spin at a hairpin and also lost some confidence when
the car hit a hole very hard. I haven't rallied competitively for a while, and
I haven't switched on to maximum". Guy Wilks in the Ford Puma
reported "I feel the car is just a little too low geared for today, my
maximum speed is 103/104." Tapio Laukkanen commented "It was
good in those 2 stages, still being a little careful, not 100 per cent certain
what this car can do. There is a second or two still missing, we had a bit of
a brake problem, maybe the pads too soft". Jari-Matte Latvala
punctured a front right tyre on his Ford Focus WRC through Wether Lair and
smashed the front guard off in the process. Austin MacHale has speeded
up a lot today but still said "Being cautious, the engine is a little
tired, we were going to fit a fresh unit this weekend, but we will save it for
Killarney next week".
A major retirement today has been Julian Reynolds, 6th overnight, his Subaru
turbo has gone. Ryan Champion retired last night when his Puma slid into a
Kielder ditch. George Philipedes retired with broken suspension. Neil
Burgess/Anna McColl retired their Mini in stage 2 with a broken steering rack.
Kate Heath retired when her Proton got stuck in gear. Garry Jennings went off
on a square left corner and couldn't get back on.
James Thompson has gone very well this morning despite catching cars and
receiving a broken windscreen for his trouble. Neil Buckley still leads the
Production class despite stopping to change a puncture on stage 6. He
got another puncture before stage end. Barry Clark damaged his Puma's
suspension on a square right into bridge. John Lloyd broke the Subaru
windscreen on a big gully. Steve Petch & Gareth Jones both had punctures.
Kris Meeke slight suspension trouble, a spin, engine slightly down on power,
soft brake pedal. On last night's Pirelli National Rally Chris Moore came out
on top from Rodney Wilton, with Jack Ingleby 3rd. Dessie Keenan 4th. Shaun
Gallagher 5th and Stuart Jones 6th. These are the Peugeot 206 runners
and they start a fresh rally today and will be able to score more points. More
news later. BRIAN AND LIZ PATTERSON
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