By Simon Gronow
Malcolm and Rhys Jones were comfortable winners of the third round of the J D Tyres Welsh Tarmacadam Rally Championship.
The pair finished over two minutes ahead of the next car – a result which sees Jones move up to second in the drivers’ standings.
For the third round of the Championship, crews headed north to the Anglesey Racing Circuit for the Rali Menai Stages – where they faced eight special stages at Trac Mon on what turned out to be a very demanding event.
On only their third rally in their Darrian T90 GTR, Malcolm and Rhys Jones got off to the perfect start setting fastest time out of the 71 entrants on the first special stage.
Things didn’t go so well on the second test when they stalled their Darrian’s engine after spinning the car, but this proved to be their only issue during the day.
From then on, the pair set the fastest time on each of the remaining stages held on an extremely hot day, and with a healthy lead were able to back off to preserve the car.
Malcolm Jones Flies To First Overall Rally Victory On Epynthttps://t.co/GsX8xSA7Iv via @Dai_Sport_
— Dai Sport (@Dai_Sport_) May 18, 2023
At the end the pair were clear winners as behind them, several rivals expected to challenge for top placings all failed to make the finish.
Richard Merriman/Kath Curzon retired their Darrian T90 on the first stage with gearbox issues.
Bob Fowden/Mathias Fowden had moved up to second overall after SS2 before withdrawing their Subaru Impreza WRC after losing over five minutes with a puncture, while Rob Tout/Terry Martin retired their Ford Fiesta R5 from a top five position following fuel feed problems.
Also failing to make the finish were Phil Turner/Simon Anthony whose Škoda Fabia suffered turbo problems, whilst Mydrian Harries and Mark Mayes retired their Novas with a damaged wheel bearing and oil leak respectively.
They were joined on the retirement list by Kevin Davies/Sion Rowlands, whose Peugeot 207 suffered clutch problems, and Sam Weller failed to make the finish as James Durkin’s Proton Satria suffered hub failure.
Whilst their rivals were struggling in the conditions, Russell Davies/Richard Suter had a fright when their Darrian T90 stuck in third gear.
With the problem rectified at service, the pair were able to complete the event in tenth position and Davies now holds the championship lead.
Competing at Anglesey for the first time, Leighton Smith was seeded at number 48 and despite being held up by slower cars he and Karen Phelps quickly moved up to hold a position in the mid-twenties.
Despite a scare when their Peugeot 205 GTi suffered a blown radiator hose, the crew were able to effect repairs and went on to finish in a fine 15th position.
It would be a good day for Fiona Crump, as a top 20 finish alongside Max Paveley in his Honda Civic Type R has resulted in her moving up to second overall in the co-driver section.
Also gaining a good haul of co-driver points was Dylan Thomas, who finished in seventh place overall in Mei Davies’ Ford Escort Mk 2.
With usual driver Chris Simmons unable to start the event in his Darrian T90 GTR when it suffered last minute mechanical issues, Lucie Guttridge accompanied Dave Ginn instead in his road rally specification Nissan Micra.
Despite them being moved to another class and having to run on road tyres, the pair had a problem free run and Guttridge is leading the co-drivers’ section of the championship outright.
After leading his class at the halfway point, Keith Daniels was slowed over the final stages when the handbrake failed to work on his Vauxhall Corsa, costing time on the tight hairpins.
As a result, he dropped to second in class but continues to lead his class in the championship.