FUCHS sponsored championship set for a spectacular start

The FUCHS LUBRICANTS MSA British Historic Rally Championship is set for a spectacular start on Rally North Wales after a massive response from championship contenders eager to enter.

The entry list for the opening round of the competition on March 24 has now reached an incredible total of 130 cars.

As well as quantity, the BHRC field is packed with quality and is headed by the crew that came so close to taking the overall title in 2017. Nick Elliott and Dave Price will return to the event they won the historic section of in 2017 in a bid to get another title challenge off to a flying start.

Importantly, the event’s new format has caught the imagination of those planning to contest the newly-announced BHRC2, which has been created to turn the spotlight on the Category 1 (pre-1968) and up to 1600cc cars in the championship.

The entry to date for Rally North Wales includes an incredible tally of 16 Category 1 cars and nine 1600s. These are numbers not seen since the changes to event running orders took a heavy toll on competitors in these groups. The format of Rally North Wales has encouraged these cars back into action and it will be a tremendous start for BHRC2.

Rally North Wales is the first rally to run to the new Rally 2WD format, which means that all of the 2WD cars will complete all of the 45 stage miles before the 4WD entries.

The on-line entry system can be found via the event website: www.rallynorthwales.co.uk

Volunteer marshals are currently being sought for the event. For a second year, all marshals are being offered a half price stay at the Woolacombe Bay Holiday Park in Devon.

Many congratulations to the 2017 champions Jason Pritchard and Phil Clarke who collected their MSA awards during the annual MSA Night of Champions on London recently.

They are the first people to score a hat-trick of BHRC crowns and Jean Todt was on hand to make the presentations.

Meanwhile, the organisers of the Roger Albert Clark Rally have revealed outline details of the 12th edition of the rally, which will run in November 2019.

After the runaway success of the 2017 edition, Rally Manager Colin Heppenstall has confirmed that the 2019 rally will build on that success by following a broadly similar format. The provisional date is 21-25 November 2019, but this remains provisional subject to the date of Wales Rally GB.

FUCHS-backed Ciceley Motorsport has announced that Adam Morgan will be returning with the outfit for the 2018 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship.

Offers were on the table for Morgan to move team and championship during the winter break but the Lancashireman made his intentions clear, preferring to stay put, with he and Ciceley eyeing a championship challenge this season.

“I need to get right up the championship points table this year,” said Morgan. “Last year was going so well up until Oulton Park and Croft, when a fire at the former and an engine problem at the latter really put us on the back foot.“

FUCHS Silkolene ambassador Freddie Housley headed to Fulbeck Kart Circuit in Lincolnshire for his first race against a grid of cadets.

After a good few days in Valencia with the Zip Kart team, Freddie was keen to gauge what level he was at after only four weeks in his new kart.

Freddie qualified in P8 for the 15-lap final. After a bad start saw him drop to 11th, he came through to finish in P9 – and only tenths of a second off the leaders on his fastest lap.

The team are delighted with his progress in such a short space of time.

Finally, Paul Bird of FUCHS Silkolene sponsored Paul Bird Motorsport (PBM), who was appointed as the ambassadors of the Down’s Syndrome Association last year, has joined forces with Friends of Force, who will be hosting the 9th Annual Rail Industry Electrical Engineers Dinner Dance on Friday 11th May 2018 at the Ashford International Hotel in Kent.

Team Owner Paul Bird will be in attendance accompanied by six times and defending British Superbike Championship title holder Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne who will speaking as a special guest.

The dinner dance has, over the past nine years, raised just over £117,000 for their regular charities and 50% of the profits from this year’s event will be donated to the Down’s Syndrome Association.