By Simon Gronow
Ian Godney took maximum J D Tyres Welsh Tarmacadam Championship points on the Mewla Rally, after a great run over the Epynt military range in his Suzuki Swift Maxi 2000.
With series leader Chris Simmons not competing on the event, Godney (co-driven by Stewart Powell) seized the opportunity to close the gap at the head of the series.
Having settled down after a couple of spins early on, and despite late engine concerns, Godney won his class, finished an impressive eighth overall and as first Welsh Tarmacadam contender to finish moves up to second in the overall points standings.
Fiona Crump, co-driving for Jersey driver Jez Baudains who finished in the top 10 on Epynt for the first time in his Ford Escort.
Finishing one place behind Godney was Fiona Crump, who was co-driving for Jersey driver Jez Baudains who finished in the top 10 on Epynt for the first time in his Ford Escort.
Following her maximum points haul, Crump maintains the second placed position in the co-drivers’ section, narrowing the gap to leader Lucie Gutteridge.
On this occasion, Lucie was accompanying Clive Thomas in a Mini Cooper, and with the driver getting used to using slick tyres on the car for the first time, she took maximum points in the 1600cc class.
With their Peugeot 205 GTi running perfectly all day, Leighton Smith/Karen Phelps took their fourth class win of the year to maintain their dominance of this category, as Phelps maintains a top three placing in the co-drivers’ category.
Co-driver Lucie Gutteridge, accompanying Clive Thomas in a Mini Cooper,
Third of the drivers to finish was Jonathan Davies who, partnered by Sion Rowlands, enjoyed a good run in his Peugeot 207 to maintain his championship class lead. He finished one place ahead of class rivals Christian Howells/Dan Evans in a Vauxhall, with Andrew Owen finishing third in this class in another Nova.
Making a return to the championship was Sam Weller who accompanied Ian Taylor in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9, and following a good run took second place in the co-drivers’ section.
For once the Darrian drivers, who are normally at the head of the leading contenders, weren’t the ones to beat, with Wayne Jones/Rhys Jones retiring their Darrian T90 GTR near the chicane at the Quarry on SS2 and Richard Merriman/Kath Curzon retiring their T90 nearby.
Also having a short run was Terry Martin, who was co-driving for Phil Turner, whose Ford Escort suffered engine problems on the second loop of stages.
The Mewla was also the final round of the King of Epynt Challenge, and first to finish were Damian Cole and his daughter Charly in their Citroën C3 Rally 2.
Home after what was a very close and eventful Mewla Rally. The Wrc Mini still sounded savage, and did the business! pic.twitter.com/ITWso2swL6
— Alastair Cummins (@AlastairCummins) August 27, 2023
On Charly’s first event at Epynt after their accident on the Dixies Challenge, the pair were soon into their stride and challenging for the overall lead of the event.
Altering their Citroën’s suspension and changing to slick tyres worked wonders for the later stages, with the pair ending the event in second place overall, just two seconds behind the winners (Daniel Harper/Martin Cressey in a Mini WRC).
Despite finishing as leading King of Epynt crew, the pair ended in third place in the series, having failed to score on the Dixies Challenge.
Second of the co-drivers’ to finish was Jonathan Hawkins who used his local knowledge to help Anthony Morgan achieve a fine fourth place finish in their Darrian T90 GTR.
https://twitter.com/raceandrallyni/status/1697674484394623076?s=20
Another crew left to rue a non-score on the Dixies Challenge were Terry Brown/Angharad Williams who overcame worn tyres to finish as second Challenge finisher in their Ford Escort, taking a top 10 finish in the process.
Third driver to finish was a relieved Phil Lloyd who had started the day in the lead of the series and was looking set for a top 10 finish and a good class result in his Ford Escort Mk2 before the radiator cap blew off on the seventh of the 10 special stages.
Thankfully he was able to effect repairs, and despite finishing lower than expected, he and Dean Wiltshire scored enough points to enable them to win the King of Epynt Challenge for 2023.
Following their problem-free run, where they took another class win, Leighton Smith/Karen Phelps have ended the year second in the Challenge in their Peugeot 2025 GTi, with Cole finishing as third driver and Gareth Davies, who was out with Eurwyn Davies in a Ford Escort finishing third co-driver.
Other finishers were Jim and Paul Boxall in a Peugeot 205 GTi who finished just one place ahead of Richard Stepney/Alun Ginn in a Talbot Sunbeam.
#mewlarally #epyntranges #oldforgegaragemewlarally2023 pic.twitter.com/Oq9iGzqJ1b
— ifan thomas (@ifanthomas73) August 27, 2023