By Paul Evans
Jamie Jukes mastered atrociously wet and slippery conditions to win the 2018 PokerStars Rally in the Spencer Sport Mitsubishi Mirage – and immediately dedicated the win to his friend and fellow rally driver Mark James, who remains in hospital following a crash on Saturday morning.
Co-driven by Hirwaun’s James Morgan, the Penrhiwllan-based driver made a cautious start in the worst of the weather conditions on Friday night. Having survived heavy rain and flooded roads, Jukes held a strong second position at the overnight halt, and was sportingly full of praise and admiration for Kevin Davies/Dylan Jenkins, who led the event by 11 seconds in their Escort Mk2.
It was another amazing performance by Davies, who recently won the Powys Lanes and Cilwendeg road rallies. Davies eventually finished third, behind Jukes and second-placed Andrew Dudgeon/Joe Dooley in a Mitsubishi Evo.
Despite the rain easing, Saturday’s stages continued to be extremely slippery. Jukes used the four-wheel drive and rallycross-inspired set-up of the Mirage to great effect and upped his pace, taking the lead of the Manx Auto Sport-organised event on SS7, the opening stage of the day. From there, he consistently increased his advantage and adopted an ‘unfamiliar measured push to the finish’ – winning the event by 1 minute 42 seconds.
Winning a rally on the Isle of Man has been a goal for Jukes for some time, and it was extra special as victory comes just over a year after he and co-driver Dave Williams were hospitalised after an accident on the island. Jukes had no hesitation in dedicating his win to his friend Mark James, who crashed his Escort Mk2 on Saturday morning’s SS8. Having been removed from the car by event emergency teams and the fire service and initially treated at Nobles Hospital on the island (where Jukes was so well looked after following his crash), Mark is now receiving treatment for head injuries at Aintree Hospital in Liverpool.
“It’s been quite some journey this one and I’m very pleased to have got the job done and won the Manx Auto Sport PokerStars Rally,” said Jukes. “I’ve so many people to thank: Dave Williams, my great friend and accomplice in all the highs and very lows that the Isle of Man has granted us; James Morgan for bringing his influence and talent into this absolutely fabulous little car; Charlie Jukes for taking the flack whilst doing his best for me – his little brother – and to everyone that make the wonderful Spencer ECA and Spencer Sport teams what they are. They’re very special and I could not be more proud of us.
“I also have to pay tribute to our Manx ‘friends for life’ that have looked after us since our big one that Dave and I had at Rally Isle of Man just over a year ago. Also, to event organisers Manx Auto Sport on delivering another great and well organised rally no matter what Mother Nature or anyone else throws at them. A big thank you to all you marshals, set-up crews and radio crews – you have our absolute respect and gratitude.
“The downer to all this is the uncertain situation with the driver of car 36, my personal friend and Spencer ECA’s totally reliable heavy haulage contractor Mark James. A nicer man you will not find, and from the bottom of my heart I hope it’s all okay in time. I dedicate this result to you pal.”
Out of the many other Welsh crews that contested the event, Rhidian Daniels/Tomos Whittle encountered heater problems in their Citroen C1 Max on Friday night, meaning that their windscreen misted up so badly that they couldn’t see anything and had to pull over. Having restarted on Saturday, they withdrew from the event after being the first car on the scene of Mark’s accident – who, in a cruel twist of fate, is Rhidian’s uncle.
Dai Roberts/Nathan Davies had to complete the opening stage with no power steering and no working windscreen wipers in their Peugeot 205 GTI. The volume of water continued to be a problem, as Saturday’s run came to an end with an electrical engine misfire.
On their first event on the Isle of Man, and only their second event in their recently finished Proton Satria S1400, Ieuan Evans/Will Rogers were running as high as second in class. Having been seeded at number 71, their excellent run came to an unlucky end with gearbox problems. Meanwhile, Meilyr Evans/Andrew Edwards retired their Ford Escort with engine failure.
2018 Pokerstars Rally – top 10 finishers
1. Jamie Jukes/James Morgan (Mitsubishi Mirage)….1hr 06mins 17secs
2. Andrew Dudgeon/Joe Dooley (Mitsubishi Evo)….1hr 07mins 59secs
3. Kevin Davies/Dylan Jenkins (Ford Escort)….1hr 08mins 00secs
4. Tristan Pye/Andrew Falconer (Subaru Impreza)….1hr 08mins 38secs
5. Andy Davies/Max Freeman (Subaru Impreza)….1hr 09mins 03secs
6. Stuart Egglestone/Brian Hodgson (Ford Escort Mk2)….1hr 11mins 40secs
7. Rory McCann/Paul McCann (Honda Civic)….1hr 12mins 15secs
8. Gordon Morrison/Michael Hendry (Subaru Impreza)….1hr 12mins 19secs
9. Mark Jasper/Don Whyatt (Ford Escort Mk2)….1hr 12mins 55secs
10. James Munden/John Leigh (Subaru Impreza)….1hr 13mins 11secs