By Paul Evans
Wales will host three rounds of the British Rally Championship next year, with the Get Connected Rali Bae Ceredigion joining the Nicky Grist Stages and the Visit Conwy Cambrian Rally on the 2022 calendar.
The Aberystwyth-based Rali Bae Ceredigion was Wales’ first ever closed road stage rally when it ran in 2019 – and because of Covid-19 restrictions that is the only time the event has been staged.
Osian Pryce made history when he and co-driver Dale Furniss won the event in a Hyundai i20 R5.
With an experienced organising team behind it, Rali Bae is a great addition to the BRC calendar – and it plans to run a much longer 100 stage mile format next year too.
Next year will be the fourth time that Nicky Grist Stages has hosted a round of the BRC.
The first time was in 2016 when Elfyn Evans/Craig Parry won the event in a Ford Fiesta R5 – a result that helped them win the BRC title.
The Builth Wells event, with stages in the nearby classic mid-Wales forests including Crychan and Halfway, hosted a round of the BRC in 2017 and again this year.
The Visit Conwy Cambrian Rally will host the final round of the 2022 series.
Based in Llandudno, the event uses some of the old Wales Rally GB stages such as Penmachno, Gwydir and Alwen.
The cost-cutting seven round series contains three asphalt and four gravel events and takes place entirely on the UK mainland.
Unlike in previous years, there are no rounds in Ireland, on the Isle of Man, on the Isle of Mull or in Belgium.
https://twitter.com/BRCrally/status/1450363591262040068?s=20http://
The 2022 BRC begins in April with the Corbeau Seats Rally Tendring & Clacton in Essex and visits Wales three times, Scotland twice and North Yorkshire once.
“I think the 2022 BRC calendar should appeal to a lot of competitors,” says double British rally champion Matt Edwards, who is challenging for a third straight title this year in his Yuasa Rally Team Volkswagen Polo GTI R5.
“You tend to get entries dwindling towards the end of the series, but they’ve removed the two most expensive rallies from the calendar (Mull and Ulster) and that will help with budgets and maybe encourage drivers to carry on and finish the season.
“Regardless of whether you’re still in with a shot of a title, doing a round of the BRC is great experience.”
📰 @CambrianRally to welcome spectators
The Visit Conwy Cambrian Rally team have announced that spectators will be welcome at the October 30th event.
Read more:https://t.co/qWbvevSl3p#BRC pic.twitter.com/KFoypGvebl
— British Rally Championship (@BRCrally) October 13, 2021
Meirion Evans, who runs a Polo GTI R5 for both Matt Edwards and Osian Pryce, and whose family-run Melvyn Evans Motorsport outfit looks odds-on favourite to win the BRC Teams’ title this year, agrees.
“It looks a good calendar with a nice mix of gravel and asphalt events,” says Evans.
“Hopefully after all the problems caused by Covid-19, next year will be back to normal.
“But it’s still maybe sensible to have shorter events and to help keep costs down with all rounds being on the UK mainland.”
“We are delighted to announce our new-look calendar for 2022 which I believe provides exactly the right mix of events worthy of the British Rally Championship marker,” adds BRC manager and former Wales Rally GB boss Iain Campbell.
“It’s been an ever-evolving landscape over the last two years or so and we have all had to adapt to the challenges we were faced with.
“But 2021 has arguably been the most successful season in recent BRC history with an exciting fight for all classes in the series and a very impressive list of registrations.
“Our 2022 offering is an exciting mix of both gravel and asphalt events, each with individual features and formats.
“This ensures we can provide the traditional challenge that competitors expect from the BRC and they can also be sure of exceptionally high standards of events expected from the series.
“The British Rally Championship is highly regarded and we have worked hard to ensure a cost-effective calendar for 2022.
“We hope that we will yet again see the sensational commitment and action from some of the best drivers in the business next season.”
2022 British Rally Championship calendar
Round 1: Corbeau Seats Rally Tendring & Clacton – Clacton….23/24 April
Round 2: Beatson’s Building Supplies Jim Clark Rally – Kelso….27/28 May
Round 3: Nicky Grist Stages – Builth Wells….9 July
Round 4: Grampian Forest Stages – Banchory….13 August
Round 5: Get Connected Rali Bae Ceredigion – Aberystwyth….3/4 September
Round 6: Trackrod Rally Yorkshire – Filey….23/24 September
Round 7: Visit Conwy Cambrian Rally – Llandudno….29 October
Reserve Round: Oulton Park Stages – Oulton Park….5 November