By Paul Evans
A star-studded squadron of powerful rear-wheel drive Darrian rally cars will contest this year’s Protyre MSA Asphalt Rally Championship – each intent, and capable, of giving the top four-wheel drive World Rally Cars a run for their money and challenging for the overall title.
And three of them will be piloted by highly experienced Welsh drivers – Tony Rees, Huw Reed and double Welsh Tarmac Champion Richard Merriman.
The mid-engined cars, built in west Wales by Tim Duffee, are synonymous with asphalt rallying and have twice beaten four-wheel drive cars to the MSA Asphalt Rally Championship title – with Geoff Kitney/Alan McCann champions in 1990 and John Dalton/Alun Davies in 1993.
The opening round of Britain’s premier asphalt championship is the Melvyn Evans Motorsport Tour of Epynt on March 11, which takes place over the undulating military range roads north of Sennybridge.
It’s a rally venue Richard Merriman knows very well, having won his class there many times and won the Mini Epynt Rally in 2012 outright.
The Pontypridd driver has a long association with Darrians, having rallied one since 1992, and he will contest this year’s series in a 1998cc Vauxhall-engined Darrian T90, supported by The Roof Hub, Touchline and Gareth Swan Roofing.
“We’ve had quite a lot of success on Epynt, with many class wins and top ten finishes,” says Merriman. “It’s one of my favourite places to rally, so I’m especially looking forward to starting the season on the Tour of Epynt.
“We’ve always entered the Asphalt Rally Championship, and this year is no exception – and we’re going to take it one event at a time and see how it goes.”
Tony Rees will drive a brand new Darrian GTR, powered by a Millington Series 2+ engine. The Pontyclun-based driver has been rallying for almost 40 years, and is well known for giant-killing performances in Avengers and Sunbeams – and won the two-litre class on last year’s Harry Flatters Rally in his Sunbeam. He has also rallied a Darrian before, and was lying fourth on the 2015 Mewla Rally in an ex-John Dalton car.
“I’ve always contested selected rallies and never committed to a full championship before, so the plan is to start the Protyre MSA Asphalt Rally Championship and see how it goes,” says Rees.
“The Darrian GTR is a brand new car and we’ve only driven it twice before – at Rallyday at Castle Combe and at an event at Bovington, both towards the end of last year – so the Tour of Epynt will be my first serious rally in the car.
“The Championship has attracted a lot of good entries and there is a good calendar of events. I’ve never done the Manx before, although it’s always been on my bucket list of events to do, and I really enjoy rallying in Ireland, and I’m looking forward to some dry weather and a good Championship start on the Tour of Epynt.”
To celebrate his 30th year in rallying, Huw Reed will contest the Protyre MSA Asphalt Rally Championship in his 2.5-litre Millington Series 2-engined, ex-John Dalton/Damian Cole, Darrian T90 GTR, sponsored by Raintite and Hot Wheels.
The Bridgend driver has a huge amount of experience, having previously rallied everything from a Lada, to an Escort Cosworth and a historic Peugeot 205.
“We’re not ruling out doing all six rounds of the Protyre MSA Asphalt Rally Championship, and we’ll certainly do the Tour of Epynt, Manx, Rally van Wervik and the Mewla,” says Reed. “The car’s won many times on Epynt, so if we get a good start there, and follow it up with good results on the Isle of Man and in Belgium, we’ll have to dig deep and find a way to carry on!
“I bought the Darrian T90 GTR in 2016, so this will be my second full season in the car. We’ve upgraded it from a Millington Series 1 to a Series 2 engine and put in a paddle-shift sequential gearbox, and on its day it’s a great car. We finished third on the Tour of Epynt last year – this year there is a very strong entry, so we’ll be aiming for a strong top ten finish to start the season well.”