Matthew Hirst won a record-breaking fourth Motorsport UK Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship title after scoring victory on the Wyedean Rally (Saturday 16 November) for a fourth time in a row.
Co-driven by Declan Dear, the Doncaster driver finished the Forest of Dean event almost two minutes ahead of his nearest championship rival, after a sublime performance in his Delta Salvage/Witham Motorsport Škoda Fabia R5.
Matthew had made several set-up changes to the car, most notably softening the anti-roll bars, which worked a treat on the usually dry and grippy late autumn gravel roads.
He’d opened up an impressive 37 second lead after the first two stages and extended that to over a minute by the lunchtime service halt – although he arrived at the Ross-on-Wye cattle market with a wooden branch sticking out of the rear right Pirelli K8A tyre.
It was a miracle that the tyre hadn’t deflated, and where Matthew had suffered more than his fair share of bad luck this year it appeared that some good luck had come at a crucial time in his title hunt.
Three more fastest stage times in the afternoon made it a full house of seven out of seven stage wins, as the defending champions scored their fourth set of maximum Pirelli Welsh points to clinch the title in style.
Bob Morgan hadn’t rallied since the Nicky Grist Stages in July but was nevertheless quickly back into his stride in his Winner Garage Škoda Fabia R5.
Co-driven by Ade Williams, the local Cinderford driver was a lot faster in the afternoon after bolting on a new set of Pirelli tyres and was eight seconds faster through the second running of the Serridge stage, despite a 360 degree spin. A big push towards the end secured Bob a well-deserved second-place Pirelli Welsh points finish.
Tom Llewellin secured an overall Pirelli Welsh podium, plus a 2WD and W9 class win (just like he’d done on the Woodpecker Rally) after another stunning drive in his Dave Jenkins Motorsport-prepared Weir Rallying Escort Mk2. Co-driven by Ross Whittock, the former Pirelli Welsh Junior champion fought hard for second place but couldn’t quite keep a charging Bob Morgan behind him and lost out by just nine seconds.
In addition to Simon Rogers and Andrew Stokes hanging up their race suits after glittering careers behind the wheel, the Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship bid an emotional farewell to Dave Evison – the former stage and road rally navigator who has dedicated the last 15 years to growing the series as championship secretary.
As a small token of everyone’s appreciation, Matthew Hirst and Declan Dear presented Dave with a retirement gift at the finish ceremony.
