Kumho-shod Escort clinches Welsh series

Marty McCormack and Phil Clarke clinched the inaugural West Wales Rally Spares RAC Rally Championship with one round still to run as they slid their Kumho-shod MKII Escort to a fourth consecutive victory on 8 September’s Red Kite Historic Stages event. Commenting on the result, Kumho’s European motorsport manager Steve Thompson said: “Marty and Phil have performed faultlessly throughout this excellent new championship and thoroughly deserve their win. We are naturally delighted with the way our tyres have aided their cause.”

Commenting on their dominant performance McCormack said: “We were straight on it this morning: there are no lie-ins with this championship.” McCormack drove his Escort into a full five second lead over the similar Ford of Jason Pritchard and Dale Furniss during the opening stage in Crychan. 

After a dry, dusty morning’s rallying, heavy rain showers completely changed the conditions in time for the second round of tests. This could well have upset McCormack’s momentum, but he used his Kumho gravel tyres to full advantage and had ground out an impressive 42 second advantage by the end of the event.

The final event in the WWRS RAC Championship is the Trackrod Historic Cup, which takes place in the rallying heartland of Yorkshire over 27-28 September.