Rally of Wirral Preview
After several months of delay caused by the Foot and Mouth Crisis, the new Formula Rally Championship finally kicks off this weekend with the Rally of Wirral at New Brighton. The event is a rapid addition to the calendar following the cancellation of some more traditional events. The format will be very different - ten stages run on good quality asphalt, each one less than 4.5 miles.
Peugeot Sport will be running one fully-supported car - using the proven combination of the Peugeot 106 Super GTi with driver Justin Dale and co-driver Andrew Bargery. In preparation for the event, the team today completed 40 miles of tarmac testing at the MIRA test-track.
Crew Comments
Justin Dale (driver):
"It's fair to say that New Brighton isn't classic rallying terrain. But with all the delays with Foot and Mouth, I'm pleased just to be competing again. It's going to be a very competitive event - it's good to be using the 106 Super GTi as it's both a reliable and competitive package."
"Normally on tarmac we have to find a balance between the ultimate tarmac settings and a more forgiving set-up to handle the bumps and pot-holes. However, New Brighton is a very smooth venue, so we'll be using a no-compromise tarmac specification - it will be almost like driving a racing car"
Andrew Bargery (co-driver):
"It's going to be a very interesting event. By the end of the day, Justin will know the course pretty well, so we will be less dependant than usual on our pacenotes. However, each stage will be subtly different and the leading crews are likely to be separated by tenths of a second. This means it's absolutely crucial that both Justin and I stay alert as even the slightest mistake will see us slip down the leaderboard."
9th May 2001
