by Geoff Mayes


Sebastian Ling experienced a fraught end to his 2007 rallying season when the actuator broke on his turbo on the very first stage, robbing him of all power.

After repairing it at service the 2007 Mitsubishi Evo Challenge runner-up returned to top the times for the duration of the event.

Ling only returned to rallying earlier this year in a Mitsubishi Evo 9 and has regularly challenged for overall honours.

He was keen to end the season on a high and, after discussions with co-driver Aled Rees, the pair had decided to push that little bit harder this weekend. However, when the car dropped power on the very first stage the pair were aghast in despair.

As is characteristic of the Pro Dent supported duo though, they picked up the pieces and returned to the fray to use the rest of the event as one final test session.

To say their times were impressive would have been an understatement. Between Stage 3 and 6 Ling's pace would have placed him well ahead of his peers and potentially in an overall podium position, ahead of a number of World Rally cars.

“What a frustrating end to a frustrating year. Time and again we've shown we've got the pace, however we've been on a tight budget all season long and constantly been let down by minor problems,” he refected.

“I am now going to completely rebuild the car before deciding on my 2008 plans. But we will be back, that is for sure!”

Ling, whose Kumho shod Mitsubishi is built by SW Motorsport, finished the season second in the Mitsubishi Evo Challenge standings with four podium positions to his credit.