The destiny of the 2007 MSA Asphalt Rally Championship will be decided over the remote military roads of the Otterburn ranges in Northumberland this weekend when the UTS Cheviot Rally hosts the sixth and final event of the season.
Steve Simpson and John Price can't be separated on points going into the event with it now becoming a 'winner takes all' scenario of the highest order.
Simpson took the win on the opening round of the series, the controversial Tour of Epynt, but since then, hasn't managed to top the podium whereas Price has taken victory at the previous two rounds.
But with competitor's best four scores only counting towards the championship, the maths are quite simple, if either Simpson or Price crosses the ramp as rally winners, they are 2007 champions. If it's Price it will be his thirteenth such title but for Simpson, it would be his first…
In the co-drivers' section, the battle is no less intense. Caroline Price and Mark Booth are equal in the points table but, on this occasion, Booth is not available and Simpson has enlisted the help of Patrick Walsh. Currently, however, Booth would take the title on count-back and it means Caroline still has to finish fifth highest championship contender or better, if she is to reverse the situation.
Like the two main championship protagonists, newcomers Tommi Graham and Mike Bailey have maintained a 100 per cent finishing record in their Mitsubishi Lancer and while Bailey is safe in third, Graham has Group N leader Nick James breathing down his neck for the final podium place in the drivers' table.
After an absence of several months, Mark Jasper/Don Whyatt are returning to the MSA Asphalt Championship for the Cheviot. The pair were leading the event for a while this time last year before their MG Metro 6R4 suffered gearbox problems, causing them to drop to an eventual third overall.
Other locals in with a shout are Geordies Andy Fenwick and Lee Tindall who debut their recently acquired Skoda and they, along with the Subaru of John Marshall/Paul Hughes, could influence the result, as could the rapid 6R4 pairing of John Stone and Lee Carter.
Supporting the main National A event is the National B Keith Knox Rally which runs adjacent to the UTS Cheviot Rally and the Newcastle pairing of Michael Glendinning and Andrew Roughead start as favourites in their Subaru.
