Mitsubishis dominate Production class.
At the end of the first leg of this year's Network Q Rally of Great Britain, Mitsubishis proved to be the dominant force, with the whole of the top ten in the fiercely contested Group N Class for near standard specification cars, being held by Mitsubishi Lancer Evolutions.
Leading the Group N runners, as cars returned to Cardiff for the overnight halt yesterday [Friday] evening, was Swedish driver Oscar Svedland, who has led the category all day, his Mitsubishi running faultlessly through the first seven of the event's 17 stages.
At the end of the first leg of this year's Network Q Rally of Great Britain, Mitsubishis proved to be the dominant force, with the whole of the top ten in the fiercely contested Group N Class for near standard specification cars, being held by Mitsubishi Lancer Evolutions.
Leading the Group N runners, as cars returned to Cardiff for the overnight halt yesterday [Friday] evening, was Swedish driver Oscar Svedland, who has led the category all day, his Mitsubishi running faultlessly through the first seven of the event's 17 stages.
However, hot on his heels is the current British Touring Car Champion, James Thompson, from York, the racer turned rally driver stunning everyone with his pace, this being his first ever World Rally Championship event. Thompson currently lies in a Swedish sandwich, 23 seconds behind Svedland and 35 seconds ahead of Tobias Johansson.
Fourth and fifth positions in the Production Class are held by Brits, Nik Elsmore from Coleford and Gavin Cox from Sheffield respectively, both drivers piloting Evolution Vii's and reporting delays: Elsmore experiencing a slide into a ditch on stage three, with Cox collecting a puncture on the same test.
Sixth place is currently held by this year's Mitsubishi Ralliart Evolution Challenge Champion, Jeremy Easson, who was awarded an entry onto the Rally GB by Mitsubishi Motors UK for winning this National series for Group N Lancer Evolutions. After a steady start Easson vowed to up his pace for the second leg today [Saturday] and made his intentions clear by setting the fastest Group N time on the final test of leg 1, at the SuperSpecial spectator stage in Cardiff's Docklands.
The only Group N Mitsubishi retirement so far is Burnley's Daniel Harper who crashed out of the event on stage six.
A further two days and 160 competitive miles lie ahead for the remaining crews over the gravel roads in the forests of South Wales today [Saturday] and tomorrow [Sunday], which means that the final result in Group N and in the Rally overall is far from over.
