Top national rally champions to feature at Wales Rally GB in Flintshire

The winners of the UK’s main national rally championships are set to feature at this year’s Wales Rally GB in Flintshire.

Free entries will be given to the victors of the British Rally Championship’s new Road to Wales event, while champions from the BTRDA Gold Star, McGrady Insurance Northern Ireland Stage Rally Championship, KNC Groundworks Scottish Rally Championship and Pirelli MSA Welsh Rally Championship will also be rewarded.

It forms part of an initiative which has previously benefited Dolgellau’s Elfyn Evans, who currently leads the FIA World Rally Championship following his historic WRC victory last weekend in Sweden.

The prizes for the Welsh and Scottish Championships will go to those crowned as 2020 champions, while the BTRDA and Northern Ireland championships will be awarding the prize to their respective R2 Cup and Junior Champions.

Meanwhile, the BRC Road to Wales, run in association with Hyundai Motorsport Customer Racing, is open to all those registered for the 2020 British Rally Championship.

Four finalists will be nominated and the outright BRC champion will be joined by three other selected drivers who have impressed a panel of judges with their driving ability and general aptitude throughout the season.

In early October, the chosen four will then contest a finale held at Motorsport UK’s new headquarters in Bicester Motion.

Here they will undergo fitness, media and aptitude tests, as well as having their driving skills analysed via video.

The overall BRC Road to Wales winner will then secure a prize drive at the Wales Rally GB behind the wheel of a Hyundai i20 R5, and the chance go toe-to-toe with some of the best drivers in the world.

The Wales Rally GB will return to a familiar location on land next to the Toyota Engine Plant on Deeside Industrial Park from 29 October to 1 November.

It was originally home to the popular international motor sport spectacle for six years between 2013 and 2018, but last year’s rally was relocated to Llandudno much to the disappointment of local fans and businesses.

Iain Campbell, clerk of the Wales Rally GB course, said: “Wales Rally GB is the pinnacle of rallying in the UK and we are determined to maximise its presence to the full benefit of all those involved in the sport.

“Whether it’s encouraging and rewarding those competing in our top national championships, or providing those aspiring to be future world champions with vital WRC experience, the provision of these prize entries is always extremely well received.”

Fans will be able to buy tickets for this year’s Wales Rally GB when full details of the 2020 competitive route are announced in the spring.