Rally driver Aaron Jones, from Penpedairheol, and his team have been crowned 2016 Welsh Tarmac Rally champions in their class category after another event win gave them an unassailable lead.
Racing at the Harry Flatters Rally in Brecon over the weekend of July 30 and 31, Aaron and co-driver Owen Evans, 18, finished first in Class 2 – for cars under the 1600c engine size – to clinch the title with three races of the Championship left.
Aaron also won the event’s Best Driver Under-25 award, after the pair finished 21st overall, out of 115 competitors.
Aaron, 20, said: “It is amazing to be the best in Wales and be crowned with the title. On the Saturday we recced the stages, making our notes to be used on the event on Sunday.
“The course had fast and flowing stages with minimal chicanes to slow cars down, so we knew this would be an event where we would have to push right from the word go. All weekend we had lots of sunshine with almost no wind, making it perfect conditions to go as fast as possible.”
However, bad luck struck early on Sunday morning when one of the team’s road vehicles broke down en route to the event. As a result of arriving late, Aaron and Owen were slapped with a ten-car grid penalty from their seeded position.
Clever driving saw the pair eventually make up the deficit over the first two stages over the 80-mile course.
Aaron added: “We were just getting quicker and more confident with the car. We managed to reach 125mph on one long downhill section of road, and then right at the end of stage three, we carried so much speed through a long downhill section that we hit large jump at around 90mph and landed so hard that we smashed a hole into the engine sump, and lost all the oil.
“A quick fix from our mechanics and fellow competitors’ mechanics meant we were able to battle on by plugging the hole with a screw and silicon.”
The fix worked for the final two stages, as the pair pushed the car to its limit, determined to win the event.
Aaron hailed their championship win, saying: “Personally it is a fantastic feeling to be able to win the championships with a few rounds left in the season. We can now focus our attention to the FMP Rally Challenge, which we are leading in the junior category, and are placed second overall.
“None of this season would have been possible without our brilliant sponsors who have backed us the whole year, so big thanks to PowerMaxed, Pit Stop Garage and Wilo Tyres for everything.”