BEN Friend and Old Monmothian co-driver Cliffy Simmons returned to the top of the podium with a thrilling last stage win in the Trackrod Historic Rally Yorkshire, reports PAUL WILLETTS.
The duo's first win since 2021 came after a titanic four-way fight, only seconds separating them in the ultra fast forests.
The penultimate round of the Fuchs British Historic Rally Championship and BTRDA series was split into two groups, with historic event competitors doing 57 miles, while the BTRDA field’s Saturday only covered 44 miles.
A near capacity 180 cars lined beside the sea in Filey, with a tough 13-mile test in Dalby Forest on Friday night for historic contenders.
On Saturday the BTRDA and Mini contenders joined for the classic stages of Cropton and Staindale Gale Rigg, a rerun of Dalby, and the sting in the tale with 10 miles of Langdale.
The historic section had the best quality of the year with more than 85 cars, and the title battle became a four-way fight which will now go to the final round.
Conditions were near perfect for Friday, although grip levels were inconsistent with some tales of woe at the finish, and the stage cancelled with just a few left to run after an accident.
Cropton saw the Escorts of locals Matt Robinson and the returning Dan Mennell, leading championship protagonists Seb Perez in the Porsche 911RS and the TR7 V8 of Mark Higgins, plus the beautiful Fiat 131 of Nick Elliott, alongside a batch of Escorts in the hands of Richard Hill, Richard Jordan, Rudi Lancaster, Adrian Hetherington and Friend.
Two punctures saw Higgins' charge ended on stage 3, and Elliott also lost time with an off before retiring.
But at service Mennell led from Robinson with Hill third, and Friend and Coleford’s Simmons fourth, with just eight seconds separating them, and Perez seventh after losing 20 seconds with an engine issue.
The final two tests totalling some 23 miles saw Perez back on song taking fastest in Dalby 11 seconds quicker than Friend, who took time out of both Hill and Mennell, while Robinson's front brakes locked on and couldn't be released.
So it came down to one final ten-mile shootout on Langdale, Mennell leading by six from Hill.
But it was Friend in the Allglass Anglia Pirelli-shod Escort RS1800 who emerged fastest, taking 12 seconds from Mennell, eight from Hill, two faster than Perez.
"We gave it everything, but we had a massive moment in that last stage, it could easily have gone so wrong," said Friend.
"But thanks to the team the car's been brilliant, and also Cliffy who's done another fantastic job.
"And thanks also to the organisers, officials and marshals, it's been a fantastic event."
Allensmore’s Ian Evans with son Dan on the notes on his first visit to Yorkshire in many years in the MJC Construction Escort RS1800 finished an impressive ninth overall.
Veteran campaigners Jeremy Easson and Littledean’s Mike Reynolds in the Automotive Events Escort RS1600 had a difficult opening stage with light problems, but climbed to 27th overall and second in class C5 on Saturday.
Seventeen-year-old Jack Birch with Ross-on-Wye’s Mike Jode had a trouble free Mini Challenge run to 54th and third in class H1 in the Trackrod Historic Cup, securing the Mini R50 championship on his first year of multi-surface rallying.
On the Trackrod Forestry Stages, Coleford husband and wife Nigel and Karen Jenkins in the NJ Autos-backed Nova 16v continued their pursuit of a second BTRDA 1400 crown with another superb class win in 21st overall after an impressive drive against more powerful machinery.
Karen wrapped up the BTRDA 1400 co-drivers title for a unique third time, but the drivers' title fight will come down to the final Cambrian Rally round,
But gearbox issues ended Geoff Phelps and Dale Gibbons' event in the Hartpury Farms Escort RS1800 on stage 3.