PRYCE SET FOR RED KITE CHALLENGE
Wrc hopeful to revert to his ford escort mk 2 for welsh event
Osian Pryce will return to a Ford Escort Mk2 for the Red Kite Stages and says that the seldom-used forests of South Wales should provide a level playing field.
WRC aspirant Pryce will contest the June 24 event in the same historic specification car he used to finish third on Rally North Wales in March, despite a late puncture. The Red Kite is round four of the Fuchs MSA British Historic Rally Championship.
The last time Pryce rallied in the Vale of Neath was on the final day of his FIA World Rally Championship debut on the 2010 Wales Rally GB.
Now, he’ll tackle the classic stages of Rheola and Resolven in the 1978 Escort prepared and tended by Suffolk-based Rallyxtreme.
Pryce said: “I’m looking forward to rallying somewhere I don’t know, as it adds to the challenge. I think some of my main rivals might have rallied there in 2013, but as the stages on this year’s Red Kite aren’t used very often, it’s a bit more of a level playing field for everyone. Fresh rallies always make you prepare that little bit harder, and you really have to focus and get stuck in right from the word go.
“Rally North Wales showed that we can be competitive in an Escort Mk2, so we’re going to give it another good go on the Red Kite. A top three finish would be good and a win would be great! We’ll be trying hard and having a lot of fun, that’s for sure.”