FANS AND CREWS READY FOR JIM CLARK RETURN
Beloved rally will take place for the first time in more than five years
After a five-and-a-half-year absence, the Jim Clark Rally returns this weekend and is set to present a huge challenge for crews.
For the first time since 2001 – when foot and mouth disease forced a reschedule – the rally will run in November, so the already demanding Borders lanes will be damp and littered with leaves.
The rally runs as a standalone event this year – before appearing on three major championship calendars in 2020 – creating a varied entry list.
Three of the top 10 seeds will arrive in brand new cars, headed by Irish visitors Josh Moffett and Andy Hayes. Moffett brings a Ford Fiesta R5 Mk2 to Duns for its first ever appearance on a UK national round as he assesses his R5 options for 2020.
David Bogie is the only previous winner on the entry list and will be reunited with former co-driver Kevin Rae. The 2011 winner finished third in his Ford Escort Mk2 on last month’s Mull Rally and could challenge for victory again if conditions stay dry.
Robert Swann lines up for his first assault on the Jim
Clark since 2008 in a borrowed
Ford Fiesta RS WRC (see below).
Alan Kirkaldy has never done the Jim Clark before but is in good form after his recent Cheviot Stages victory. Kirkaldy recently changed the restrictor size on his Fiesta R5 from 32mm to 34mm
“to try and keep up with the WRC cars a bit more” and has been a threat ever since.
“The stages look quite narrow and it’ll be quite damp with the leaves, and obviously bits in the shade will never dry out so it’ll be challenging, put it that way,” he told MN.
Perennial asphalt threats
Hugh Hunter, Andy Fenwick and last week’s Neil Howard Stages winner Stephen Simpson can’t be discounted either, while Michael Binnie heads the local charge in his Mitsubishi Lancer E9.
Garry Pearson has swapped his usual Fiesta R5 for an Escort Mk2, while fellow Duns driver Dale Robertson could spring a surprise thanks to his intimate knowledge of the stages.
Euan Thorburn was a favourite for victory but has had to pull his entry due to engine issues with his Ford Focus WRC05. MN understands that he is working flat out to still make the event, but Thorburn remained absent from the entry list as we went to press.