CAN FERRARI GO ON A WINNING RUN?
While Max Verstappen and Red Bull might not have been beaten in a straight fight in Australia, Ferrari’s pace in Melbourne was very encouraging indeed. After all, Carlos Sainz won after starting on the front row and even put an on-track pass on the Flying Dutchman. Ferrari has always had a high regard for its own importance in the tapestry of Formula 1 and that has put rival teams’ backs up on occasion. However, what Formula 1 does need is competition, and it seems that the Italian team is the closest one to providing a threat to Red Bull. Given the boost that victory in Australia has given the Scuderia, let’s hope it pushes on from here.
It was hard not to feel sorry for the organisers of the British Rally Championship last weekend. The glittering new campaign, which has attracted a truly stellar line-up after a few seasons in the doldrums, blasted back into life on the North West Stages on Saturday and the anticipation was high. However, four big accidents wrecked the running order of the stages, some had to be scratched and it was a logistical nightmare. In the end, five of the planned 10 stages were run at a fierce pace, and our congratulations go to the 2019 European Rally Championship winner Chris Ingram, who made a successful return to UK competition to remind fans of his ability.
While it was a stuttering start to the fresh campaign, the furious pace and the high level of competition has already shown glimpses of just how hard-fought this championship is going to be.
Melvyn Evans Motorsport will be in the heart of the BRC title battle, and Paul Lawrence went and spoke to the team boss to trace the story of the ultra-successful squad in our insight on pages 30-31.
Elsewhere, Colin McRae was a rally man who drove at a furious pace and, ahead of this week’s Safari Rally World Rally Championship encounter, Luke Barry guides us through how the legendary
Scotsman conquered the terrain in Kenya on page 32-33.
We also look ahead to the British GT Championship, which rumbles into life at Oulton Park over the Easter weekend. Graham Keilloh is your guide to the action ahead with our preview on pages 28-29.
The incumbent of the Motorsport News readers’ questions hot seat this week is Dave Coyne. While he may not have performed in the higher levels of motor racing, the erstwhile Formula Ford battler certainly made the up-and-comers prove themselves in the 1980s and early 1990s. To cement any reputation, a starlet had to match or beat Coyne in the lower ranks, something that many found impossible. The motor trader wheeled and dealed his own way through a career in the cockpit which has left him with some treasured memories – and the same is true of the fans who saw him race.