Race to build rally car for Finlay after crash
Rally driver Finlay Retson is facing a race against time to ensure he is ready to compete in the next race of an eventful season.
The 19-year-old from Blairgowrie is due to compete in the Ulster Rally on Saturday this week.
The latest round of the Junior British Rally Championship follows on from June’s Ypres Rally, which saw Finlay spectacularly crash while on course to achieve a podium position.
Finlay and co-driver Richard Crozier headed to Belgium in the lead of the impressive M-Sport/Pirelli standings – the prize being 60,000 Euros towards a 2020 campaign in the Junior World Rally Championship.
The former Blairgowrie High School pupil, who drives a M-Sport Fiesta R2T, worked his way up to second place before running wide on a gravel-strewn corner and rolling multiple times after careering Finlay’s team have been busy re-building the car
into a ditch.
Finlay admitted: “It was a very frustrating weekend as the feeling in the car was probably the best I had ever had.
“I had a great chance of getting some solid points and my best-ever result and then it was all over in a split second
after getting caught out. To be honest, I thought my season was over there and then.”
The damage was soon assessed and working alongside the specialist insurance company M-Sport in Poland, Finlay was given the go-ahead to re-shell his car.
Speaking shortly after the arrival of the new shell, Finlay continued: “We basically have a few days to build a brand-new car and I have to say this is going to be an uphill battle.
“We had the old car stripped down ready for the new shell to arrive but as with all these things it took a little longer than expected so we are going to have to pull a few ‘all-nighters’ to get it ready in time to catch the boat.
“But we must try, not just for me and my championship hopes, but for all my supporters, backers and investors that have had the faith in me from the start.
“It’s a mammoth task, but we are certainly not going to give up easily.”
The Ulster Rally takes place over 100 miles of closed public roads in the vicinity of Newry.
The event is also the penultimate round of the British Rally Championship.