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Longmoor Logo Stages 28th December 2008.   MCAC members ended 2008 with a flourish when Dave West/Keith Hounslow excelled themselves over the last two stages to take 1st overall, 2 seconds ahead of Richard Edwards/Paul Brown.  Chris Keys/Graham Tuer won the 1600 class taking a credible 18th overall.

 

Subaru pull out of world rallying: Subaru have become the latest team to withdraw from next year's World Rally Championship. one day after Suzuki also quit, as the economic downturn continues to hit motorsport hard.  "This sudden decision is a response to the widespread downturn affecting the industry," Subaru said in a statement.  The team was established in 1989, when the manufacturer teamed up with Prodrive. Subaru won six world titles in all, with the last coming with Solberg's victory in 2003. Their exit leaves just two manufacturers in next year's championship in the shape of Citroen and Ford. (BBC News 16.12.08)

 

Suzuki pull out of world rallying: Suzuki have pulled out of the World Rally Championship after only one season because of the current global economic crisis. The Japanese manufacturer started racing in the junior WRC in 2002 and moved to the senior field in 2007. However, in a statement Suzuki said they had "decided to focus on the core business functions". Their withdrawal follows Honda's decision earlier this month not to race in Formula One next season. Suzuki finished fifth in their debut season with drivers Per-Gunnar Andersson and Toni Gardemeister. They added that they will continue to support participants in the JWRC and also local motorsport events such as Swift Cup in Europe and the rest of the world. (BBC News 15.12.08

 

Rockingham Stages 2008 13th/14th December: The 5th running of this event was won by Steve Simpson/Simon Hunter in their Hyundai WRC with a time of 1hr 20m 15s.  David West/Sam Keeley in their Peugeot 306 Maxi Kit Car) were 2nd with a time of 1hr 22m 36s and Ashley Field/Janice Hooley were 3rd in their Darrian T90 with a time of 1hr 22m 49s.  Results now available.

 

Wales Rally GB. 5th - 7th December:  Sebastien Loeb finished the year off by taking the laurels in the Welsh round of the WRC.  Very much a last grasp victory after Jari-Matti Latvala led for most of the event.  Loeb's margin over Latvala was 12.7 seconds with Dani Sordo third (1min 20.6 seconds).  Citroen's 1st and 3rd placings gave them the Manufacturers crown over Ford.

 

facebook:  Martin Lush informs us that there is now an MCAC group set up - see the News page for further details (04.12.08)

  

Historic Rallye du Var 27th-30th Nov 2008:  Graham Samuel & Tony Phillips's  foray around the south of France was, unfortunately, curtailed on the first stage when the car's brakes failed and they surveyed a wall at close quarters.  Luckily no injuries and they were fortunate enough to have crashed by the only house on the 36km stage.  For the next eight hours they were wined and dined by the occupants!  Tony gives a few more details in the November/December issue of The Middlesex Magazine.

  

Carfax Stages 23rd November 2008:  This years event at Longcross has been won by Richard Edwards & Paul Brown with a margin of 10 seconds.  More info soon.

  

Hunters Night Trial. Saturday Night 6th December - With one less entry than he had for the original date, Pete Farmer has reluctantly taken the decision to cancel this event.  It may be possible to run an alternative event sometime in the Spring! (17.11.08)

Suzuki South of England Tempest Rally. 8th November 2008 - A successful event ended with Marcus Dodd taking the Tempest 4 spoils, David Harris the Tempest 2 spoils and Mark Gamble winning the Suzuki Swift Cup.  Torrential rain was around for most of the day so a big thank you to all the marshals for their perseverance. Full results from the event website.  Tempest 2 photos by Neil Wilson (more to follow shortly).

Brazilian GP 2nd November 2008: Congratulations go to Lewis Hamilton who has won the 2008 Formula One World Championship.  Felipe Massa crossed the line first in what, at the time seemed a Championship winning position, but with Hamilton regaining the necessary fifth place at the last corner, the title was snatched from his fingers (02.11.08).

 

Rally Japan. 31st October - 2nd November: Loeb makes it Five! Miko Hirvonen led Jari-Matti Latvala (+31.1) in a Ford one-two but it's third placed Sebastien Loeb (+2.30.6) who takes the 2008 WRC crown.

 

Rally of France 10th - 12th October:  Sebastien Loeb continues his winning ways with Mikko Hirvonen taking second slot (+3.24.7) and Francois Duval third (+3.31.6).

 

Rally of Spain 3rd - 5th October:  Sebastien Loeb has won the event with Daniel Sordo second (+24.9s) and Mikko Hirvonen third (+1m.02.5s). 

 

Richard Burns Memorial Rally 13th/14th September: RAF Marham Norfolk. Report soon.

 

Rally of New Zealand 29th - 31st August:     Sebastien Loeb took his third straight win, despite a spin, in the event.  Dani Sordo was second (+17.5secs) and Mikko Hirvonen was third (+41.5secs) after a spin and a puncture. 

 

Rally of New Zealand 29th - 31st August:     Sebastien Loeb took his third straight win, despite a spin, in the event.  Dani Sordo was second (+17.5secs) and Mikko Hirvonen was third (+41.5secs) after a spin and a puncture. 

 

Photo Gen-IC Fun Run and BBQ August 17th. Adrian L'Estrange/Andy Greenland were 'first past the post' in this event but with Rob Brook's 50 point penalty for the most successful crew designed to award victory to the 'second place' crew, the laurels went to the crew of Tony/Val Phillips and Neil/June Whitehead. It should be noted that Adrian and Andy almost gained the necessary points advantage to overcome the penalty! Full results now available. Thanks go to Rob who travelled down from Yorkshire for the weekend to setup this year's challenge. 

 

Rally of Germany 15th-17th August:  Sebastien Loeb has won his seventh straight Rally of Germany with team mate Daniel Sordo second (47.4secs) and Francois Duval third (1min 20 secs).    

 

Classics on the Green 6th August . Following the success of previous years, the August 6th club night once again moved to Croxley Green, for the annual "Classics on the Green" meeting.  Peter Nathan had organised the club stand where a number of members competition cars were on display.

  

Rally of Finland 1st-3rd August:  Sebastien Loeb has taken his maiden victory on this event  with Mikko Hirvonen second (9.00secs) and Chris Atkinson third (3mins 17.0secs).   

 

Uxbridge Autoshow 20th July. Once again we were without a field for the Autotest again this year but we supported the event with a display of Club motor vehicles.  More information when available.

With McLaren's Lewis Hamilton winning at Silverstone yesterday, the following link, submitted by Pete Farmer, will prove interesting reading for those who followed the McLaren Spygate saga last year - http://www.pitpass.com/fes_php/pitpass_news_item.php?fes_art_id=35328.  The argument raised casts doubt on pretty much any decision made in recent years by the FIA's World Motor Sport Council (WMSC), the body which decides on sporting disputes.  According to the FIA's own Statutes, it would seem that certain members did not meet the requirements to sit and vote on the Council and, as a result, the Council was acting beyond it's powers (07.07.08).

Suzuki GB to sponsor Tempest Rally We can confirm that Suzuki GB are to become title sponsor of the South of England Tempest Rally due to run on 8th November 2008.  The event, to be known as the Suzuki Tempest South of England Rally, will be the final round of the Suzuki Swift Sport Cup and BRC Challenge rally series as well as being part of the English Rally Championship. The rally will continue with its unique two-wheel and four-wheel drive format which will be based at the Pegasus Village Service Area adjacent to the spectator stage at Rushmoor Arena area once again.  Rally Manager Barry Guess said, ‘We’re delighted to have Suzuki on board. They’re putting a lot into our sport and should be commended for that. Their help will mean we can make the event bigger and better than ever this year.’  Read the fully press announcement here (20.06.08)

Rally of Turkey 13th-15th June. Mikko Hirvonen moves to the top of the WRC standings with victory in this years event.  Ford team mate Jari-Matti Latvala was second (7.9secs) with Sebastien Loeb third (25.7secs).

Hants and Berks Tracker Sunday 8^th June 2008: For the second year running, Pete Farmer and Andy Greenland have taken victory in this event.  With 12 entries, they won the event with an impressive 970 points out of a maximum of 990.

 

Paul and 'Bertie'.  As usual, a number of MCAC members were in attendance at the Abingdon Carnival over the weekend of 7th/8thJune 2008.  Saturday's Sprint saw the first appearance of Paul Hopkinson and Bertie - a 1966 Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint GT which was originally brought into the country in 2004 from South Africa.  Originally Alfa Blue, she was restored by Simon Whiting at Gran Turismo Engineering in Sussex, and sprayed Alfa Red.  These cars are widely known as "Bertie's" after their designer Bertone.  In September, Paul is hoping to enter the Historic Car Championship at Brands Hatch run by the Historic Sports Car Club. In addition, Paul and Hazel have entered the Norwich Union Classic in October (09.06.08).

  

Rally of Greece 30th May-1st June. Sebastien Loeb moves to the top of the Championship tables with a victory in Greece.  Petter Solberg was second (1min 09.50secs) and  Mikko Hirvonen third (1min 56.1secs).

 

Rally Italy 16th-18th May. Sebastien Loeb has taken victory on this years event with Mikko Hirvonen second (+10.6secs) and Jari-Matti Latvala third (+15.3secs).

 

  Jordan Rally 25th-27th April. Mikko Hirvonen took the spoils this weekend with Dani Sordo second (+1.15.7) and Chris Atkinson third (+4.59.5).

 

The MCAC Annual General Meeting took place on Wednesday 23rd April 2008.  There were a higher number of changes taking place this year for various reasons.  Top of the list was the news that Adrian L’Estrange had decided to stand down from the position of President and John Williams was duly elected in his place.  Congratulations to John and our thanks to Adrian who retires having recently completed his long term aim of publishing the Club's history.  Adrian was duly elected to the position of Vice President along with Tom Ryan who resigns from the Council as a result of this move.  Ray Brooker and Paul Brown were then re-elected to the Council whilst Pete Cook, Kathleen Dawson, Kevin Dawson and Paul Hopkinson decided not to stand this year.  Our congratulations go to all new appointees along with our thanks to those who have stood down.

 

Brakefast Autotests and Autosolo 6th April. After nearly being cancelled due to the unexpected snow fall, 27 competitors, split over 3 different events, took part in the 2008 Brakefast. In the National ‘B’ Autotest, Roger Dudley took Fastest Time of the Day (FTD) in his Mini Scamp. The Production Car Autotest saw Andrew Dudley achieving FTD.  In the AutoSolo, Chris Keys was victorious.  Follow the main link for Chris Keys full report with photos to follow shortly.  Results now available.

 

Rally Argentina 27th-30th March. Sebastien Loeb has taken a dominant victory in the event with Chris Atkinson 2mins 33.2 secs behind.  Dani Sordo was third (54mins 04.7 secs).

 

Organisers of the Dakar Rally say they hope to bring the event back to Africa by 2012.  Amaury Sports Organization owner Patrice Clerc said that the race would return when security was not an issue. "We're totally dependent on the geopolitical situation," he said. "I don't know if it will be permissible for us to return by 2011 or 2012." (28.03.08).

 

'One Hundred Motoring Milestones', researched and written by MCAC President Adrian L'Estrange was released at Club on Wednesday 26th March accompanied by a short presentation by the author on the journey undertaken over the last three and a half years.  Those present were also given a short insight into the research undertaken to achieve publication of the book - some considerable achievement on it's own (26.03.08).

Longcross is back!  Sutton and Cheam have announce that negotiations have been completed to enable motorsport to returne to Longcross for the foreseeable future. See details on our Events page (08.03.08).

Rally Mexico 29th Feb-2nd Mar. Sebastien Loeb has taken an easy win finishing with a margin of 1 minute 06.1 seconds over Chris Atkinson with Jari-Matti Latvala third (1.39.7).

The 2009 Dakar Rally will take place in South America with the 9,000km loop course starting in Buenos Aires.  After the 3rd January start, competitors will race south to Patagonia, into the Andes and then Chile's Atacama desert, before ending back in Buenos Aires on the 18th (12.02.08)

Swedish Rally 8th-10th February. Former Tempest winner, Jari-Matti Latvala today became the youngest winner of a WRC event by taking victory in Sweden with a margin of 58.3 seconds over team mate Mikko Hirvonen.  Gigi Galli took third position (2 mins 23.2 seconds) completing a clean sweep for Ford. 

 

Valentine Scatter 9th February. Our first competitive event of the year was won by Nat West's Ian Young/Rob Searby with Pete Farmer/Tony Phillips/Ray Bell second and Rob Brooks/John Wilson/Mike Wooster third.  Results now available together with the Route Card for those who want to do it sitting by the fire! Thanks go to Andy and Garry for the organisation.

Dakar Rally organisers, the Amaury Sports Organisation, have announced that a replacement event will be held in Eastern Europe in April.  The Central European Rally will be run under the "Dakar Series" banner as a pre-cursor to the series that will start in its full version next year.  The Hungarian capital of Budapest will host the start on April 20, with competitors tackling a 3000 miles, half of which will be over special stages, passing through Romania, before finishing back in Hungary at Lake Balaton six days later.  The ASO said that Dakar regulars BMW, Mitsubishi, Volkswagen and Schlesser, plus bike dominators KTM, are all hugely interested in competing in the event.  The Dakar Rally, scheduled to run in January, was cancelled just 24 hours before its planned start after the French foreign office advised against travel into Mauritania, where four French tourists had been murdered on Christmas Eve.  The ASO confirmed that they will be announcing plans for the 2009 Dakar Rally - which could take place in Chile - in the coming weeks (Information from Eurosport 04.02.08).

Hants & Berks MC 51st Pairs ‘Point to Point’ 27th January 2008: It was that morning after the night before event again!  Full results now available.

Monte Carlo Rally 25th-27th January: World Champion Sebastien Loeb staked his intentions for the 2008 season by taking a strong win on this years event with a time of 3hr 39min 17.0sec.  Mikko Hirvonen was second (+ 2min 34.4sec) and Chris Atkinson third (+ 2:58.6).

 

The Club's Annual Dinner-Dance and Presentation of Awards was held at Stockley Park on Saturday 26th January.   As usual, this excellent event was organised by Peter and Sarah Nathan.  Kevin Fowler was recipient of the President's Award - which was given out by Adrian L'Estrange himself - and Ann Kolter was the Best Newcomer.

 

The 2008 Dakar Rally has been cancelled because of safety concerns in Mauritania.  Four French tourists were murdered in Mauritania in December and the French government has advised against any travel to the country.  Eight out of the rally's fifteen stages were due to pass through Mauritania and the event's organisers say that there have been "direct threats against the race issued by terrorist groups".  The event had been due to start in Lisbon on 5 January and finish in Dakar on 20 January. See the Dakar Rally website for further information (04.01.08).

 

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