Scott Pedder claims Heat 1 of ARC Plant Hire Forest Rally

Late drama in the forests of Nannup has seen a shake up in results on a chaotic Sunday as Scott Pedder and Glenn Macneall picked up the ARC Plant Hire Forest Rally Heat 1 win.

Behind the wheel of the Pedders Rally Team protected by Famous Insurance Skoda Faber Rally2, Pedder and Macneall claimed the Heat by nine seconds over Toyota Gazoo Racing Australia’s Lewis Bates and Anthony McLoughlin.

Rounding out the top three for the day was Alex Rullo and James Marquet in their first appearance of the year, with the Itellispatial Fleetcare Hyundai i20 n Rally2 drivers ending up just over two minutes off the Heat 1 winners.

While the trio were all deserving of their respective positions, they were aided by the heartbreak of Harry Bates and Tom Kristensson, both of whom suffered punctures deep into the day that undid all their good work throughout the day.

The first of the two to suffer dramas was the Swedish international, Kristensson, and co-driver Andreas Johansson, after their Maximum Motorsport Skoda Fabia Rally2 suffered multiple punctures on the penultimate stage – forcing them to retire.

Having led the rally ever so slightly heading into the sixth and final stage of the day, Bates and co-driver Coral Taylor looked in the box seat to take the Heat win following Kristensson’s issues, however just a couple of kilometres into the Power Stage, the pair suffered a puncture of their own.

Whilst they were able to replace the tyre, the pair lost a large amount of time and eventually settled for a sixth-place finish behind the second Skoda Fabia R5 of Jackson and Damian Long in fourth and the Ezi Up Toyota GR Yaris AP4 of Troy Dowel and Bernie Webb.

Prior to those incidents, Harry and Kristensson were the main protagonists for the event as the pair exchanged wins across the opening four stages – the Swede going fastest in the first and third stages and Harry topping the timesheets on the second and fourth stages to enjoy a lead just shy of 10 seconds.

Harry and Taylor then extended their lead to almost 30 seconds at the end of the fifth stage over the highly consistent Pedder and Macneall, who had moved into second following Kristensson’s issues, before disaster struck on the final stage for the leaders.

Harry’s teammates Lewis and McLoughlin went on to win the final stage of the day, to give themselves maximum bonus points in the Power Stage, while Pedder and Macneall posted the second fastest time for the third time.

In the Cups, Toby Price and Ben Searcy picked up the Heat honours in both the WOLF Sports Cup and the Subaru WRX Challenge, beating fellow competitor Riley Walters in both.

However while Walters and co-driver Andrew Crowley fell short of victory in both competitions, they were able to secure the Junior Cup win comfortably, having won every stage.

David Smith and Rodger Pederson had a similar result in the 2WD Cup as they won every stage of the day, while Ronan Sharkey and John Harkin picked up the Classic Cup win after Shane and Sylvie Garner had mechanical dramas in the afternoon.

The Racing Dipsy duo held a seven-and-a-half-minute lead at midday service before their Subaru WRX caught on fire post-stage.

View the Subaru Results Hub.

The ARC Plant Hire Forest Rally resumes tomorrow with the first of six stages to begin from 9:30am AWST.

QUOTES
Scott Pedder
Pedders Rally Team protected by Famous Insurance Skoda Fabia RS Rally2

“It’s one of those sports where, when you think you can just cruise home and you’re looking pretty handy, something happens. We got a flat tyre on the second or third corner into the long stage, and I don’t think I’ve ever driven so fast on a flat tyre before.

“We knew we probably needed to finish third or fourth today, but the car’s not sounding fantastically healthy at the moment. There are a few noises in there, so it’s going to need some work before Narooma after driving that far on a flat tyre.

“But it’s great to be here. Full credit to the Maximum Motorsport team because they’ve done a lot of work. It’s also great to become the oldest Australian Rally Championship winner of all time, so that’s pretty cool.

“It’s all about maximising points and never giving up. This sport is all about strategy, and Glenn and the guys did a fantastic job today telling me how fast to go – not what to do.