PRESS RELEASE: 18 August 2008

Stuart all set for Ulster

Welsh rallying ace Stuart Jones is eagerly looking forward to returning to Ireland for this weekends Todds Leap Ulster Rally as the Lico Wheels backed driver has shown good form on his last visit to the event in 2006.

Back in 2006 Stuart, in his first year in the British Rally Championship, took a splendid podium position on the Ulster Rally, and was never far off the pace of the eventual winners. Fast forward 12 months and Stuart put in a very strong drive on last years inaugural WRC Rally Ireland before being hampered by gearbox problems.

Stuart, who is co-driven by Manchester based Andy Bull , returns to Armagh with the exciting new Lico Wheels supported MG Super 2000 Sport and, judging by their early season pace, the nimble MSD run screamer should be in contention from the word go.

I’ve always enjoyed the Irish tarmac. I’m not sure why it suits my driving style and am really hoping we have a good run this weekend as we need to get our championship back on track.

A tight budget for 2008 has precluded any major testing opportunities but despite this Stuart and Andy are confident of a good run this weekend. The good thing is that the team have a fair bit of tarmac experience as Roy White has been competing in the Irish Championship all year in the sister car and so we at least have a good base set up to start with. The pair finished the Jim Clark Rally in May second amongst the British Rally Championship runners and are still very much in contention for the overall title.

Stuart and Andy are backed by Lico Wheels, makers of high quality competition wheels, and are also assisted by PIAA, Rallytech, Teng Tools, Motorsport Insurance Service and Dacha Oak Products, all of which form a vital part of the team.

The Todds Leap Ulster Rally is based in Armagh and the 2 day event features over 160 stage miles on some of the most diverse tarmac roads in Ireland , presenting a true test of man and machine.

 

PRESS REEASE: 21 July 2008

Rally Isle of Man one to forget for Jones

23 year old stuart Jones and co-driver Andy Bull experienced a rally to forget when the pair journeyed over to the Isle of Man last weekend for round 3 of the 2008 British Rally Championship.

Welshpool based Stuart and Birmingham resident Andy are contesting the full 2008 championship at the wheel of the Lico wheels backed MG Super 2000 Sport and following a fine second place finish on the previous round the pair were hoping for a competitive outing on the small island.

Strong runs on the two opening stages showed that Jones would be in for a real shout this weekend and was lying third amongst the BRC challengers entering the third stage. However a broken hub during the second run through Castletown forced the crew to retire from the leg.

Stuart returned to action under super rally on Saturday, hoping to gain some valuable experience and also pick up some championship points but once again lady luck deserted the youngster. A freak incident saw a stone flick up into the engine bay and get wedged between a belt and the pulley, resulting in the belt being shredded and forcing the MG to limp out of the stage and into retirement, this time for good.

I’m gutted. This is my fourth visit to the island and I never seem to have any luck here. The car was set up perfectly for these roads and the wet weather would have suited me so well. This is a blow to my championship but I am determined to bounce back in Ulster.

Stuart and Andy are backed by Lico Wheels, PIAA, Rallytech, Teng Tools, Motorsport Insurance Service and Dacha Oak Products.

The next round of the British Rally Championship is the Todd’s Leap Ulster Rally which takes place from 22 to 23 August 2008

 

PRESS RELEASE: 14 JULY 2008

Stuart all set for high speed Manx challenge.

Welshpool based Stuart Jones is all set for this weekends International Rally Isle of Man, an event which should suit his works MG Super 2000 Sport and help the 23 year old consolidate his strong early season form.

Stuart, who is co driven by Birmingham resident Andy Bull in the Lico Wheels backed MG, staged a spirited last stage fight on the Jim Clark Rally back in May and reaped the rewards as he snatched second overall amongst the British Championship runners. This strong result, as well as his seventh overall finish on the Pirelli International Rally, has elevated the 2003 Peugeot super cup champion into second overall in the British Championship, just 1 solitary point off the lead.

Since then the team has been working tirelessly on developing the car and recently travelled to the Czech Republic to contest the Rally Bohemia. Whilst the opening leg did not suit the MG, favouring the turbo charged Group N cars, once the rally headed into day 2, and terrain more suited to the Super 2000 cars, Stuart was on fine form. A string of top 5 times, despite his rivals running on more competitive BF Goodrich tyres, showed the true potential of both driver and car.

I am really looking forward to this weekend. I enjoy the Manx stages and the rally should suit the little MG well. We have a good base setting on the suspension but will have to fine tune it over the first few stages. The biggest challenge will be the weather, but I love changeable conditions so fingers crossed we have a good run.

This weekend will represent Stuarts fifth visit to the Isle of Man and thus the talented youngster has an idea of what to expect. As such you can expect the screaming Super 2000 Sport to be one of the highlights of the weekend.

As well as Lico Wheels, makers of high quality competition wheels, Stuart and Andy are also assisted by PIAA, Rallytech, Teng Tools, Motorsport Insurance Service and Dacha Oak Products.

For more on Stuart please visit www.stuartjonesrallying.com

 

PRESS RELEASE: 9 July 2008

Stuart satisfied with Czech test.

Welsh rallying ace Stuart Jones has declared his recent foray into the Czech Republic, where he contested the Rally Bohemia at the wheel of his Lico Wheels MG Super 2000 Sport, a success.

Stuart and co-driver Andy Bull were invited over to contest the rally, based in Mlada Boleslav, 40 miles north east of Prague, by the organisers. And with the two day tarmac based event proving the ideal opportunity to test ahead of the third round of the British Rally Championship, the team jumped at the chance.

Following the recce earlier in the week 23 year old Stuart was aware that the base settings on the MG would need adjusting to suit the characteristics of the stages and opted for a cautious start as he dialled the car into the conditions. Facing stiff competition from some of Europe’s top drivers Stuart and Andy were pleased with their progress throughout the opening leg, despite the high speed nature of the roads not really suiting the normally aspirated MG.

Day 2 dawned with plenty of promise for the MSD run car. A string of top 5 fastest stage times showed the true potential of the nimble little MG but when the power steering failed at the start of a loop of stages Stuart took the sensible decision of retiring the car rather than risk damaging any components ahead of the Isle of Man International Rally.

Rally Bohemia has been a wonderful experience. Everyone has been so helpful and friendly and the roads are fantastic. Friday’s stages didn’t really suit the car as they were primarily high speed tests but once we’d dialled in the settings we were very happy with the times. The power steering was a minor issue and we could have carried on, but with the Isle of Man only two weeks away we didn’t want to risk anything. We achieved what we came here to do, and that was to test the car against some of the best cars and drivers in Europe, and we are happy with the results.

Stuart and Andy are backed by Lico Wheels, PIAA, Rallytech, Teng Tools, Motorsport Insurance Service and Dacha Oak Products and currently lie second overall in the British Rally Championship.

 

 

PRESS RELEASE: 26 May 2008

Jim Clark Rally

Jones scores sensational second on Super 2000 tarmac debut.

Lico Wheels and PIAA backed Stuart Jones made history by becoming the first person in the new generation MG Super 2000 to set fastest stage times in the British Rally Championship as the 23 year old put in a storming drive to snatch second position on the very last stage of an action packed Jim Clark International Rally. Stuart is also the first person since Tony Pond in an MG 6r4 in 1986 to score a British Championship fastest stage time in an MG!

Stuart, along with co-driver Andy Bull, approached the opening loop of stages cautiously as a lack of budget had prevented a pre event test and the first time Stuart was able to drive the car on tarmac in anger had been at shakedown on Thursday night. The first loop of stages saw Stuart drop time as he was not 100% confident with the setup. At first service the MSD team made some changes to the setup which transformed the car as the young Welshman was immediately on the pace of the front runners.

With the car now working to his liking Stuart put in the kind of performance that won him the Peugeot 206 super cup a few years ago and saw him take two fastest stage times as he clawed his way back up the leaderboard to end day one of the 2008 Jim Clark International Rally third overall in the British Championship standings and a tantalising 24 seconds behind former champion David Higgins.

Stuart began to hunt David down on the opening stage on a cool and breezy, but dry, Sunday morning, taking one second out of him. Another two seconds were deducted from the deficit on the next stage and a further three seconds on the stage before the mid day service halt. A repeat of Stage 14 saw Stuart post his best time of the weekend taking the stage win by 5.3 seconds but more importantly closing the deficit to Higgins to just 8.9 seconds. Stuart commenting I’m now starting to really understand how to get the best out of such an awesome car.

Then, as he neared the end of the final stage he caught a glimpse of David Higgins ahead of him. Higgins had suffered transmission problems, and Stuart would eventually overall haul him with a time that was over 50 seconds quicker, thus taking second overall and equalling his best ever British Championship result!

Wow, what a weekend. David and I had a great battle on Sunday morning and to be honest I would have been happy with third, it just felt so good to be on the pace of the Group N cars. This is such a fast rally that we had expected to struggle to keep up here, especially with no testing, so to take second overall is fantastic, and is a massive tribute to MSD to produce such a competitive and reliable car straight out of the box. I also hit a rock yesterday afternoon and was very impressed with the strength of the new Lico wheels as I did not suffer a puncture.

Stuart and Andy, who are backed by Lico wheels, Arcasting, PIAA, Rallytech, Teng Tools, Motorsport Insurance Service and Dacha Oak Products, will next be out in action on the Isle of Man International Rally, which takes place from 17 to 19 July.

 

PRESS RELEASE: 18th May 2008

Jones to journey to Jim Clark

MG Super 2000 Sport works driver Stuart Jones is eagerly looking forward to the forthcoming Jim Clark International Rally, the first of three back to back tarmac rallies. This will mark the first time that the new age MSD run car will compete on a British tarmac event, and they admit that the first couple of stages will be a step into the unknown

Stuart will be calling on prior experience of the stages, having contested the rally four times in the past, but is also well aware that the set up of the Lico Wheels backed MG will be extremely crucial this weekend. Although MSD, the team behind the project, currently run a privateer car in Ireland for Roy White, the characteristics of the roads are completely different. As such the opening loop of stages will be more of a high speed test than a true representation of the cars pace.

23 year old Stuart, who hails from Welshpool, has plenty of tarmac experience to call upon. The 2003 Peugeot Super Cup Champion has numerous class wins, fastest stage times and even overall rallies wins on the black stuff to his credit, and with the experienced Andy Bull calling the notes this partnership is certainly a potent one.

I am really looking forward to the Jim Clark Rally. It suits my driving style, and the MG should go really well this weekend. We won’t have the opportunity to test ahead of the rally but I am still confident that, once we’ve sorted the settings out, we’ll be on the pace. And if it rains, all the better!

Stuart and Andy, who are backed by PIAA, Rallytech, Teng Tools, Motorsport Insurance Service and Dacha Oak Products, enjoyed a strong run on the British Rally Championship debut of the MG Super 2000 Sport, the recent Pirelli International Rally. Based in Carlisle this 2 day long event in the Kielder forests saw the young pairing set a string of top times to end the rally sixth overall.

The Lico Wheels MG Super 2000 Sport rally team are contesting the full Tesco 99 Octane MSA British Rally Championship in 2008, with a selection of European events also on the cards, providing the budget can be sourced. The car, based on an MG ZR shell, but with a race tuned 2 litre engine and 4 wheel drive transmission, is one of the new breed of rally cars which were recently earmarked by the FIA as being the base for the next generation of World Rally Cars.

 

PRESS RELEASE: 20th April 2008

Jones satisfied with sixth on punishing Pirelli

23 year old Welshpool rallying ace Stuart Jones was more than happy with sixth overall and third in class on last weekends Carlisle based Pirelli International Rally, his British Rally Championship debut of the new Lico backed MG Super 2000.

Stuart and his co-driver Andy Bull were making a welcome return to the premier division of British Rallying after a year away contesting the Production car World Rally Championship and although he had only ever tackled the Pirelli Rally once before, in 2006, Stuart was confident of a good run.

Friday night featured 4 slippery stages in the Kershope forests north of Carlisle and with the rally being identical to last year’s event, one which Stuart had missed, the young rally driver knew that he had an immediate disadvantage. Although he had contested the Red Dragon Rally as a warm up two weeks ago, Stuart had not been in active competition since Wales Rally GB at the end of November last year. A cautious start to the rally saw young Jones only 13th fastest through the opening stage. But with confidence building he upped his pace and showing a remarkable level of consistency was seventh fastest on each of the next three stages to end the opening leg in seventh position.

Overnight changes to the car helped balance the handling and Stuart was able to comfortably increase his pace. After a run of top 6 times all morning more changes at the mid morning halt brought another improvement in form. Fourth fastest overall on Stage 10 was immediately followed by third fastest on the very next stage. By now the MSD run MG Super 2000, which is backed by PIAA, Rallytech, Teng Tools, Motorsport Insurance Service and Dacha Oak Products, was up to sixth position, but with three stages still to go a mature headed Stuart had his eye on a finish, rather than heroics. Maintaining a constant rhythm through the final loop of stages Stuart and Andy successfully fulfilled their main aim, a solid finish well inside the points on the opening round with the new car.

Although sixth position is a really good result for a car so early in its development the positive thing is that I feel there is so much more to come. I’m still adapting my driving style to suit the MG and at each service we are making small changes which are moving us forward.

I must give a big mention to Matt Beebe who helped us out when we broke our recce car on Friday morning. Without his help we would have really had problems!

MSD and Stuart will now begin developing the tarmac set up ahead of the first tarmac rally of the year, the Kelso based Jim Clark International Rally, which starts on May 23rd.

 

PRESS RELEASE: 7th April 2008

Stuart Jones – Ready for a Super 2008

Two years after making his British Rally Championship debut, 23 year old Welshpool resident Stuart Jones returns for another attempt at the title. Stuart will contest the series as a works driver with one of the most dynamic cars to compete in the British Isles in quite some time, the revolutionary MG Super 2000 Sport.

Stuart, who was the 2004 Peugeot Super Cup Champion and winner of numerous rounds of the Mitsubishi Evo Challenge, will be partnered by experienced co-driver Andy Bull for the full campaign. This could also include a selection of events in Europe later in the season, as the young Welshman takes on the very important role as a works driver in the MSD run project.

After impressing team principal David Whitehead on the Wales Rally GB in 2007, Stuart was offered a dream seat as the works driver for 2008. This role also includes being involved in the testing and development of the new car. Feedback from Stuart will be used to provide setup data on the customer cars in the U.K, Ireland and Europe.

David Whitehead: MSD and MG are delighted to have teamed up with Stuart Jones. We see Stuart as one of the UK’s emerging rally talents, so it is entirely appropriate that he is one of the first to seriously campaign the MG S2000 in the fast emerging Super 2000 category. We fully expect Stuart to take the challenge to the leading Group N competitors and wish him the best of luck

The team also welcomes a brand new sponsor in the form of Lico Wheels (www.licowheels.com). Produced in Italy, Lico are a leading supplier of competition wheels throughout Europe, which are manufactured toan extremely high standard. With SJR Motorsport becoming the official distributor of Lico Wheels in the U.K. their common aim is to become the Number One competition wheel supplier in Europe.

Lico, who are South American based, join Stuart’s own personal sponsors PIAA, Rallytech, Teng Tools, Motorsport Insurance Service and Dacha Oak Products in supporting the talented Welshman in his bid to make it to the top of the sport.

With minimal testing having been carried out on the still new car Stuart is under no illusions about the challenges ahead. The car has come along a lot since Wales Rally GB but nothing beats competitive mileage against your rivals. Whilst we can already see gains in performance we won’t really have an idea of our pace until we arrive at the Pirelli Rally and go head to head, but I am really confident that we can take the fight to the top drivers in the Championship. We recently used the Red Dragon Rally as a test and were very pleased with how the day went. A big thanks to MSD who have put a lot of time and effort into developing the car since Wales Rally GB. I am confident that we will be on the pace from the beginning.

A recent test on the Red Dragon Rally in South Wales bodes well for the team, after Stuart and Andy experienced a trouble free day and were pleased to be on the pace of the front runners. They will now re prepare the car ahead of the season opener, the Pirelli International Rally, which takes place in Carlisle from 18th to 19th April.

Photo to Rally Shots (www.rally-shots.com)

 

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