PRESS RELEASE: 23rd August 2010

JRM denied podium finish - Rally NI - 20 & 21 August 2010

• Gwyndaf Evans retires on second day
• Daniel Sigurdarson survives dramas in the closing stages to score team points

When battling for the lead in round five of the Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship, driving the JRM Mitsubishi Evolution X Gwyndaf Evans and co-driver Phil Pugh were forced into retirement after sliding wide and hitting a wall on stage 10, the impact rupturing a radiator pipe and consequently, with coolant leaking out, the engine overheated.

After two victories out of four rounds so far this season, JRM and Evans went to the Todds Leap.com Rally NI looking to consolidate their position in both the teams’ and driver’s championships. And, following a highly successful test a few days before the rally, the team were upbeat about their chances.

Based in Antrim, the rally featured six stages on Friday afternoon and into the evening followed by a further eight on Saturday. This combination provided competitors with a total of 127 miles of timed special stages on closed roads to the north and south of the town.

Evans and Pugh were the quickest out of the box and posted the fastest time by 4.2 seconds ahead of Craig Breen/Gareth Roberts in a Fiesta S2000 on SS1, with their main championship rivals Keith Cronin/Barry McNulty a fraction of a second slower in third. But with the nature of the roads suiting the Super 2000 machine, Breen took the lead by the time cars returned to Antrim for the first service halt after SS3.

Cronin was still in third place having lost time due to a spin in SS2. However, he fought back during the next three stages - a repeat of the opening three - and pushed ahead of Evans by ten seconds before the overnight halt.

With the JRM team making a few adjustments to the car’s handling in readiness for Saturday’s eight stages, Evans was happy with his car and set off to close the gap on Cronin. The first stage of the day saw Evans go quickest, but Cronin caught back the time on the next, the two BRC leaders now driving on the limit.

The third stage saw the pair split by just 0.7 seconds, with Evans the faster of the two and it was perhaps inevitable that the blistering pace would take its toll. Unfortunately for JRM and Evans, this applied to them: After a down-hill straight, Evans came over a crest and found he could not scrub off enough speed to negotiate the right-hander that followed.

With the shiny tar under the trees providing very little grip, the Evo slid wide into a hedge and made contact with a wall. After losing around 30 seconds extracting the car, Evans continued, but noticed that the engine temperature was climbing as he progressed through the stage, the cause being a loss of coolant fluid after a radiator pipe had been ruptured in the impact.

Managing to nurse the car back to Antrim for the service halt that followed, the JRM engineers set to work and, although repairing the damage, the engine would not start when Evans and Pugh went to leave. Even pushing and towing the car had no effect and the team had little choice but to retire from the rally.

A disappointing to end to yet another great performance, which gave the event and the British Championship its main focus of attention over the weekend. With Breen/Roberts winning the rally and Cronin/Breen second, the result means that the Subaru paring will have the advantage going into the final round, needing to finish eighth or higher to claim the driver’s title.

Evans and Pugh’s team-mates Daniel Sigurdarson and Asta Sigurdardottir drove a faultless rally, which was also trouble-free right up until the penultimate stage, when a rear suspension arm broke. With their car handling very strangely and even after clipping a bank, they made it through the final stage and back to Antrim to score points for JRM in the teams’ championship.

The season finale sees a return to gravel stages, this time in the forests of North York Moors, for the Yorkshire Rally on 25th September. And, with competitors scoring one-and-a-half times the usual amount of points, there will be a maximum of 30 available to the winner, a factor that provides Evans, JRM and other leading drivers and teams a fighting chance of still claiming the title.

Team quotes

Gwyndaf Evans

Obviously, I’m very unhappy about the accident. The pace was so fierce between us that I just had to push and, at those speeds any mistake was going to be punished - which it was. Other than dents and scratches there was nothing wrong with the car, so it was unlucky that something had just punctured the pipe. Other than that we could have kept going without a problem. I feel sorry for the team, as they put so much into this campaign and the car has been fantastic.”

Chris Hodgson – Motorsports Director (Rally)

We had to keep the pressure on today and this is something that can happen when the pace is as strong as it was. Gwyndaf always gives his total commitment and therefore this is one of the things that can happen. I was very pleased with the way things were going up until the accident, as the car was performing so well, so there are certainly some positives we can take away from this event.”

James Rumsey – Team Principal

“I’m disappointed for the whole team that the event ended the way it did. We’ve had an excellent season so far and what happened this weekend is not a true reflection of that. It now means that to achieve our goals of capturing the drivers’ and teams’ titles is going to be a tough call on the last event, but in motorsport it’s never over until it’s over and we’ll be there to do all we can to win.”

British Rally Championship standings after round five

Teams
1 Pirelli TEG Sport 128
2 JRM 122
3 Ramsport 64

Drivers
1 Jonny Greer 75
2 Keith Cronin 74
3 Jason Pritchard 55
4 Gwyndaf Evans 58
5 Adam Gould 53
6 Elfyn Evans 49
7 Daniel Sigurðarson 46
8 Dave Weston Jnr 42
9= Jarkko Nikara 38
9= Mark Donnelly 38

 

 

PRESS RELEASE: 16th August 2010

JRM continues British Rally Championship campaign in Ulster

Rally NI - 20 & 21 August 2010

The JRM Rally team will be back in action this weekend, when it heads to Northern Ireland for the fifth round of the Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship, the Antrim-based Rally NI - the event previously known as the Ulster Rally.

Leading the JRM charge will be Gwyndaf Evans in one of the team's Group N Mitsubishi Evolution Xs. Currently second in the drivers' standings, Evans will be looking to move a step closer to the title with a good result this weekend.

His main competition will come from 2009 British Champion Keith Cronin, the Subaru driver just two points behind and also having no-scored on one round so far - a significant factor as competitors have to drop one result from the season's six events to calculate their final total. Current series leader Jonny Greer is four points ahead, but having scored on all four rounds so far means that he is likely to be overhauled before the end of the year unless problems befall his rivals.

This weekend will see Evans out to put the record straight. After holding a comfortable lead in the previous round on the Isle of Man, an excursion into a ditch in the slippery conditions meant that he had to fight back to finish second to Cronin, although stage times showed that the JRM driver's pace was enough to win if all had gone well.

Evans will be joined for this event by Phil Pugh. A highly experienced co-driver, Pugh is usually seen alongside twice British Champion Guy Wilks and was previously a team-mate to Evans when they contested the BRC with Mitsubishi in 2007 and 2008.

Bolstering its chances in the team's championship, which it currently leads, Daniel Sigurdarson has entered under the JRM banner once again and will be looking to put his Manx memories behind him when an electrical problem caused his first retirement of the year.

Sigurdarson, with his sister Asta Sigurdardottir, will be returning to the UK having contested the biggest rally of the year in their native Iceland last weekend and, if it had not been for a series of mechanical problems that forced them into second place, they would have easily won the event.

The Rally NI starts from Antrim town centre at 13.15 on Friday and features six timed special stages on closed public roads before the overnight halt. The event restarts at 06.30 on Saturday morning and comprises a further eight stages, with the finish at the busy Junction One Shopping Centre scheduled at 15.35.

Team quotes

Gwyndaf Evans
“With only two rounds left and the championship so close, it's very important we come away from this event with a good result. To be honest we will be disappointed with anything else, although - as I've always said - that's not an easy task in the British Championship. I enjoy this event and I've had some good results in Northern Ireland in the past, so with the car going as well as it is, I'm sure we can do the job that's need if we don't get any problems.”

John Barnes – Team Manager
“This was our first event with Gwyndaf last year and we finished second. We've made some major advances with the development of the car since then and, if the pace on the Isle of Man is anything to go by, I'm confident we'll be back up there challenging for the top positions.”

James Rumsey, Team Principal
“Our target is to win this year's British Team's and Driver's titles. Therefore, we need to come away from this event with a good haul of points to put ourselves in a good position for the final round. I'm pleased with the speed of our car, so I'm looking forward to a good event.”

Team’s Championship standings
1 JRM - 106
2 Pirelli TEG Sport - 90
3 Ramsport - 64

Driver’s Championship standings after round three
1 Jonny Greer - 62
2 Gwyndaf Evans - 58
3 Keith Cronin - 56
4 Jason Pritchard - 55
5 Dave Weston Jnr - 42
6= Adam Gould - 38
6= Daniel Sigurðarson - 38
6= Jarkko Nikara - 38
9 Elfyn Evans - 37
10 Robert Barrable - 31

 

PRESS RELEASE 12th July 2010

International Rally Isle of Man 9 & 10 July 2010

Another top performance by Evans and JRM

Gwyndaf Evans brings JRM Mitsubishi home second on the Isle of Man

Driving the JRM Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X, Gwyndaf Evans, together with co-driver Gareth Roberts, battled through the difficult conditions on this year’s International Rally Isle of Man to finish second in round four of the Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship. The result sees JRM continue to top the table for the British Team’s Championship and Evans consolidate his second place in the driver’s standings.

Always a challenging event, this year’s visit to the Isle of Man was no exception, with crews not only having to deal with the demanding asphalt roads which criss-cross the length and breadth of the island, but the ever-changing weather conditions. And whilst most of the UK was experiencing a heat-wave, the same could not be said for the island in the Irish Sea, with wind, rain and fog making an appearance at various stages during the rally – a scenario that made tyre choice a key feature throughout the event.

After the well-attended ceremonial start overlooking Douglas Harbour on Thursday evening, the action got underway on Friday morning from the TT Grandstand, with a loop of three stages before the first service halt of the day. After a trouble-free run, Evans reported he was happy with the car – a factor that was endorsed by a healthy 16-second lead.

During the next loop of three stages the weather began to change and, as the mist and rain set in over the hills, the roads became more and more slippery. Not happy with the way his car felt as he embarked on SS6, a section of shiny tar saw the grip levels reduce even more and, near the end of the stage, the car suddenly snapped sideways, spun and dropped into a ditch. After a bit of coaxing, Evans and Roberts managed to extract their Mitsubishi and get going again but, as they were facing the wrong way, lost more time trying to find space to turn round.

Back at service inspection revealed that, as well as light body damage, the rear suspension needed attention having been damaged in the impact. However, the more significant damage - caused by the un-planned excursion - was the loss of two minutes, a delay which undid the good work already done by Evans and Roberts and plummeted them to seventh place – Keith Cronin/Barry McNulty consequently inheriting the lead.

Evans then began his fight back and at the end of SS10 was up to second place, albeit now one-minute 47 seconds behind Cronin. Although managing to improve the margin by three seconds by the time they reached the overnight halt, Evans and the JRM team knew it would be tough to regain the lead during Sunday’s eight stages – but on the Isle of Man anything can happen.

With this in mind, the team told Evans to push in the hope that he would start to close the gap on Cronin and would be ready to pounce if the reigning British Rally Champion hit problems. But, with monsoon-like conditions arriving on the island during the morning, the opportunity to attack and still stay on the road was reduced – as Evans found out when he aquaplaned through a gateway and into a farmyard on SS18.

Even after setting a time 23 seconds quicker than anyone else over the final stage, a 13.27-mile run which included a combination of the classic Manx stages of Druidale, Injebreck and The Baldwins, before a heading into Douglas for the flying finish right outside the TT Grandstand, Evans still had to settle for second. However, the result consolidated his second place in the Driver’s Championship and allowed JRM to retain its leading position in the Team’s Championship – even though team-mates Daniel Sigurdarson/Asta Sigurdardottir retired in the closing stages due to an electrical problem.

The next event for the JRM team will be round five of the Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship, the International Rally Northern Ireland, which takes place on 20 & 21 August.

Team quotes

Gwyndaf Evans
“Of course we would have liked to have won, but second is still a big result – especially when you consider the conditions. Although we were unlucky to have spun into the ditch, we were also lucky to be able to keep going. It was a great shame, as I think it would have been a good battle for first place. I must thank the JRM team for providing me with an excellent car and for fixing the rear suspension during the service halt. It kept me in the rally.”

John Barnes – Team Manager
“This has been a very positive weekend for us. Yes, of course we wanted to win, but we were fastest on 11 of the 23 stages and on the Isle of Man in the constantly changing conditions, that’s a good performance in anyone’s book. It also keeps us well in the hunt for the championship.”

James Rumsey, Team Principal
“I am pleased we were able to achieve another good result and our car was 100% reliable – especially on the Isle of Man. Second gives us another good points score and helps us towards our target of winning the British Team’s and Driver’s titles.”

Team’s Championship standings
1 JRM - 106
2 Pirelli TEG Sport - 90
3 Ramsport - 64

Driver’s Championship standings after round three
1 Jonny Greer - 62
2 Gwyndaf Evans - 58
3 Keith Cronin - 56
4 Jason Pritchard - 55
5 Dave Weston Jnr - 42
6= Adam Gould - 38
6= Daniel Sigurðarson - 38
6= Jarkko Nikara - 38
9 Elfyn Evans - 37
10 Robert Barrable - 31

6th July 2010

International Rally Isle of Man 9 & 10 July 2010

JRM gets set to challenge for British Rally titles

Gwyndaf Evans continues with JRM team for second half of the season

Following last week’s announcement that Gwyndaf Evans will contest the remaining three events in the Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship, the JRM team are now preparing for the fourth round of the series, the International Rally Isle of Man on the 9th & 10th July.

Having scored outright victories in rounds two and three, the Pirelli and Jim Clark Rallies, Evans currently lies second in the championship and is in an excellent position to mount a serious challenge for his second British title – his first claimed in 1996. Therefore, with the possibility of securing both the driver’s and team’s championships, JRM views this as a great opportunity to further increase its profile in the sport.

“After winning two out of the three rounds, we decided we would contest the rest of the season”, said Team Principal James Rumsey. “We are well-placed to take advantage of our current position in the championship and therefore will be doing all we can to win both titles.”

Following a test in Wales on Monday, Team Manager John Barnes commented: “We have done quite a lot of work to the car following its last outing in Donegal. I’m pleased to report it ran well throughout the test and, having made a few adjustments to the set-up, everything is looking positive for this weekend.”

In the absence of his regular co-driver this year Chris Patterson, Evans will be partnered on this occasion by Gareth Roberts, who has become available after Ford driver Craig Breen withdrew his entry from this weekend’s event. Roberts previously sat next to the experienced Welshman on the 2008 Rally GB.

“I’m sure it goes without saying that I am very pleased to be competing in the remaining three rounds”, said Evans. “For me, it’s great to think that I could be in with a chance of winning the British title again, but I’ve been in this sport long enough to know that it won’t be easy.”

The Rally Isle of Man in particular is one of the season’s toughest events, the high-speed and technically demanding Manx lanes having a reputation for pushing drivers, co-drivers and the cars to their limits.

One driver that understands this more than most is Daniel Sigurdarson, who crashed heavily on his one and only previous visit to the island in 2008. Co-driven on this occasion by his sister Asta Sigurdardottir, the Icelandic Rally Champion aims to lay the spectre of his Manx memories to rest and will again run under the JRM banner in order to increase the team’s chances of success in the team’s category.

This year’s rally features 143 miles in total and, following the ceremonial start on the North Quay in Douglas on Thursday evening, the competition gets underway on Friday with 13 stages, followed by a further eight on Saturday.

Team’s Championship standings
1 JRM - 88
2 Pirelli TEG Sport - 70
3 Ramsport - 48

Driver’s Championship standings after round three
1 Jonny Greer - 47
5 Gwyndaf Evans - 40
3 Jason Pritchard - 39
4= Adam Gould - 38
4= Daniel Sigurðarson - 38
6 Keith Cronin - 36
7 Dave Weston Jnr - 29
8 Elfyn Evans - 26
9 Jarkko Nikara - 24
10 Robert Barrable -22

 

PRESS RELEASE: 7th June 2010

Impressive performance by Andersson and JRM in Sardinia

- PG Andersson powers JRM Mitsubishi through the field and into the top ten

- Stunning drive blighted by opening stage puncture and second day transmission troubles

Driving a JRM Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X in this weekend’s Rally d’Italia Sardegna, Per-Gunnar (PG) Andersson and co-driver Anders Fredriksson fought back from 36th position following a first-stage puncture to an impressive seventh overall, before a problem with the car’s rear differential on stage 10 forced the Swedes into retirement with four stages to go. However, they proved that the JRM Evo was the quickest Group N car in the rally and was on the pace of many of the S2000 cars.

Having already recorded outright victories on snow, gravel and asphalt surfaces this season, JRM chose to enter the Sardinia-based event as part of its ongoing development programme for the Evolution X. With this in mind, Andersson was brought in by the team due to his experience of the island’s distinctive and technically demanding roads, his target to bring the JRM Mitsubishi home first of the Group N field and to see how the Lancer performed against the S2000 cars that are usually the regular front-runners.

The rally hosted round five of the IRC (Intercontinental Rally Challenge) and officially started on Friday in Cagliari. But, with the evening’s Super Special stage cancelled, the competition began on the first of Saturday’s six stages. Quickly becoming acclimatised to his new car, Andersson was soon on the pace, but just eight kilometres into the opening stage a rock lying in the road tore into the sidewall of the right-front tyre.

After sliding very wide at the next corner, Andersson and Fredriksson realised that with 20 km still to go they would have to stop and change the wheel and, when they eventually got to the end of the stage, they found they had lost over four minutes and dropped to 36th place.

Although not the start the team was looking for, the time loss did little to break Andersson’s stride and, for all the day’s remaining five stages, he proceeded to set the fastest Group N times. Such was their pace, Andersson and Fredriksson never set a stage time slower than 5th overall and, with one stage left before the overnight halt, they were now up to ninth place.

But with the top-ten finishers seeded in reverse order for Sunday, Andersson was mindful that by remaining in ninth he would have to run second on the road – not ideal in the dry and dusty conditions which had left a layer of fine gravel on the surface of the roads and making conditions extremely slippery.

Therefore, on the final stage of the day, Andersson pushed hard and made up a further two places, ending the day in seventh. He and Fredriksson were now second of the Group N runners, having consistently taken more than two-seconds a kilometer off the leading Subaru of Finnish crew Teemu Arminen and Tuomo Nikkola, the gap between them now one-minute and 45 seconds.

With the JRM Evo X running perfectly and, having perfected the car’s set-up by making fine adjustments at each of Saturday’s service halts, Andersson was confident that Sunday would see him achieve the team’s target of heading the Group N field. On the first stage of the day he took a stunning 56 seconds off the deficit and on the second a further 39, the gap now down to just 1.8 seconds.

Everything looked set for the JRM team to lead Group N and move up at least one place in the overall standings on SS10, but with two kilometres to go, Andersson heard a noise from the back of the car, signalling that all was not well with the rear differential. Although continuing at a slower pace, with one kilometre of the stage left, the car coasted to a halt with no drive. A disappointing end to what was a highly impressive performance.

After 13 stages, the final standings saw S2000 cars take the top five places, with Juha Hanninen and Mikko Markkula emerging as the eventual winners.

Team quotes

PG Andersson
“It took me a little time to get used to the Evolution X, but once I did it surprised me just how quick it was. Because of the engine’s torque and the car’s stability, you don't realise how fast you are going until you get to a corner. It was of course a shame about the puncture, but having climbed through the field and almost back to where we would have been, it was even more disappointing to have retired – especially as the car had ran perfectly up to then. I was impressed by the professionalism of the JRM team and thank them for the opportunity to be able to drive on this rally again.”

John Barnes – Team Manager
“We came to this event looking to be the quickest of the Group N cars and we certainly achieved that. Because we didn't make it to the finish it’s definitely a case of the result not reflecting the performance. PG and Anders were great to work with and we could not have asked for more. To climb from the back of the field and into the top ten on the first day is an impressive performance in anyone’s book. We learnt a lot from this event and were able to gather a great deal of information, so that’s another of our targets achieved.”

James Rumsey – Team Principal
“Obviously its disappointing not to finish on our first appearance in an IRC round, but at least we can take away the knowledge that our Mitsubishi is the most competitive of the Group N cars. I was pleased that our car ran faultlessly until the problem with the rear differential, so we must now look closely at what caused it, which of course is all part of the ongoing development programme.”

 

 

 

PRESS RELEASE: 1st June 2010

JRM targets Group N success in Sardinia

PG Andersson gets set to drive JRM Evo X in Rally d’Italia Sardegna

As announced a few weeks ago, JRM has entered leading Swedish driver Per-Gunnar (PG) Andersson in this weekend’s Rally d’Italia Sardegna as part of its ongoing development programme for the Group N Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X.

Taking place in Sardinia, the event represents round five of the IRC (Intercontinental Rally Challenge), a series which is now regarded as the most competitive in the world for Class R4 cars, the category for Super-2000 and Group N4 models.

The rally sees the first time JRM has entered a round of the IRC, whereas in contrast, it will be Andersson’s sixth visit, the previous five when he contested the World Rally Championship as a works driver for Suzuki.

The experienced Swede is therefore no stranger to the island’s distinctive gravel roads and, although having driven a Mitsubishi in last year’s Swedish Championship, this event will be his first in a JRM Evolution X - the car previously used by Jari Ketomaa to win the Vakunaa Rally in February and by Gwyndaf Evans to win the Pirelli Rally in April.

As is the norm in the IRC, the works S2000 cars have held the upper hand when it comes to performance and results this season. However, the JRM team is eager to see how its Mitsubishi matches up to these and the other Group N entries taking part this weekend.

The event headquarters and main service area are located in Olbia, with the start and opening Super Special stage taking place on Friday in Cagliari. Saturday sees six stages, followed by a further six on Sunday, the total of which provides a competitive distance of 219 kilometres.

Andersson will be partnered by his regular co-driver and fellow countryman Anders Fredriksson, the Swedish pair seeded number five on the entry list.

Team quotes

PG Andersson
“I was delighted when JRM asked me to drive one of their cars in Sardinia. It’s both an honour and an opportunity. I last drove this rally in 2008 and I hope my experience will make a difference, especially as I am expecting the roads to be in better condition without the WRC cars this time. I will be testing the JRM Mitsubishi this week and I am sure that it won't take long to get used to it, especially as it's a car which has already had success this year.”

John Barnes – Team Manager
“Although we are going to this event with an open mind as far as results are concerned, our aim is to be the best of the Group N field. However, it will also be interesting to see how our car performs against the Super 2000 entries. Either way, we face some stiff opposition, so a good result of any kind will represent a success for us.”

James Rumsey – Team Principal
“We have already shown that our cars can be successful on any surface, having won in Finland on snow and in the UK on gravel and tarmac. We are therefore looking for new challenges and we see Sardinia and the IRC as the next stage in the development of the Evo X and, added to this, it allows us to show-case our cars to a wider and more international audience.”

 

PRESS RELEASE: 31st May 2010

Second British Rally Championship victory for JRM

• Gwyndaf Evans wins Jim Clark Rally in JRM Mitsubishi Evolution X.

• Top result provides team with wins this season on snow, gravel and asphalt.

Driving a JRM Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X, Gwyndaf Evans and co-driver Chris Patterson recorded the team’s second Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship victory in a row, when they won the Jim Clark International Rally. After battling for the lead during the first half of the event, they went ahead on stage 12 and pulled out a lead of 31 seconds by the time they crossed the finish line.

Starting from the centre of Duns, with a stage that ran through the spectator-lined streets of the town, the 40th running of the Jim Clark Rally featured three stages ran twice on Friday evening followed by a further eight on Saturday, with all of the event’s 134 competitive miles and 14 stages held on closed public roads in Berwickshire.

Using the car that was campaigned in 2009 by David Bogie, as his Pirelli winning LHD Evo was on its way to Sardinia to compete in the Rally d’Italia Sardegna with Swedish driver Per-Gunnar Andersson behind the wheel, Evans reported he was very happy with the car after the pre-event shake-down.

In the first stage through Duns, Evans pushed a little to hard when negotiating the roundabout on the outskirts of the town and dropped six seconds to Craig Brean in a Fiesta S2000 and four to Keith Cronin in a Subaru. Once out into the country lanes Evans was able to claw back some of the time from Brean and after SS2 was ahead of the Ford driver by one-tenth of a second.

However, Cronin was flying and had pulled out a led of 12 seconds by the time cars reached the regroup after the first loop of three stages. Evans and Brean swapped times for the next two stages, but on SS6 the JRM driver clipped a rock puncturing the two left-hand-side tyres and, with four miles still to go, dropped around half-a-minute by the time cars pulled into the service area in Kelso.

Cronin also had problems, having clouted a wall and damaged his car’s suspension. So, when cars restarted on Saturday morning it was Brean that led the way from Cronin and then young Irishman Alastair Fisher in third, with Evans now fourth.

Positions were maintained for the first loop of two stages, but on the third stage of the morning it was Cronin’s turn to suffer from punctures and the subsequent time loss dropped him to fourth. Then, on the next stage Brean’s charge was brought to an end, when his Fiesta’s engine expired in the middle of SS10.

Evans meanwhile, was pushing hard, his efforts plain to see when he arrived at the second service halt with damage to the rear of his Mitsubishi. Although there was nothing mechanical to fix, the JRM team set about the repairs, with team owner James Rumsey also lending a helping hand by straightening the bent body panels with a sledge-hammer!

With four stages to go, it was Fisher in the lead by 11 seconds ahead of Evans and Cronin now nearly a minute behind in third. But with rain starting to fall on the smooth asphalt Borders roads, the outcome of the event was far from decided.

Totally focussed on the task ahead, Evans drove faultlessly for the remainder of the rally and went ahead of Fisher on SS11. Once in front, the experienced Welshmen stayed there, Fisher unable to respond when his Mitsubishi’s engine developed an intermittent misfire during the final two stages.

At the finish in Duns town centre the time sheets revealed that Evans, Patterson and JRM were winners for the second time in succession, ending the weekend with a 31.1 advantage. Fisher scored the best result of his career so far in second place, with Cronin ending the weekend in third, a further one-minute and 15 seconds behind.

JRM team-mates Daniel Sigurdarson and Asta Sigurdardottir from Iceland also recorded a first, as this was the first time they had ever completed an all-asphalt event. With their Evolution X running 100% throughout the rally, they were delighted to finish in seventh place overall.

These impressive results mean that JRM now leads the British Team’s Championship, with Evans now to second in the driver’s table and Sigurdarson equal fourth.

Team Quotes

Gwyndaf Evans
“I am extremely pleased with this win. It certainly wasn’t easy. I had to fight back following the punctures and drive flat-out throughout the event with no let-off right to the end. JRM provided me with another excellent car so I’m very pleased for the team that we were able to achieve our second win of the season, as it’s the result we were all looking for.”

John Barnes – Team Manager
“It’s a great result – especially as the car ran perfectly throughout the event. All we had to do was change the brake pads – and carry out a few repairs - which we did with the help of the boss! It’s good to get our first tarmac win under our belts. We now look to the IRC and the gravel of Sardinia next week and then its back to asphalt with the Donegal Rally the week after that.”

James Rumsey – Team Principal
“So far this season we have shown that our cars can win on three completely different surfaces: snow, gravel and tarmac. I am delighted that having only started our motorsport campaigns last year, we are now achieving success with our cars at international level in both racing and rallying.”

Jim Clark Rally results
1 Gwyndaf Evans/Chris Patterson (Mitsubishi Evo X) 1:54:33.5
2 Alastair Fisher/Rory Kennedy (Mitsubishi Evo IX) 1:55:04.6
3 Keith Cronin/Barry McNulty (Subaru Impreza) 1:56:20.1
4 Jonny Greer/Dai Roberts (Mitsubishi Evo IX) 1:57:17.7
5 Jason Pritchard/Robbie Durant (Subaru Impreza) 1:57:59.4
6 Adam Gould/Dave Robson (Subaru Impreza) 1:57:59.4
7 Daniel Sigurdarson/Asta Sigurdardottir (Mitsubishi Evo X) 2:00:57.0
8 Dave Weston Jr./Ieuan Thomas (Subaryu Impreza) 2:01:37.0
9 Robert Barrable/DanienConnolly (Citroen C2) 2:02:09.1
10 Alan Cookson/Julian Wilkinson (Subaru Impreza) 2:02:54.0

Team’s Championship standings
1 JRM 88
2 Pirelli TEG Sport 70
3 Ramsport 48

Driver’s Championship standings
1 Jonny Greer 47
5 Gwyndaf Evans 40
3 Jason Pritchard 39
4= Adam Gould 38
4= Daniel Sigurðarson 38
6 Keith Cronin 36
7 Dave Weston Jnr 29
8 Elfyn Evans 26
9 Jarkko Nikara 24
10 Robert Barrable 22

 

 

PRESS RELEASE: 24th May 2010

JRM aims for asphalt success

Gwyndaf Evans gets set to compete in Jim Clark Rally driving JRM Mitsubishi Evolution X

As announced earlier this month, JRM has entered Gwyndaf Evans in this weekend’s Jim Clark Rally, round three of the Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship. The experienced Welshman will drive a JRM Group N (production class) Mitsubishi Evolution X and be co-driven by Chris Patterson.

Following victory in round two, the Kielder Forest-based Pirelli Rally, the JRM team is eager to see if it can repeat the result on an asphalt surface international status event and therefore sees the Jim Clark Rally as an ideal opportunity to achieve this. It also means that Evans has the chance to expand on his fourth position in the British Championship driver’s standings, as will JRM in the team’s category, in which it currently shares the lead.

“I am pleased to be getting the chance to compete again, as I realise that JRM’s British programme is decided on an event-by-event basis”, said Evans. “This is the first tarmac event with the team since last year’s Northern Ireland Rally, when things went really well and we finished second. I therefore hope we can score another good result for the team this time.”

Evans will use the right-hand-drive car that was campaigned in 2009 by Evolution Challenge prize-winner David Bogie, as his Pirelli winning LHD Evo is currently on its way to Sardinia to compete in the Rally d’Italia Sardegna with leading Swedish driver Per-Gunnar Andersson behind the wheel.

“Entering the Jim Clark Rally is yet another step in our development programme for the Evolution X,” said John Barnes, JRM Rally Operations Manager. “After winning a round of the Finnish and British Championships so far this year, we are comfortable with the performance of our cars in the forests – be it on snow or gravel - and we now want to prove they are just as competitive on tarmac.”

JRM Managing Director James Rumsey is also interested to see how his car performs this weekend: “We have carried out a great deal of development on our cars recently and by far the best way to test the effectiveness of this work is through competition. It is therefore important to see how they perform in a variety of conditions and the Jim Clark Rally provides a good opportunity for us to gather more data and, at the same time, showcase our cars on tarmac.”

The Jim Clark International Rally takes place on closed public roads in Berwickshire on 28-29 May. Starting in Duns at 7.00pm on Friday, the evening features three stages run twice before crews head to the service area at Kelso Racecourse for the overnight halt.

The event re-starts from the racecourse at 8.30 on Saturday morning and sees four stages run twice before finishing in Kelso at 5.15 that afternoon, after covering a total of 134 competitive miles.

 

 

PRESS RELEASE: 12th May 2010

JRM confirms more rallies with Evo X

- Gwyndaf Evans to drive in third round of British Rally Championship
- PG Andersson to compete in Sardinia

Following the recent announcement that Keith Cronin will drive one of its Group N Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution Xs in next month’s Donegal Rally, JRM has this week confirmed that it will continue its programme to promote its cars by entering two more rallies in the next few weeks.

Having recorded its first outright victory in the Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship on last month’s Pirelli Rally, JRM has entered Gwyndaf Evans in round three of the UK series, the Jim Clark Rally. Having scored a win on gravel, the team has admitted that it would now like to achieve the same success on asphalt in order to show that its cars are competitive on both surfaces.

Evans, who will again be partnered by co-driver Chris Patterson, is currently lying fourth in the driver’s championship, whilst JRM jointly lead the team’s championship.

“Having won last time out I am really pleased to be getting the chance to compete again”, said Evans. “I fully understand that JRM’s BRC programme is being carried out on an event-by-event basis. So to have been entered for half of the championship’s six rounds so far is a real bonus and I shall do all I can to deliver another good result for the team.”

The experienced Welshman will use the right-hand-drive car that was campaigned in 2009 by Evolution Challenge prize-winner David Bogie, as Evans’ Pirelli winning LHD Evo will be on its way to the Rally d’Italia Sardegna to be driven by top Swedish driver Per-Gunnar Andersson.

“I was delighted to be asked to drive for JRM”, said Andersson. “I drove an Evolution IX in the Swedish Championship last year and won a number of events outright. I therefore know a bit about driving Mitsubishis and Group N and it will be good to see how this car performs in an IRC round. I’m looking forward to it!”

The Sardinian event will see the first time that a JRM Evo X has taken part in a round of the IRC (Intercontinental Rally Challenge) and the team is interested to see how it’s Mitsubishi compares, not just against other Group N cars, but S2000 cars as well. Andersson will be co-driven by fellow countryman Anders Fredriksson.

“Entering these two events and the Donegal Rally is all part of our promotional campaign to showcase our cars in countries where there is potential to sell new Group N Lancers and Ralliart parts”, explains Operations Manager for JRM John Barnes. “At the moment we don't have plans for any more events, but it is a case of seeing how each one goes and then making decisions from there.”

The Jim Clark Rally starts and finishes in Kelso and takes place on closed public roads in Berwickshire on 28-29 May. The Rally d’Italia Sardegna is an all-gravel event held entirely on the Island of Sardinia from 4-6 June.

 

 

PRESS RELEASE: 25th April 2010

JRM secures first British Rally Championship victory 23rd & 24th April 2010

Pirelli International Rally - Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship – Round 2

- Gwyndaf Evans drives JRM Evo X to victory in Pirelli International Rally.
- Daniel Sigurdarson finishes fourth after trouble-free run.
- JRM scores maximum points in team’s championship.

Driving the JRM Evolution X to victory in this weekend’s Pirelli International Rally, Gwyndaf Evans and co-driver Chris Patterson provided JRM with its very first British Rally Championship win, a result the team has been aiming to achieve.

JRM team mates Daniel Sigurdarson and his sister and co-driver Asta Siguradardottir also had a successful event, bringing their Evo X home fourth overall and second in the Mitsubishi Ralliart Evolution Challenge, the one-make series for Group N Lancers which is supported by JRM.

Based at Carlisle Racecourse, the Pirelli International Rally – round two of the Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship - featured 100 competitive miles in Kielder Forest, with three stages held in the dark on Friday evening and a further nine between 7.00am and 7.00 pm on Saturday. Adding to the challenge of the infamous Northumberland forest was the result of the recent dry spell, which meant that the dust generated by cars traversing the loose gravel roads was to cause visibility problems for the drivers.

Last year’s winner of this event and current British Rally Champion Keith Cronin was the first to leave the start line, a factor that was to be a big advantage in the conditions, as following cars would have to contend with the dust hanging in the air. The first of Friday evening’s stages saw Evans record the second fastest time, just 3.7 adrift of Cronin. But it was on SS2 that conditions worsened, Evans reporting that the visibility was so poor he had to stop on the straights.

As cars returned to Carlisle for the overnight halt, Evans found he was 24 seconds down on the leader, with Craig Breen in a Fiesta S2000 a further 18 seconds behind in third.

Without the need to use lights and with a breeze helping clear the dust clouds, conditions improved for Saturday’s stages. Throughout the day Cronin, Evans and Breen posted a series of times that were only separated by a few seconds, which meant that the top three positions remained unchanged.

With stage nine cancelled because of local PR problems, time sheets showed that with the final loop of three stages to go, there was only 25 seconds between the leading trio. With his car running perfectly, Evans knew he could push for the lead, but he was well aware that one mistake in Kielder forest could mean anything from an off to a puncture.

As he lined up to start the last stage there was still 17 seconds between him and the leader, with Breen now closed to just four seconds behind. But, with the finish almost in his sights, Cronin collected a puncture, the disintegrating rubber damaging his Subaru’s wiring loom and consequently stopping his car just 200 yards from the flying finish.

Breen also suffered a puncture in the final stage and, although making it to the finish, he lost nearly three minutes. The misfortunes of the others around him meant that Evans exited the 12th and final stage with a lead of two minutes 33 seconds, the outcome providing the Welshman with his first British Championship victory since 1998 and JRM its first outright BRC win - a result that had previously eluded the team.

Sigurdarson was also enjoying a trouble-free event and, although being slowed by the dust and catching other cars that were experiencing problems, he was delighted to end the event fourth overall, his best British Rally Championship result to date. Therefore, with its cars finishing in first and fourth places, JRM scored maximum points in the British Team’s Championship and now lies joint-first in the standings.

In the Driver’s Championship, the weekend’s results see Sigurdarson move up to second and Evans in joint-fifth place.

Team Quotes

Gwyndaf Evans
“Winning a round of the British Rally Championship has never been easy and therefore I’m really pleased to have done it this weekend, not just for me but for the whole team. I know it means a lot to them as they have worked very hard to develop the Evo X to where it is now. It ran perfectly throughout the event so we have achieved what we set out to. Keith (Cronin) drove well again and proved he is a great competitor, but as we all know, bad luck can strike at any time in this sport.”

John Barnes – JRM Operations Manager
“I am both delighted and relieved. We have been looking for this win for some time and it’s great to finally get it under our belts. With just one stage to go I didn't think we were going to do it, but in rallying it’s not over until it’s over and we couldn't believe it when we heard Gwyndaf had come out on top. With the luck we’ve been having recently it’s usually the other way round! This result is a real shot in the arm for the team and proves that the car can be both competitive and reliable.”

Team’s Championship standings
1 Pirelli TEG Sport 52
1 JRM 52
3 Ramsport 33

Driver’s Championship standings
1 Jonny Greer 32
2 Daniel Sigurdarson 26
3 Adam Gould 25
3 Jason Pritchard 25
5 Keith Cronin 20
5 Gwyndaf Evans 20
5 Euan Thorburn 20
5 Elfyn Evans 20
9 Jarkko Nikara 19
10 Dave Weston Jnr 18

 

PRESS RLEEASE: 21st April 2010

JRM aims to put the record straight

Pirelli International Rally 23rd & 24th April 2010

Gwyndaf Evans to drive JRM Evo X in round two of the British Rally Championship

JRM are delighted to confirm that it will contest the second round of the Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship on this weekend’s Pirelli International Rally, with Gwyndaf Evans and co-driver Chris Patterson competing in the team’s Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X.

Having entered last month’s opening round, the Bulldog International Rally of North Wales, as a showcase event to promote its latest development Group N Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X, the JRM team came away disappointed following a gearbox issue which saw the car retire after the second stage.

“We have carried out a great deal of development with the Evo X over the past few months and, following an outright win in Finland in February, we know that it’s one of the most competitive R4 Class cars out there”, said JRM Operations Manager John Barnes. “We know that it is capable of winning a round of the BRC and therefore we are delighted to get another chance to prove it this weekend.”

Since the Bulldog Rally, the car has been re-prepared and put through its paces during a successful test in Hamsterly Forest, where Gwyndaf came away extremely happy with its performance:

“I still can’t believe that we had such bad luck last time out. I am therefore very pleased to have another opportunity to drive for the team. As I’ve said before, the JRM Evo X is the best Group N car I’ve ever driven, so if everything goes well, I’m confident we can get a top result and maybe even give the car its first win in the UK.”

Icelandic brother and sister Daniel Sigurdarson and Asta Sigurdardottir are scheduled to join JRM for the Pirelli Rally, but the recent volcanic eruption in their home country and the consequent closure of airspace is likely to mean that they will not be able to get to the UK. However, Daniel is not a driver that gives up easily and if there’s a chance of him and Asta coming over to compete and help to score points for JRM towards the British Team’s Championship, then he’ll take it.

Based at Carlisle Racecourse, the Pirelli International Rally features 12 special stages and 100 competitive miles in Keilder Forest. The event gets underway at 6.30 pm on Friday and sees three stages before the overnight halt, with the remaining nine stages taking place between 7.00 am and 7.00 pm on Saturday.

 

PRESS RELEASE: 28th March 2010

Victory denied for JRM

- Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship round one
- Bulldog International Rally of North Wales - 27th March 2010
- Early exit denies JRM of maiden British Championship win
- Daniel Sigurdarson scores points towards BRC team award and finishes second in the Evolution Challenge

JRM went to this weekend’s Welshpool-based Bulldog International Rally of North Wales looking to score their first British Rally Championship win, but once again the team were denied their chance of victory when bad luck intervened in the early stages of the event, Gwyndaf Evans and co-driver Chris Patterson retiring when a gearbox problem stopped them going any further than stage two.

Following a resounding victory in February, when the team took its Group N Mitsubishi Evolution X to Scandinavia for the second round of the Finnish Rally Championship, JRM wanted to showcase its cars in the UK and therefore entered the opening round of this year’s Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship. Add to this result a series of highly successful tests in the UK and the highly experienced pairing of Gwyndaf Evans – who is a resident of North Wales – and co-driver Chris Patterson, all of the key elements were in place for an excellent showing this weekend.

With the team painstakingly developing and increasing the performance of the car over the past few months, it came as a big surprise to Evans that, not far into the first stage – a 16-mile run through Myherin – there was the smell of gearbox oil coming from underneath the car. As he continued through the stage he gradually felt the gear-changes become tighter, until he was only able to select 2nd, 3rd and 4th.

Even so, he and Patterson were still able to set third-fastest time and therefore decided to continue into stage two and then try to get to the first service halt of the day back in Welshpool. Even with the transmission issues not getting any better, they made it to the end of the 17-mile Sweet Lamb stage, setting the sixth fastest time and still holding a position of fourth overall.

However, at the next control the damage to the gearbox and clutch meant that the car was going no further and their rally came to a premature conclusion. A great shame, as even with the problems, it was quite clear that the JRM Evo was on the pace of the BRC front-runners.

On inspection back at the team’s workshops in Chesterfield, it has been reported that the cause of the transmission issue may well be associated with the increased torque from the engine. This follows the fitting of the larger 33mm air restrictor in accordance with this year’s Group N regulations, coupled to the extensive development that has been carried out by the team recently that has potentially placed additional stress on the gearbox.

In contrast, JRM team-mate and former Icelandic Rally Champion Daniel Sigurdarson with his sister Asta Sigurdardottir co-driving, had a trouble-free rally in their Evo X. Having set a constant pace on each of he event’s eight stages, they ended the event in eighth place overall and finished an excellent second in the Mitsubishi Ralliart Evolution Challenge, the highly competitive one-make series for Group N Lancers which is sponsored this year by JRM.

Team Quotes

Gwyndaf Evans
“I can’t believe what happened today. I spent a great deal of time testing the car recently and must have covered 100s of miles without any problems at all. This outcome is so frustrating as I know how hard the team has worked over the past few months and they don't deserve this result. The JRM Evo X is the best Group N car I have ever driven, so there is no doubt that it is more than capable of winning a round of the British Championship. I just hope we get another chance to prove it.”

John Barnes - JRM Operations Manager
“After the performance of the car in Finland and its reliability in the tests we carried out before this event, we were really not expecting today’s turn of events. I have to admit that anything other than a win this weekend would have been a disappointment. However, we know our car can win and we are still confident that it's the most competitive Evo X out there. We’re therefore looking forward to the next event and a chance to put the records straight.”

 

 

PRESS RELEASE: 22nd March 2010

JRM set for big push on BRC opener

Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship round one
Bulldog International Rally of North Wales - 27th March 2010

- Gwyndaf Evans to drive JRM Evo X on his home soil.
- Team targets first British Championship victory.
- Daniel Sigurdarson helps JRM challenge for team’s award.

This weekend will see JRM begin an assault on this year’s Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship, when experienced Welshman and former British Champion Gwyndaf Evans re-joins the team for round one, the Bulldog International Rally of North Wales.

Gwyndaf and co-driver Chris Patterson will be reunited with the Group N (R4 - Production Class) Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X they campaigned so impressively in the last two rounds of the 2009 BRC season, both on the asphalt of the Ulster Rally and the gravel forest roads of the Rally Yorkshire.

“I’m delighted to be back with JRM for the start of this season”, said Gwyndaf. “I have now had a chance to test the car properly and worked closely with the team to get the set up just right. I therefore came away from the most recent test very happy with the way the car was performing, both with its straight-line speed and handling. It's a car that I really enjoy driving and it will be interesting to see how our pace compares next weekend.”

The JRM team has worked tirelessly since the test to analyse the data collected and then dial it into the car. Added to this, a great deal of development work has been carried out during the winter - which included significant input from Exe-tc Competition Suspension - the team looking to make its Evo Xs the best there is.

“We believe that we have all the ingredients for a good result. Gwyndaf is on his home patch in a car that performs very well and I think he is going to be the man to beat this weekend”, said JRM Operations Manager John Barnes. “We have been very pleased with the way things have gone so far this season, after taking our first outright win in Finland last month and with the gravel testing going really well. We therefore make no secret that we are looking to secure our first British Championship victory.”

Adding to the team’s chances of a successful weekend is Daniel Sigurdarson, British rallying’s most familiar Icelandic visitor, who will run under the JRM banner in order to score points towards the coveted team’s title. Daniel will be co-driven on this occasion by his younger sister Astor Sigurdittor.

The Bulldog International Rally of North Wales starts and finishes at the new livestock centre in Welshpool, the venue also hosting the service area for the event. Cars leave the start at 7.00 am on Saturday and head to the forests of Myherin and Sweet Lamb twice in the morning, with runs through Big Ray, Dyfi Main, Pantperthog and Gartheiniog in the afternoon, before the finish back in Welshpool at 4.30pm.