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The Woodpecker Rally is now firmly settled into its new Mid Wales base after last year’s move from Ludlow. The switch has opened up some of the sport’s most famous gravel stages, with around 45 competitive miles on offer through Hafren and the rarely used Tarenig – stages that have shaped rallying history for decades.
Saturday 12th July 2025 marked a landmark occasion in British rallying as the iconic Nicky Grist Stages returned for its 40th consecutive year as part of the BTRDA Forest Rally Championship. Hosted once again by the experienced hands of Quinton Motor Club, the award-winning event drew more than 140 crews to the picturesque town of Builth Wells for the one-day gravel showcase.
The 48th running of the Malcolm Wilson Rally kicked off the 2025 Protyre Autocare BTRDA Rally Championship in stunning style, as competitors took on the fast and technical forest stages of the Lake District.
As the Protyres BTRDA Rally Series has now passed the mid-point in the 2024 season, we can begin to build a picture of the runners and riders who are potentially in line for championship awards. With fierce battles across the field to date, the series would return to Builth Wells, Powys in Wales for the second time this year for the Nicky Grist Stages.
Based out of the auction mart in Hexham, the former Pirelli (international) Rally, previously a classic staple of the Probite British Rally Championship calendar during the glory years of British rallying. The event can count a plethora of famous winners as diverse as Ari Vattinen or Russell Brookes to Richard Burns, Dai Llewellyn and Mark Higgins… As well as the full complement of McRaes (Alistair, Jimmy and Colin).
All set for a great days rallying across the 3 main Protyre BTRDA Gravel Championships the KFR would utilise 42 miles of prime gravel stages in the 155,000-acre Kielder forest complex, one of Europe’s largest man-made forests.
Saturday, the eleventh of May saw sixty-nine competitors head to Jedburgh in southern Scotland for the third round of the Protyre BTRDA Rally Series, the Border Counties Rally. Forming the first of two consecutive northern-based rounds for the BTRDA gravel series, followed by the Kielder forest Rally in the middle of June.
Around a month had passed since the Malcolm Wilson Rally in the Lake District had raised the curtains on the 2024 Protyres BTRDA Rally series in March. This time around the series would travel to Mid-Wales for the second round of the Championship, the Rallynuts Severn Valley Stages Rally, where world-class gravel stages would await the crews.
The BTRDA Rally Series would return in to action at its opening round The Malcolm Wilson Rally (9th/10th March) with a new title sponsor on the sun strip for its 2024 season. The UK’s premier gravel rally championship joins its sister Asphalt Championship with welcomed backing from ProTyres this year.
Entering its 71st year, the 2024 Protyre BTRDA Gravel Rally series springs into life this coming weekend (8th/9th March) at its traditional season-opening round amongst the stunning “lakes and mountains” scenery of Keswick and Coniston in Cumbria.
A new championship season also brings a new sponsor, with Protyre extending their BTRDA Tarmac championship sponsorship of over 5 years to cover the Gravel series. With a 2-year agreement and the potential to add a further year the future of the series is secure.
The wider championship consists of 8 rounds, a choice of 6 of which are scoring in each of the main 3 categories, Gold, Silver, and Bronze Star along with Historic and Rally First awards.
This weekend, the BTRDA Rally Series is set to make its return to the national rallying calendar at the Malcolm Wilson stages in the picturesque Lake District. This will also signify the return of the BTRDA Rally Series to the pages of Xlerate.net.