REPORT / RALLY NORTH WALES 2026

WORDS & PHOTOGRAPY BY ROB SAYER

Meirion Evans showed his intent for 2026 with a clinical victory at the opening round of the Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship. Meanwhile, it was business as usual in the BTRDA Gold Star rankings, with arch-rivals Matthew Hirst and Elliot Payne duking it out for top honours. In the BHRC, it was a returning old friend, Marty McCormack, who stood on the top step of the podium in his rapidly rising fan-favourite BMW M3.

Overshadowing all, however, was a name synonymous with the sport. Young Max McRae. Building upon his win at the 2025 Cambrian Rally, he stole the show at Rally North Wales, along with the overall event victory.

The border town of Welshpool once again reverberated with the sound of rally cars as it hosted the service park and scrutineering for the 2026 edition of the ‘Get Jerky’ Rally North Wales. The event made a triumphant return following the unfortunate cancellation of last year’s rally, thanks to forest damage sustained during Storm Darragh.

Wolverhampton & South Staffordshire Car Club curated a compact yet quality route for the one-day event, offering crews 45 competitive miles across six stages on some of Wales’ finest gravel. The 120 entrants were able to reminisce about WRC events of old as they took in the infamous and historic Aberhirnant and Dyfnant forest complexes.

LEG 1

BTRDA Gold Star

Four-time event winner and reigning BTRDA gravel champion Matthew Hirst (Skoda Fabia R5) got the event underway, co-driven by Jack Bowen. Despite sweeping the road, they looked strong on the splits through Aberhirnant (SS1) until a half-spin and subsequent stall near the end of the test saw the clock ticking. They dropped nine seconds to main rivals Elliot Payne and Patrick Walsh (Ford Fiesta Rally2), with BTRDA regulars Daniel Sigurdarson / Asta Sigurdardottir (Skoda RS Rally2) and Alex Vassallo / Chris Lees (Ford Fiesta Rally2) slotting into the gap.

Hirst fought back immediately on Dyfnant North (SS2), going 1.1 seconds quicker, but Payne used Dyfnant South (SS3) to remind everyone why he is a four-time BTRDA champion, stopping the clocks 4.4 seconds faster than the field. Meanwhile, Vassallo and Sigurdarson were locked in an enthralling fight, swapping positions just before the lunchtime service halt.

Welsh Championship

A hat-trick of stage victories for home heroes Meirion Evans and Dale Furniss (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2) meant the Welshmen commanded a convincing lead of 41.2 seconds over Hirst and Bowen by midday. While Evans is not expected to participate in every round this year, having a driver of his calibre in the opener bodes well for the series. Liam Clark and Michael Gilbey (Ford Fiesta Rally2) rounded out the top three, a further 42.5 seconds back.

Meanwhile, Max McRae and Cameron Fair (Skoda RS Rally2) — not registered for championship points, instead using the event as a test for the Severn Valley stages — had quietly been going about their business. Second quickest on all three morning stages, they headed into service just 4.2 seconds off the overall lead.

BTRDA Silver Star

The BTRDA Silver Star Championship picked up where it left off, proving that variety is the spice of life. An eclectic assortment of machinery did battle, from modern Rally4 Fiestas to vintage Vauxhall Chevettes. Ben Jemison and Adam Burkill took an early lead in SS1 in their fan-favourite Chevette HSR, besting Tony Simpson’s Fiesta by just 0.9 seconds.

However, Kiwi Boyd Kershaw and Keegan Rees dominated the Dyfnant duo. Going 4.3s quicker in SS2 and 8.5s faster in SS3, they led the class by nearly 20 seconds at the halfway point over Bryan Jardine.

BTRDA Bronze Star

Dale Glover and David Smalley were quickest out of the blocks in their Alfa Romeo Alfasud TI, but their joy was short-lived following a retirement in SS2. This left reigning Bronze Star Champs Dylan Fowler-Bishop and Dan Evans to pick up the mantle in their Nissan Micra. They held their nerve in a class rapidly losing depth to attrition, heading into service with a mind-bending four-minute lead.

BHRC

You’d be forgiven for thinking George Lepley and Dafydd Evans would run away with it in the Category 4 Mitsubishi Galant VR-4, but sadly, despite the promising result at the opening round of the Championship, the Riponian back in February, mechanical gremlins returned in the second stage of the event which led to their ultimate retirement from in SS3.

Up stepped Marty McCormack and Barney Mitchell in their howling BMW E30 M3. Sideways action was delivered in spades as they took the class win in Stage 2. The Irish crew of Damien Tourish and Kevin Duggan (Ford Escort MKII RS1800) tried to take the fight to them but suffered issues and a slow time in Dyfnant South. Consequently, last entrants to the event, Paul Barrett and Rory McCann (Ford Escort MKII RS1800) took the final stage win of the morning, trailing the BMW M3 of McCormack & Mitchell by only 0.6s.

LEG 2

Reports are unclear as to what Max McRae and Cameron Fair had for lunch, but the Xlerate team wants the recipe. Taking to their new Skoda like ducks to water, they put on a masterclass. They were 7.6s faster than the field in SS4 and 3.8s better in SS5. They rounded out the afternoon with a clean sweep of the loop, securing the overall event victory by 2.3 seconds.

Welsh Championship

Meirion Evans and Dale Furniss continued their dominance, though a spin at the hairpin on the final stage allowed Matthew Hirst & Jack Bowen to take a consolation stage win. Regardless, Evans and Furniss secured the Welsh victory with a stonking 52.4-second advantage.

BTRDA Gold Star

In the BTRDA, the clash of the titans resumed as Payne and Hirst continued to trade blows. Payne was 2.1s quicker in SS4, while Hirst clawed back 6.1s in Dyfnant North. It wasn’t quite enough; Elliot Payne and Patrick Walsh secured the opening round win by 4.7 seconds. In a late-stage twist, the Icelandic duo of Sigurdarson and Sigurdardottir were pipped to the final podium spot by Alexandra Vassallo and Chriss Lees by just 2.6 seconds after a slow final run.

Silver Star & Bronze Star

Heartbreak struck “Flying Kiwi” Boyd Kershaw, who retired the MKII Ford Escort on the final test while leading. This gifted the win to Tony Simpson and Simon Rogers in the Ford Fiesta. In the Bronze Star, Dylan Fowler-Bishop and Dan Evans piloted their Nissan Micra immaculately to a class victory by a frankly absurd 19 minutes and 41 seconds, one of only two crews who managed to finish the event in the category.

BHRC

Marty McCormack and Barney Mitchell entered the afternoon firing on all cylinders. Substantially quicker than their rivals, they swept all three afternoon stages to take top honours in the British Historic Rally Championship, also taking maximum points in Cat4. Paul Barrett and Rory McCann secured a valiant second whilst toping Cat3, while Tom Cave and Keaton Williams achieved a maiden BHRC podium in third. Ben & Steven Smith secured the Cat 2 win in their Porsche 911 RS, which catapults them to the top of the overall BHRC standings.

FINAL RESULTS

NEXT TIME

The Pirelli Welsh and BHRC championships reconvene on April 11th for the Severn Valley Stages, returning for the first time since 2024. The BTRDA heads north for the Kielder Forest Rally on its new date of April 18th. See you there?