Scottish rally driver Garry Pearson is focused on maintaining his podium run as the British Rally Championship season heads to Wales this weekend for Rali Ceredigion (September 2/3).
Based in the coastal town of Aberystwyth, Rali Ceredigion serves up 100 miles of daunting Tarmac stages in the Welsh moorlands, including two street stages in the host town at the end of the first day.
Round five of the British championship, Pearson and co-driver Daniel Barritt head there in fine form after a career-best second for Pearson on the recent Ulster Rally.
That result allowed the four-time national rally champion to climb up to second in the championship – a position he hopes to protect this weekend.
“It’s great to be going back to Ceredigion, I really enjoyed the rally last year,” Pearson said.
“It was certainly a challenge with some tricky stages, but that’s what you want as a driver.
“There’s a lot of new stages this year, so for sure there’s a lot of work to do beforehand to make sure we understand them.
“Two podiums from our last two events have been great for our confidence and I feel like I’m making good steps with both my speed on Tarmac and my comfort with the Volkswagen Polo GTI R5,” he added.
“But we’ve got to keep one eye on the championship so it won’t be an all-out push.
“Gravel is still my strongest surface so we may go on a bigger attack on the next round in Yorkshire, but this weekend we’ll be prioritising gaining experience as Rali Ceredigion is a rally that can punish even the smallest of mistakes.
“If we could get another podium that would be great but we need to make sure we arrive at the finish in Aberystwyth with some good points to consolidate P2 in the championship – that’s the plan.”
Pearson is supported by Billie Bowie Special Projects, Hankook UK, Asset Alliance Group, George Anderson General Builders, Solid Fuel Hub, Husqvarna, R.L Smith & Sons, Brick & Steel Construction and Morris Lubricants.
