Maximum effort yields tight lead for Higgins

Published on Saturday 9 July 2005 00:12

THREE weeks after dominating the RSCA Scottish Rally in the forests of Dumfries & Galloway, Kwik-Fit Pirelli British Rally Championship favourite Mark Higgins stated his intentions of winning again by grabbing the early initiative in the Jim Clark International Rally near Kelso.

But the Welsh-based Manxman, driving his Eddie Stobart-backed Ford Focus World Rally Car entered the first service area after the opening three stages of the all-tarmac event leading by just 0.6s.

"This event was always going to be very, very close and that's the way it's shaping up," Higgins explained as he watched his car being given the once-over at Charterhall. "It's going to be flat out all the way to the finish."

The Jim Clark International Rally is the fourth round of the British Championship and is the only event to be held entirely on closed-off tarmac roads on the British mainland. Because of that it also attracts the cream of the Irish Tarmac Championship and Higgins can feel them breathing down his neck.

With the late withdrawal of three-time Jim Clark winner, Armagh's Andrew Nesbitt who failed to recover from a leg injury, it's the Subaru Impreza of Tim McNulty from Co Meath who is closest to Higgins.

Immediately behind though lurks the Subaru of Wexford-based Irishman Eamonn Boland and the Focus WRc of British Championship leader Austin MacHale. The Rathcoole driver, just 14 points ahead of Higgins who has won the last two rounds, dropped 28sec on the opening stage at Abbey St Bathans when he spun.

Fastest man though in the warm, balmy conditions, was Co Antrim's Derek McGarrity. The Subaru driver dropped 90sec when he suffered a puncture on the opening stage but then set fastest times over the subsequent two tests. The rally finishes in Kelso later today.