A little bit sideways Rallying in New Zealand, where we like to get A Little Bit Sideways! Up to date Rally News from teams around the country together with event reports.
Kaiapoi’s Marcus van Klink heads to the final round of the Brian Green Property Group New Zealand Rally Championship, this weekend’s Mahindra Goldrush Rally Coromandel, looking to take some revenge from an event that has not agreed with the Cantabrian in years gone by.
With his fourth Historic title wrapped up at the previous round, Rally Gisborne, van Klink and co-driver Dave Neill are free to concentrate on fighting for the top two-wheel drive honours despite this event being one where they has struggled in the previous two editions.
Two years ago, the pair managed to take a Historic class win, but not before several spins cost time, while last year a differential failure put them out of the running.
The 2016 season has been one of van Klink’s most successful on outright speed that saw the Mazda driver as high as fourth in the NZRC overall standings, despite the Chesters Plumbing Supplies Mazda RX-7 lacking 30 years of technology against his front-running rivals. Sitting in seventh place currently, a good run at the Whitianga based event could see van Klink climb as high as second in the overall championship.
“It’s certainly not an event that I can say we’ve mastered, which is strange, as they’re the sort of roads that really suit the Mazda,” says van Klink. “But we’ll certainly be trying our hardest, we don’t just want to be first historic, we want to be first two-wheel drive and it’s an event Anthony Jones and Tony Gosling seem to go rather well at.”
The Mahindra Goldrush Rally Coromandel takes place on Saturday August 20 based from the holiday destination of Whitianga. Competitors covering 121 kilometres of special stages split into 10 special stages before the ceremonial finish in Blacksmith Lane from just after 5pm.
Press Release by BB Media
