Epic East Riding Stages Rally Goes Down to the Wire
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Reigning Motorsport UK Asphalt Rally Champions Sam Touzel and Max Freeman took the spoils on the East Riding Stages Rally by just four seconds
The champagne celebrations at the finish as Sam Touzel/Max Feeman take victory at the East Riding Stages Rally.
A challenging weekend in Beverley saw their Ford Fiesta Rally 2 master the fast country lanes of the East Riding.
The fight for victory is often settled in the closing stages, and close finishes are nothing new on the East Riding Stages Rally, with 3.6 seconds separating first and second place in 2023 and only five seconds in 2024.
Packed crowds filled the town centre at the ceremonial start in North Bar Within, as crews headed into the night to tackle the Spectator Superspecial Stage on Beverley Westwood for the first time in the darkness.
Sam Touzel and Max Freeman at the Ceremonial Start of the East Riding Stages Rally.
Matthew Hirst/Declan Dear’s Skoda Fabia Rally 2 came out of the Westwood stage with a 0.4 secs lead over Sam Touzel, with James Ford/Neil Shanks’ Citroen C3 Rally 2 a further 0.4 secs back in third.
Two new stages followed over the Yorkshire Wolds to the west of Beverley, with the leaders setting the pattern for the rally on Little Wold and Great Wold. The new stages were typical of the fast nature of the event, with both Sam Touzel and James Ford narrowly beating the stage bogey time. The two headed back to service just 0.4 secs apart, with Sam Touzel the overnight leader.
“My car is rapid, but the pressure is on as the other boys are fast too, but I'm feeling pretty comfortable at the moment,” said the rally leader. In second place, James Ford added, “There are lots of fast straights, but I'm not taking any risks.” Meanwhile, Matt Hirst had slipped to third, 4.1 secs further back, “I was surprised by my times on the Westwood," he said, adding, "but it was lots of fun!”
In fourth were Scots Hugh Brunton/Drew Sturrock with their VW Polo R5, “I think there is more time to come, as we were a little too cautious under braking,” Hugh Brunton explained.
Kevin Procter/Rob Fagg’s Ford Fiesta S2000T and Lee Edwards/Sam Spencer’s Jaguar V6 engined Ford Escort G3 completed the early top six. “What a stage, wow, brilliant fun, fantastic,” Kevin Procter enthused after Great Wold. “It wasn’t as slippery as I expected, and we had a great craic," Lee Edwards added.
Ollie Mellors/Ian Windress’s Proton Iriz R5 and David Wright/Jane Nicol’s Fiesta Rally 2 were next up. “The grip was better than I expected, we were maybe too cautious on the fastest bits, but it’s great doing a closed road rally in the dark,” said Ollie Mellors. “I had a slight overshoot on the last stage, but it is so fast and we were on the limiter so long,” David Wright explained, after losing two places with his overshoot.
Joe Cunningham/Josh Beer’s Fiesta WRC and Brad Cole/Jamie Vaughan’s Fiesta Rally 2 rounded off the overnight top 10. “That was the fastest stage I have ever driven, that scared me,” said Joe Cunningham, after arriving at the finish of Great Wold. “I was just grateful to everyone that got the car ready and got us here, Brad Cole added.
A number of drivers had already fallen by the wayside, but Neil Roskell/Jack Morton were still in the fight in 12th, despite an off. “It let go on me on stage three and I pirouetted and went off backwards through a hedge. We got back on, but it was all over the place,” Neil Roskell confessed.
As the rally recommenced on Sunday morning, news broke that the rally leader Sam Touzel had been given a one-minute penalty for an incorrect route at a bale on stage four. The Jersey driver challenged the decision, and the pentaly was was later rescinded.
James Ford was quickest through stage five at Seaton and came out with a lead of 0.3 secs over Sam Touzel. “We were on slick tyres, but it was a bit dodgy at the end,” he said at the stage finish. “I was just holding on, but it was very slippery,” Sam Touzel added.
Matthew Hirst set the benchmark on the Westwood Superspecial Stage.
Matt Hirst found it very slippery too, but managed to consolidate third after Hugh Brunton had gone off. Unfortunately the crew eventually rejoined well down the order, the Scottish driver saying, “we were on supersoft tyres and maybe pushing a bit too hard and went backwards through a hedge into a ditch."
Kevin Procter, David Wright and Joe Cunningham all moved up the order as their four-wheel drive gained the upper hand over Lee Edwards’ two-wheel drive Escort. “We stayed on wet tyres, but will have to see if they last,” said Joe Cunningham. “It was really slippery and a wild ride for us,” Lee Edwards added, after dropping to seventh place.
The top six remained unchanged through the Rise stage, but there were two more stages to come, each over seven miles, and then a double re-run at the Spectator Superspecial Stage before the final service.
The sun came out for the Spectator Superspecial Stage at Beverley Westwood on Sunday.
Sam Touzel’s lead began to grow, and after stage eight at Swine he was 10.9 secs clear, with Matt Hirst third and David Wright now fourth, after demoting Kevin Procter. Through the Ellerby stage he had slipped to sixth, with Joe Cunningham going ahead of him through Swine, while Neil Roskell’s recovery brought him up to seventh from Ollie Mellors, Brad Cole and Lee Edwards.
With James Ford taking time out of Sam Touzel through both Westwood stages the lead was reduced to just 3.1 secs as they arrived in service.
Rain was threatening as they left service to start the final leg of four stages, a re-run of the first four morning stages. James Ford had gone for the wrong tyres and it cost him dearly through Seaton. “With the rain coming we had guessed wrong and stayed on slicks,” he admitted, as Sam Touzel’s lead shot up to 15.3 secs. “We went for wets, but tried to keep pushing,” Sam Touzel remarked.
David Wright was also in trouble. “We had a puncture and had to stop and change it,” he explained, as Joe Cunningham moved up to fourth place, “but I still think slicks were the right choice,” he reckoned.
Kevin Procter moved into fifth, with Ollie Mellors leapfrogging Neil Roskell to take sixth. Lee Edwards was still holding onto eighth, “I didn’t have a tyre choice really, just my old ones," he quipped.
Following Wright’s fall down the order, the Fiesta Rally 2’s of Ian Forgan and Bad Cole now completed the top 10.
James Ford was quickest again on the final two stages, but it wasn’t enough, arriving at the end of the final stage exactly four seconds adrift, so Sam Touzel/ mx Freeman took the win.
An elated Sam Touzel said, “It was great seeing so many people lining the route and in the fields. Wets proved to be the right tyres for the afternoon, the car was amazing and Max was phenomenal on the notes.’
Gravel specialist Matt Hirst was delighted to come home third, “I knew I wouldn’t be in the mix with the big boys
, but made sure I stayed out of the ditches. I would have been happy with top five, and here we are spraying Champagne,” he said.
Joe Cunningham’s hopes of retaining fourth were dashed on the final stage as power steering failure and then a puncture stopped him in his tracks and promoted Ollie Mellors who had started the stage in sixth.
Lee Edwards/Sam Spencer’s heroics were rewarded with sixth place.
Procter was still fifth, but lost time at the end with both a driveshaft and tyre issues, while Lee Edwards’ heroics were rewarded with sixth.
Brad Cole just held off Ian Forgan for seventh, while Steve Pawson/Liam Whiteley’s Fiesta R5 and Huw James/ Lewis Sim’s Ford Escort completed the final top 10, after Neil Roskell vacated sixth place when his Fiesta stopped with mechanical issues on the penultimate stage.
Clerk of the Course Matthew Atkinson said: “It has been a weekend full of drama, and the four second margin at the finish after an hour of hotly contested stages shows just how competitive the East Riding Stages Rally has become. The standard at the front was extremely high, and the tyre decisions in the final leg made a real difference. Just as importantly, the support from Beverley and our marshals and volunteers ensured the event ran safely and successfully throughout.”
The Rally winners in Beverley at the Ceremonial Finish.
Both drivers and spectators hailed the rally a resounding success, thanks to the commitment of the 800 strong team of marshals and volunteers who delivered the event across the weekend. From the packed town centre start in front of North Bar to the fast slippery lanes and the dramatic night stages, the East Riding Stages Rally once again combined top-level competition with a true community occasion.
With another dramatic chapter complete, attention already turns to 2027, when the rally will return to the streets and stages of Beverley and the East Riding.
PETER SCHERER / CAT LUND
East Riding Stages Rally 2026
Top Ten:
Sam Touzel / Max Freeman – 1:01:39.4
James Ford / Neil Shanks – 1:01:43.4
Matthew Hirst / Declan Dear – 1:02:26.9
Ollie Mellors / Ian Windress – 1:04:11.9
Kevin Procter / Rob Fagg – 1:04:20.9
Lee Edwards / Sam Spencer – 1:05:13.6
Brad Cole / Jamie Vaughan – 1:05:15.0
Ian Forgan / Callum Young – 1:05:15.9
Roger Duckworth / Alun Cook – 1:05:20.2
Rob Swann / Tom Woodburn – 1:05:23.5
See the full results at rallies.info
Photos with thanks to Andy Ford.
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