Matt Edwards stars on Rally Isle of Man

matt edwards rob fagg iom Matt Edwards stars on Rally Isle of Man

Fiesta Sporting Trophy and BRC Challenge contender Matt Edwards claimed a stunning double victory in the Isle of Man over the weekend. He and Manx Co-driver Rob Fagg clinched maximum points on both days of the 160 mile event for the BRC Challenge; Edwards third of the season, whilst also claiming his fourth podium in five starts in the Kick Energy Fiesta Sport Trophy.

The impressive results achieved by the Silkolene, High Hill Ford, GPM and Neteller supported crew would be so by the standards of experienced tarmac drivers alike, however, Edwards trip to the world famous island would mark his very first venture onto the surface to compete. A strict game plan and assistance in the form of local Rob Fagg would prove influential throughout the course of the weekend and enable the up and coming Welsh driver to complete the ultimately demanding and notorious route without putting a single mark on his self prepared Fiesta ST.

Edwards’ first true taste of tarmac rallying and the Isle of Man would be approached with a sensible and conservative attitude, knowing full well that an accident would end all hopes of wining either series. Taking time to adapt to the different driving style and excellent capabilities of the car would prove wise, as fellow FST championship front-runners Kris Hall and Mark Donnelly would succumb to the Island on the very first stage, putting them out of contention for top honours.

As the first morning progressed, with the new partnership working well immediately, Edwards was able to increase his speed from corner to corner, despite admitting to finding it un-nerving to be threading a car at speeds of up to 95mph down lanes where the wing mirrors would be touching the grass banks; “But at least I didn’t stop and give-way at the first junction I came to!” he commented at first service.

“I am really enjoying the roads and am slowly coming to terms with the huge grip available and how well the car brakes and handles over the many bumps in the stages. It’s an awesome place to compete and I can see why people can get the bug for rallying here, it does have some ‘X-Factor’ you cannot explain!”

After tackling a stage over 21 miles in length as only his fourth of the rally, Edwards would be delighted to find himself lying third Fiesta and leading the BRC Challenge first leg – both positions that would do no harm for championship aspirations in both series.With every stage proving a steep learning curve due to tyre selections and car set-up and encountering the many different character roads on the island, the experience of Fagg would be proving invaluable to the team.

“Rob has been doing a fantastic job today in helping me find my feet on tarmac. It’s a totally different feeling to driving on gravel, but strangely enough it’s the amount of grip available that’s making me uncomfortable as it’s proving harder to judge what the car will do when you lose it, as on gravel you’re always sliding around slightly on the loose surface. Rob has been giving me the confidence in the notes so we can already push in the relevant places, but has also been controlling the pace so we don’t fall victim to the traitorous conditions”, a statement all the more relevant as Edwards would be driving the car back home after the event.

With a consistent and trouble free afternoon, Edwards and Fagg would take the BRC Challenge battle for day one and podium place to be confirmed in the Fiesta’s pending an enquiry into the cancellation of a couple of stages from the results; either way a remarkable achievement for both an Isle of Man and tarmac Virgin.

Nevertheless the celebrations could not continue for long, as for the BRC Challenge the event was only at half distance with a repeated but separate day to count for points on the Saturday. Once again a mature and calculated approach would be the order of the day; Edwards relishing the opportunity to tackle some of the most famous and technical tarmac rally stages in Europe.

With the infamous Manx mini climate also now playing its part, the duo would be also learning from the experience of wrong tyre choices, when the re-running of the 21 mile marathon stage would be soaked with water half way through after a dry start, however once again the strict game plan of not taking chances would pay dividends as rivals fell by the wayside.

By now Edwards was finding his feet and would be constantly swapping fastest Challenge stage times with Irish tarmac regular Ross Forde, whilst on average halving his day one deficit to leading Fiesta competitor Craig Breen; indicating his rate of improvement. The pair would be able to maintain this to the end of the event and claim a second consecutive maximum points score of the weekend which sees Edwards take a strong stance in the championship overall.

“Its been an experience il never forget that’s for sure, though one I’m keen to repeat coming back next year! It’s a very rewarding feeling for the hard work behind the scenes to pay off like this, and to be able to stick to a game plan regardless of what the competition and the whether has been doing, particularly when more experienced drivers have made mistakes.”

The next round of the Fiesta series is on the Tarmac of Ulster in September, and the BRC Challenge will now go down to the wire on the Trackrod Rally later that month.

Matt and Rob would like to thank High Hill Ford, GPM, Silkolene 710, and Netella for their ongoing support.

More information on the Fiesta Sport Trophy can be found at www.fiestasportingtrophy.co.uk