Sliven Rally - IRC news after the finish

High-flying Slavov thrilled with Sliven IRC 2WD Cup victory

Todor Slavov snatched the IRC 2WD Cup lead on stage two and never looked back as he raced to a dominant victory in his Renault Clio R3, going fastest in class on 12 of the 13 stages that made up the Mabanol Sliven Rally.

Honda Civic Type R driver Martin Kangur impressed in second place after Menya Krózser crashed his Clio on stage 12. Murat Bostanci was the leading M-Sport Ford Fiesta pilot home in third.

Harry Hunt’s bid to make up for the extensive time loss he suffered when he got beached on day one ended when he crashed heavily into trees on stage 11. Although Hunt was uninjured, his co-driver Robbie Durant has been taken to hospital in Plodiv for surgery on a back injury although he is expected to make a full recovery. Hunt’s failure to score and Robert Consani’s capture of fourth means the Renault driver now heads the IRC 2WD Cup table.

As well as claiming the IRC 2WD Cup spoils, Slavov finished fourth overall, a performance that earned him the coveted Colin McRae IRC Flat Out Trophy. “Today’s stages were a little bit too difficult for a two-wheel-drive car, they were quite slippery and uphill and it was not possible to fight against the more powerful cars,” said Slavov. “Fourth place was the best possible result for this car so we are happy with that and to win the IRC 2WD Cup. Also, to win the Colin McRae award is very special. He was my idol and I have no words to describe my feelings right now.”

Mixed emotions for IRC Production Cup victor Consani

With an advantage of more than one minute over Robert Consani after 10 stages, Georgi Vasilev was on course for his maiden IRC Production Cup victory, particularly with a down-on-power engine plaguing Consani.

But a disastrous 11th stage on the Mabanol Sliven Rally, when he suffered a spin following a puncture, left him out of contention and ensured a second consecutive victory for the determined Consani, who now moves to the top of the title standings in his Renault Mégane RS.

However, Frenchman Consani said afterwards that a persistent power problem meant he couldn’t gain any satisfaction from his otherwise successful Sliven debut due to the fact his ultimate speed was masked throughout.

“It was very difficult to drive with no power, especially on the places where there was gravel, and it was hard to concentrate,” said Consani. “My aim was to score some good points, which is what I did, but this was not the way I wanted to do it.”

Subaru Impreza driver Stoyan Apostolov scored two stage wins on his way to second place in the category with Vasilev taking third. Marco Tempestini, one of the favourites for victory before the start, retired following an oil leak on his Impreza R4 STI on day one.

Hunt praises medical crews following biggest crash

Harry Hunt has described the crash that put him and co-driver Robbie Durant out of the Mabanol Sliven Rally on Sunday morning as the biggest of his short career.

The 2010 IRC 2WD Cup champion went off the road at high speed on Sunday’s second stage. Although Hunt escaped unhurt when his car made contact with a tree, co-driver Durant suffered a back injury, which will require surgery.

“I don’t remember at all what happened: that’s how big the accident was,” said British driver Hunt. “We were pushing really hard to make up time and unfortunately these things can happen if you’re going for it. Accidents form part of the sport sometimes and the most important thing is that we all learn from this and come back even stronger. I’d like to thank the Bulgarian organisers and medical staff who helped us after we crashed: they did a fantastic job. Now we’re looking forward to the rest of the season. We’ve lost our championship lead but there is still absolutely everything to play for and we’re determined to get it back.”

Hunt’s failure to score in Bulgaria means he now trails new IRC 2WD Cup leader Robert Consani by 11 points. Because he will be stepping up to a Super 2000-specification Peugeot 207 on the next round, Rallye Sanremo, Hunt only has the IRC finale in Cyprus in November to overhaul his French rival and take the title.

Sliven Colin McRae IRC Flat Out Trophy goes to Slavov

Todor Slavov’s heroic run to fourth overall on the Mabanol Sliven Rally has been recognised with the awarding of the Colin McRae IRC Flat Out Trophy.

Despite having contested only one full-length rally in the last year due to funding issues, the rising star of Bulgarian rallying was fastest in the IRC 2WD Cup category on 12 of the 13 stages and held third place overall at the completion of day one in his Renault Clio R3.

He was the unanimous choice of the panel of judges consisting of IRC Manager Jean-Pierre Nicolas, Eurosport Events’ Gilbert Roy and Colin’s father Jimmy McRae.

Upon making the presentation in Sliven this afternoon, Nicolas said: “We have decided to give this prestigious award to a young driver who was really fantastic throughout the whole rally. He was fighting cars that were more competitive than his and the international rallying community has really noticed his performance this weekend.”

Slavov said: “Colin McRae was my idol so this is a great feeling to receive this trophy. It’s hard to explain how I’m feeling right now.”