Scotsman Barry Clark (24) and Carlisle co-driver Scott Martin (25) have cruised to a second victory in the Fiesta SportingTrophy International on the Vodafone Rally de Portugal. The Stobart sponsored crew finished 26th overall and sixth in GpN, beating Lambros Athanassoulas previous record of 31st on Rally Deutschland 2006, for the highest placed Ford Fiesta ST to be classified on a WRC event.
Clark was dominant on Rally Norway in February, but Welshman Simon Hughes (23) and Scottish co-driver Claire Mole (38) pushed Clark hard in Portugal, allowing them a lead of only 37.9 seconds after 357 kilometres of rough gravel stages. Hughes has now climbed to second place in the championship standings and shares the spot with Russians Evgeniy Vertunov (23) and co-driver Georgiy Troshkin (29).
The seven round series follows the FIA World Rally Championship calendar and Rally de Portugal was the competitors first outing on gravel stages this year. The rally returned to the WRC calendar after a break of five years and was based in the Algarve region for the first time. Road conditions were tough for crews in this competitive series and the weather was inconsistent; with the two-litre Fiestas facing sunshine and clear skies on day one, torrential rain on day two, and bright sunshine again on the final day.
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