In just his 10th outing at this level, Dan Mennell from Yorkshire became one of the elite group of drivers to achieve British Historic Rally Championship victories, after he triumphed on the Riponian Stages.
Partnered by John Roberts in his Ford Escort Mk2, Mennell dominated on Sunday's Riponian Stages Rally in his local forests to achieve a result he has been seeking for the past 12 months.
As one of the leading figures in historic rallying, Mennell had to drive aggressively as overnight rain made the classic Yorkshire forests extremely slippery and challenging.
He made almost no mistakes and finished the event 20 seconds ahead of another rising star in historic rallying, David Crossen.
Northern Irishman Crossen was partnered by Ben Teggart, while fellow countrymen Adrian Hetherington and Ronan O'Neill took third place in the Escort Mk2 overall rankings.
That's absolutely magical," said Mennell at the finish. "I used to watch all these guys when I was a kid and think: 'I'd love to do that one day'. And here we are. It's like a dream come true.
Crossen led the way on the opening stage in Gale Rigg, with Mennell just two seconds behind. However, after 11 miles of high-speed driving in Cropton, Mennell took the lead, holding a five-second advantage, which he continued to build on to finish the rally with a 20-second gap.
"That's a good result for us," said Crossen, who was still gaining experience in both the championship and the Yorkshire stages.
Hetherington recovered from an early tire puncture to secure third place
Photo by: Paul Lawrence
In the meantime, Hetherington staged a strong comeback, having lost around 20 seconds on the opening stage due to a rear puncture.
Hetherington's pace picked up significantly over the second loop, where he recorded the fastest stage times. Crucially, he was 6 seconds ahead of the rest of the field through the final stage, which was the Boltby test, and this margin was enough to propel him into third place, surpassing David Henderson and Chris Lees.
Former racing driver Henderson faced difficulties in the early stages due to a faulty clutch, and by the final stage, he was running low on rear tire tread, making fourth place a respectable finish.
The Yorkshireman Matthew Stroud, joined by Josh Carr in an Escort, rounded out the top five with an impressive performance in an Escort.
It was a highly satisfying day for Yorkshire, with Adam Milner and Roy Jarvis securing a commendable seventh place overall in their 1600cc Escort Mk1. Milner had previously suffered two consecutive rally setbacks, and both driver and co-driver were relieved to cross the finish line for the first time in two-and-a-half years.
Others struggled with mechanical problems, including Matthew Robinson, Ben Friend (driving an Escort), and George Lepley, who was expected to take the lead in his Mitsubishi Galant VR4. Unfortunately, engine issues on the first stage forced him to withdraw from the rally shortly after it began.