After three entertaining rounds, the CAMS Australian Rally Championship has reached its midway point for 2019 with Toyota Racing Gazoo’s Harry Bates and John McCarthy leading the way after claiming three wins from three rounds.
Next month, the championship will hit its fourth stop for the year with a visit to Ballarat for the Pedders Eureka Rush, which will also act as the fifth round for the Victorian championship.
Like the ARC, all the state championships are well into their seasons with the title contenders all putting up a good fight against each other.
Ahead of that round in late August, cams.com.au looks at the east coast of the country to check in on each state championship.
CAMS MTA NSW Rally Championship
Round 1 Mitta Mountain Rally 2019 winners: Glen Raymond and Kate CatfordRound 2 Caves Classic winners: Glen Raymond and Kate CatfordRound 3 Netier National Capital Rally winners: Glen Raymond and Kate CatfordRound 4 Rally of the Bay winners: Richie Dalton and Dale Moscatt
Motor sport is a difficult pill to swallow sometimes and one would be forgiven for thinking Glen Raymond and Kate Catford are sitting pretty at the top of the standings after winning the opening three rounds - but incredibly they are not.
Despite their impeccable form, their shock DNF in the Rally of the Bay saw them score no points for the round and drop to second place behind Richard Shimmon and Jim Gleeson.
Shimmon and Gleeson are yet to win a round but have come close on many occasions and their consistency has been rewarded with top spot after four rounds and only two remaining. The duo is also the only crew to feature on the podium in each round.
Another crew to fall victim of the bay was that of Tristan Kent and Anna Ritson who like the other two crews, found them as regular participants on the NSW podium, but a horror run in the most recent round saw Kent drop to fifth outright behind Tony Sullens and Andrew Penny on the drivers’ standings.
In what was a chaotic event, Richie Dalton and Dale Moscatt enjoyed success in the Rally of the Bay for the second year running, making them a the kings of the bay.
Top 3 Drivers (as of round 4)*
Richard Shimmon
Glen Raymond
Tony Sullens
Top 3 Co-drivers*
Jim Gleeson
Kate Catford
Kaylie Newell
The Run Home
Round 5: Bonalbo Rally – 20 July
Round 6: Monaro Stages – 19 October
*Following the end of the season, competitors are able to drop their worst round score. Current standings are based off non-corrected point score with adjustments to be made at the end of the season.
Hino Geelong CAMS Victorian Rally Championship
Round 1 Mitta Mountain Rally 2019: Tristen Kent and Robert Males
Round 2 Ada River Rally 2019: Justin Walker and Blaise McNamara
Round 3 Marysville Stages winners: Arron Windus and Daniel Brkic
Round 4 Rally of the Bay winners: Darren Windus and Joe Brkic
The Hino Geelong CAMS Victorian Rally Championship has seen four different crews take the top step at each event making it an extremely even competition. Interestingly, none of the winners from the first round occupied top spot after the opening three rounds, as Warren Lee and David Lethlean found themselves leading both driver and co-driver championships, despite not winning a round.
The season started badly for Lee and Lethlean, with the duo not posting a result in the season opener’s first heat, however battling through a claiming two podium finishes, saw them bounce to the top of the standings.
Sitting in second place, Justin Walker and Blaise McNamara’s sole round win of the year was technically a draw with Luke Sytema and Adam Wright, as the pair finished the event with the same total time, although Walker and McNamara came away with one more point after securing one heat win and a third place in the second, while two-second place finishes wasn’t enough for Sytema and Write.
Arron Windus has continued to defy expectations in 2019 and the youngster picked up three consecutive heat wins throughout year, two of which gave him the third round win, putting him in contention for the title.
Top 3 Drivers (as of round 3)
Warren Lee
Justin Walker
Arron Windus
Top 3 Co-drivers
David Lethlean
Blaise McNamara
Daniel Brkic
The run home.
Round 5 Eureka Rally: 25 August
Round 6 Yarra Valley Stages: 22 September
Round 7 Akademos: 20 October
P3 Solutions CAMS Queensland Rally Championship
Round 1 Rally Whitsundays: Marius Swart and Alan Stean
Round 2 SR Automotive Manumbar Rally: Brayden and Blake Wilson
The P3 Solutions CAMS Queensland Rally Championship has reached its midway point for the 2019 season with two of the rounds already completed. Like the Hino Geelong CAMS Victorian Rally Championship, different drivers have won each round so far.
After claiming the first win of the season during the impressive Rally Whitsundays, Marius Swart and Alan Stean were looking good to make it back-to-back wins however clutch issues in Manubar saw the duo drop to fourth outright.
Eventually claiming victory was Brayden and Blake Wilson, the brothers securing their maiden championship round victory in the process.
The Wilson brother’s victory also saw them jump Swart and Stean in both the driver and co-driver standings, after picking up a runner-up finish in Whitsundays.
A third place in Manubar, along with their fourth place in the season opener saw Melinda Bergmann and Larisa Biggar cement third outright in the standings, nine points ahead of Ryan Smart and Reardon-Smith who’s recent second saw them leapfrog the competition into fourth after missing the first round.
Top 3 Drivers (as of round 2)
Brayden Wilson
Marius Swart
Melinda Bergmann
Top 3 Co-drivers
Blake Wilson
Alan Stean
Larisa Biggar
The Run Home
Round 3: Accent Benchtops Working Dog Rally Bonalbo – 20 July
Round 4: Inspirations Paint Capalaba Hinterland Rally Imbil – 19 Octobe
Tune in next week for updates on Western Australia, South Australia and Tasmania’s championships.