Tom Wood back in Fiesta ST Trophy hunt after Nicky Grist Stages

Rounds in Ludlow and North Yorkshire at the start and end of September respectively will bring the curtain down on this year’s competition, which began back in North Wales in February.

Cwmbran co-driver Wood and Welshpool’s Hughes travelled to the Royal Welsh Showground following a third place in Carlisle and a brace of engine failures before that.

But the bad luck was all with their rivals in Builth Wells, with Wood and Hughes eventually finishing first by almost 60 seconds after the two cars behind them were forced to retire.

Organised by Quinton Motor Club, this year’s Nicky Grist Stages took place over 45 stage miles in the forests of Halfway, Route 60, Crychan and a brand new stage which had never been used for rallying before.

“The stages up there are so fast it’s unbelievable,” said Wood. “You are going flat out in fifth gear in a lot of places.

“And the heat was incredible, I was struggling to say the least. You can’t open the windows because they’re so small and the dust would come in if you did.

“We’d had such bad luck before Carlisle so to get a third in Cumbria and then win the Nicky Grist Stages was great, and it means we are back contending for the championship.

“There are two more rounds to go and it’s quite tight at the top so we’re going to try and win both to be in with a chance.”

The duo did have a few hairy moments, nearly coming a cropper courtesy of a hay bale, while the heat made the tyres harder to handle as the event went on.

But they managed to avoid any major damage or mechanical failure to secure a victory that was by a handsome margin in the end.

Ludlow Racecourse hosts the Woodpecker Rally on September 1, before Filey in North Yorkshire stages the season-ending Trackrod Rally on September 29.

Wood will also be taking part in the Caerwent Rally on September 30, acting as a co-driver to Treorchy’s Kalvin Green.