SerpApi.Org
Colin Turkington hailed his first international class win on only his second competitive start in a rally car as a ‘dream outcome’ for him and experienced co-driver, Rory Kennedy.
The four-time British Touring Car champion switched codes for the first time last month with help from Ernie Graham – the Antrim businessman with whom he is sharing a seat in the British GT Championship this season – by ending the Tyrone Stages Rally 28th overall.
Turkington’s dream start to rallying alongside Kennedy continued in Austria as he steered a BMW M3 E30 to victory in the European Historic Rally Championship Pre-2000 section.
Read more:
- Josh McErlean wants a response from his team after an exhaust fault at Rally Estonia ends his race on the second day
- Belfast’s Liam Regan is looking forward to a trip down memory lane at the Ulster Rally in a car that is so much more to him
- Charlie Eastwood relishes ‘best race of the year so far’ after Six Hours of São Paulo triumph
Hosted in the scenic town of Weiz in Austria, the tenth edition of Rallye Weiz brought together eighty crews from eighteen nations, including eighteen-time FIA World Rally Championship event winner Jari-Matti Latvala (Toyota Celica Turbo), former-Ford and Peugeot World Rally icon François Delecour (Peugeot Sport 306 Maxi), three-time EHRC title holder Tibor Érdi Jr (Ford Sierra Sapphire), and multiple Austrian national champion Simon Wagner at the controls of a Porsche 911.
Across thirteen Tarmac stages covering almost one hundred competitive miles in and around the host town of Weiz, Turkington’s speed and consistency were rewarded with a 21-second triumph.
Seven-and-a-half seconds of this was accrued on the final pass of the ‘Gollersattel’ test.
“This whole opportunity happened because of Ernie Graham,” revealed Turkington.
“We race together in British GT, so to come into his world of rallying – and compete on these Austrian mountain roads alongside legends like Jari-Matti Latvala and François Delecour – was unforgettable.
“The learning curve for me was massive, having to drive using auditory pace notes rather than rely on circuit visual memory.
“Every time we repeated a stage, the confidence grew, and the times dropped significantly. First in class and sixth overall, and seventh for Ernie – really is a dream outcome for me,” continued the 44-year-old.
