LONGYOU (China): The Proton Motorsport camp celebrated wildly on the final day of the China Rally as the Malaysian outfit clinched the manufacturers’ and drivers’ titles of the Asia Pacific Rally Championships (APRC) here yesterday.
Scotsman Alistair McRae and co-driver Bill Hayes of Australia, behind the wheels of the Proton Satria Neo S2000, dominated the final leg of the APRC with a winning time of 3’00:38.
“This is the weekend that we have been waiting for this season,” said the 40-year-old McRae, whose last title time came at the Formula 2 Asia Pacific Rally in 1999.
“We had a good lead since day one of the rally. We backed off a bit in the final three stages to avoid any mishap and just kept our focus to sustain our lead till the end.”
Team-mate and title rival Chris Atkinson finished third in the race to complete a 1-2 for Proton Motorsport in the drivers’ standings.
Atkinson, however, was gracious in defeat.
“I’m disappointed to not win the drivers’ title after winning several rounds of the rally,” said the Australian, who was victorious in Malaysia, New Caledonia and New Zealand.
“Congratulations to Alistair for winning the championship. We have also won the manufacturers’ title so it is great for the team.”
RESULTS
1. Alistair McRae (Proton Satria Neo S2000) 3’00:38
2. Jari Ketomaa (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X) 3’01:52
3. Chris Atkinson (Proton Satria Neo S2000) 3’02:17
4. Mark Higgins (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX) 3’06:24
5. Wei Hongjie (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX) 3’13:12
6. Rifat Sungkar (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX) 3’14:24
7. Yuya Sumiyama (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X) 3’14:43
8.Li Wei (Subaru Imprexa WRX) 3’16:40
9. Han Han (Subaru Imprexa WRX)3’16:41
10. Pang Jiangdong (Mitsubishi CT9A) 3’20:28.2
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