TNT-SUPPORTED RALLY TEAM SCORES TWO CLASS WINS
Shah Alam, Malaysia - May 29th., 2007 ...
The two-car rally
team, managed and entered by SR Motorsport, came away from last
weekend's MRC Round 2, with wins in Classes N4 & A8. With the
resulting points tally, the team remains second overall in the Team
Championship, and maintains its lead in the two classes.
Scoring points for the first time this year, rookie French driver
Thomas Duroyon was delighted with his class win. A strong drive in
this, only his second event, also saw him take seventh overall.
Accompanied by experienced Malaysian co-driver Gulvinder Singh Gill,
Thomas experienced few problems during the event, the worst being a
large rock which punched a hole in the Subaru Impreza's floor, just
behind the co-driver's seat.
Less lucky were the team's number one pairing of James Russell and
Douglas Pickering. Despite a malfunctioning rear differential, which
essentially meant the 4WD Turbo Impreza was running as a front wheel
drive car throughout the event, they managed some top five times
during leg one. But, midway through leg two, a power-steering pipe
came loose, resting itself on the ultra-hot turbo, where it burned
through and spilled fluid down the hot exhaust. Hearing loud popping
sounds, the crew wisely pulled over on a road section, to find the
engine bay on fire. A couple of extinguishers were needed to douse
the flames, but fortunately the damage was limited to the crews
nerves and some blackened paintwork.
Thanks to this year's Malaysian Rally Championship "SupeRally" rules,
the crew was able to re-enter the event following repairs, and was
able to take the finish ramp and the class win.
As Team Manager Paul Russell said "The fact that one of your cars is
on fire is not something you want to hear from a crew member, but
luckily the damage was minimal. The fast action of the crew, and of
following competitors, saved the day. Because the grass under the
car had also caught fire, the result could have been much worse.
"Overall though, this was a satisfying weekend" he continued "Thomas
is rapidly getting to grips with Malaysia's tricky plantation roads -
which were quite slippery in places - and with more testing planned
for the next few weeks, he and Gill should continue to score good
points for the team. James was hampered both by the rear diff.
problem and the very narrow and twisty stages which favored the
smaller and more nimble cars."
The SR Motorsport team is strongly supported by TNT Malaysia, a
company which since its inception in 1976, has strategically
developed into a leading business-to-business express delivery and
express linked logistics services and solutions provider in the
country. TNT Malaysia´s operations consist of three international
gateways at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA), Penang and
Johor Bahru, as well as a 250,000 sq ft National Distribution Centre
in Shah Alam, Selangor - the largest TNT facility in Asia - and a
network of 10 branches nationwide, including Sabah and Sarawak.
TNT Malaysia is also the nucleus of TNT´s Asia Road Network which
promises secure day-definite transportation solutions through Asia.
Inaugurated in 2005, TNT Malaysia takes responsibility for TNT´s main
Security Control and Command Centre in overseeing and tracking the
entire road network operations in Asia.
The Malaysian Rally Championship (MRC) consists of five-rounds,
covering the whole of Peninsular Malaysia. The team's next event
will be Malaysia's premier rally - a round of the Asia Pacific Rally
Championship - which takes place in the southern State of Johor, from
August 10th to 12th.
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SR Motorsport's Partners include - TNT Malaysia, Tetrosyl/Carlube and
CMY Systems.
SR Motorsport has Representatives in Japan, Middle East, New Zealand,
South Africa, Thailand, UK & USA/Canada.
For further information please contact:
SR Motorsport Sdn. Bhd. Tel: +60 3 5510 7063 Fax: +60 3 5510 4249
Media Liaison:
Paul Russell +60 12 308 9734 E-mail: paul@sr-motorsport.com