LAST weekend's Roush Manx Rally saw Castleton driver Ryan Champion and his co-driver Craig Thorley, from Pocklington, record a convincing victory in round three of the 2005 Mitsubishi Ralliart Evolution Challenge as they crossed the line 50 seconds ahead of their nearest rivals.

Taking place over the Isle of Man's closed public roads, the event comprised five timed special stages on Friday evening, with a further 11 on Saturday, all of which equated to a competitive distance of 120 miles.

The Manx weather lived up to its reputation and, after being dry all day, the heavens opened an hour before the start, making the road surfaces slippery and unpredictable.

Champion, who had swapped his Evo Six version for the very latest Evo Eight, which he borrowed from MSR Motorsport teammate Mike Altendorf specially for this event, was half a second faster than nearest rival Phil Morrow as the Yorkshiremen set the Evo Challenge pace right from the word go.

As the crews headed back to Douglas for the overnight halt, the Evo Challenge leaderboard showed Champion just over a minute to the good and in an amazing seventh place overall.

With Saturday dawning dry and bright, Champion aimed to stay out of trouble and consolidate his lead, which he did as he crossed the finish ramp at the TT Grandstand on Saturday afternoon to take his first ever Evolution Challenge victory and finish ninth overall, a result which puts his Mitsubishi title hopes well and truly on track.

"It's all gone according to plan," said a delighted Champion. "After pulling out a minute's lead on Friday evening we made things easier for ourselves on Saturday.

"But I have to admit it was a bit nerve-racking towards the end, making sure I kept out of trouble and at the same time not losing too much time.

"I am also delighted with the car and, although it had only covered 50 miles when I started the rally, it ran perfectly throughout and justified our decision to swap for this event."

There was more local success in the shape of Northallerton co-driver Ian Windress, whose third place on the event with Penrith driver Paul Bird consolidated his lead at the top of the co-drivers' championship after a trouble-free run in their Ford Focus WRC.

Shildon's Barry Johnson overcame a 100mph spin in which he clouted two banks to post fourth place in his Subaru WRC.

Steve Petch, from Scorton, also overcame an indiscretion with another unforgiving Manx bank to record 18th place overall in his Hyundai Accent WRC, while Tim Pearcey, from Topcliffe, and co-driver Mick Johnson, from Pickhill, claimed 37th overall in their Mitsubishi on their Isle of Man debut.

Five other local crews were among the 48 retirements, including Tristan Pye, from Bishop Auckland, who snapped a rear link on his Subaru on SS2, and Stephen Petch, from Scorton, and Tow Law co-driver Michael Wilkinson, who blew the turbo on SS11.

Marton's Geoff Glover and co-driver Charles Turner, from New Marske, retired their Vauxhall Astra at the start of SS12, while Northallerton's Charlie Jackson (Ford Escort Cosworth) and Thirsk driver Gareth Frank (Vauxhall Nova) both retired on the Friday evening stages.

* Northallerton rally driver Charlie Taylor recorded his best result of the season when he took a battling fourth place overall on last Sunday's Lion Stages Rally held at Kidland Forest in Northumberland.

Driving the CTGS Ford Escort Mk 2 with Pickering co-driver Steve Beilby on the maps, he missed out on third overall by just ten seconds after the 34 stage mile event which comprised a round of the Walkers Garage/Tecno 2 ANECCC Stage Rally Championship.

Also in action was ex-Birkby resident Carl Tuer, who ended up in seventh place in his Proton Satria.

But the day ended in retirement for the Durham pairing of Garry Johnson and Phil Bond (Vauxhall Corsa) and Birtley's Kevin and James Knox (Ford Sierra).

l The Hawk Kawasaki pairing of Glen Richards and Dean Thomas will take centre stage when the North Yorkshire Road Racing Supporters Club holds a chat show in Elders Bar on Tuesday, May 24.

To coincide with the official test day for the Bennetts British Superbike Championship at Croft circuit the same day, the Australian riders will visit Northallerton for the charity chat show, which gets under way at 8pm.

Richards has already impressed with some superb performances aboard the 1000cc machine, with rostrum placings at both Brands Hatch and Mallory Park this season, while ex-GP racer Thomas has been a regular front-runner on the green machines.

There will be spot prizes, giveaways and a raffle and admission costs just £3 per adult, with accompanied children £1. More details from Sue Symons on 01904 339647.

l Following the success of the inaugural event, regulations for the 2005 Roger Albert Clark Rally are now available and, while keeping the traditional format, the organisers have announced a number of small changes in order to improve the event.

All classes on the rally will run concurrently, which means fans will see all their favourite drivers in one field seeded on performance, and the organisers have introduced a Clubman Rally to be run over the same stages on the Monday only.

Last year's event took a lot of people by surprise and resulted in low entry numbers, but was very high quality from a driver perspective.

It was an event those who were lucky enough to attend will never forget and the battle between Malcolm Wilson, Stig Blomqvist and Hannu Mikkola was the stuff of which legends are made.

The organisers have decided to consolidate this year rather than go for a complete change, but they have listened to the views of competitors and spectators.

There are more stage miles on Sunday, including mileage in the Lake District, and the long run out to Kielder on Sunday evening has been dropped in favour of some closer stages in Scotland.

Monday and Tuesday stage miles have both been increased so the challenge will be even harder this year and another significant change will see the Roger Albert Clark Rally and the Roger Albert Clark Open Rally both run concurrently.

The trophy rallies, which allow cars to continue after retiring from the main event, will continue.

Regulations for the rally, which takes place between November 19 and 22, are available now and for more information log on to www.rogeralbertclarkrally.org.uk or ring 01977 518522.

* Following a plea in last week's D&S Times, the annual charity soccer match between a Riders XI and a Media XI will now definitely go ahead on Friday, June 3 at Darlington Rugby Club.

The match will coincide with the Bennetts British Superbike Championship meeting to be held at Croft circuit that weekend and will feature a number of top riders and media celebrities in a fundraising game for St Teresa's Hospice in Darlington. The organisers are hoping to raise more than £2,000.

Up to 500 fans are expected at the match, which kicks off at 7.30.

Admission costs just £3 per adult, with a charity auction and raffle taking place afterwards in the clubhouse