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Harry Bates has taken over the lead of the Australian Rally Championship after winning both heats of the National Capital Rally.
Bates and co-driver John McCarthy finished 1:23.7s clear of 2016 champion Molly Taylor, who remains second in the standings but by a reduced margin.
Previous championship leader Nathan Quinn failed to take any points out of the day after a number of problems.
Bates won two of the five stages on Day 2 of his home rally and sat at the top of the overall times at the end of each of those stages.
The win was particularly satisfactory given not only the conditions, with wet weather forcing the cancellation of Special Stage 13, but also in light of the mechanical problems which hamstrung Bates’ S2000-spec Toyota Corolla in the WA Forest Rally.
“It’s never nice when you are in the lead by nearly a minute and you are having all the elements thrown at you and today exactly that happened,” said the Toyota Genuine Parts-backed driver.
“But I’m stoked to bring it home; we decided to go out on the last few stages and have a crack and see if we could bring it home in style.
“We are over the moon, the whole team, to come back like this after WA and take the win.
“It’s great for John, great for myself, great for the whole team. We will celebrate well tonight.”
Taylor reported taking a conservative approach to the day in her Subaru Impreza.
While Bates finished with a clear margin and took over the championship lead, Taylor leaves Canberra just three points behind, having trailed then-leader Nathan Quinn by six points after the last round in Western Australia.
“It’s incredibly tight, incredibly exciting,” said Taylor.
“This rally was the toughest rally we have done so far this year. We all worked really hard for it.
“Both days have been completely different for us; the first day we were pushing with everything we had and today with all the attrition it was really about driving a smart rally, take it back a step and drive with our heads.
“Harry drove incredibly well, he deserved it and we are really happy to finish second.”
Quinn’s horror day which saw him fail to score any points despite winning the final stage after his Lancer Evo IX failed to return to the service park with mechanical issues.
The Coffs Coast Rally Team entry had early picked up two punctures on the second stage of the day, before winning the next, but Quinn is now well in arrears of the top two in the title race.
Eli Evans’ new Mini Cooper took him to another stage win before breaking a control arm.
Round 4 of the championship is Rally SA, to be held from September 15-17.
VIDEO: Sunday wrap from Canberra
Championship points: After Round 3 (Top 5)
- Harry Bates 195
- Molly Taylor 192
- Nathan Quinn 149
- Eli Evans 133
- Tony Sullens 130
