Motors: Evans and Martin win the FORUM8 Rally in Japan 

Elfyn Evans/Scott Martin (Toyota Yaris Rally1 Hybrid) won the FORUM8 Rally Japan, the final round of the World Rally Championship. Picture: Jaanus Ree/Red Bull Content Pool

Welsh ace Elfyn Evans led home a Toyota Gazoo Racing lock out of the top three places in the FORUM8 Rally Championship as the Word Rally Championship series ended on their team’s home event. Taking the lead on the second stage on Friday Evans went on to claim his second win of the season and his eighth career win to finish runner-up in the series for the third time.

Co-driven by Scott Martin they finished one minute and 17.7s ahead of team-mates Sébastien Ogier/Vincent Landais, who damaged the chassis of their GR Yaris after colliding with a barrier during Saturday stages. They incurred a one-minute penalty when they exceeded their allocated service time - ultimately ending their challenge. Back-to-back World champion Kalle Rovanpera and his co-driver Jonne Halttunen were a further 28.8s behind in third.

Northern Ireland’s Aaron Johnston and Japan’s Takamoto Katsuta, also in GR Yaris, were fifth and won nine of the nine of the twenty-one stages. They slipped off the road on the second stage and lost over two and a half minutes. Dropping to 31st position they made a spirited recovery and had closed to within some 16s of fourth placed Esapekka Lappi (Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid ) during the final leg.

Ott Tanak completed his final event with the M-Sport WRT in sixth place and WRC2 champion Norway’s Andreas Mikkelsen took his Skoda Fabia RS Rally2 to another class win and seventh overall.

The Wexford/Waterford crew of Eamonn Boland/Mickey Joe Morrissey (Citroen C3 Rally2) took second place in the WRC Masters category. They had an untroubled run throughout the event and coped with horrendous conditions on Friday where incessant rain forced the cancellation of one stage.

In motor racing and having impressed in his Formula 3 debut former Irish Young Racing Driver of the Year winner Offaly’s Alex Dunne made an early exit from the Formula 3 World Cup at the Macau Grand Prix. On the opening lap, Dunne, who qualified P2, moved to the left as he and others braked for a tight right-hander, unfortunately, as he tried to get around the outside he found himself on the wrong line and ran off into the tyre barriers. Earlier and from sixth on the grid the Clonbulloge driver finished second in the Sprint race.

Meanwhile, Wicklow’s Max Hart won the final round of the Touring Car Championship at the 70th Macau Grand Prix. The safety car was deployed four laps from the finish and racing resumed with one lap remaining with Hart racing with the Z.Speed outfit and who began the race from pole in his Hyundai Elantra N TCR Racing took the chequered flag 1.2s ahead of the Honda of Martin Xie It was his maiden win in the series. Hart, who enjoys personal support from Irish Autotest/Rallycross legend Dermot Carnegie, is one of the seven nominees for this season’s Irish Young Racing Driver of the Year award.

The top ten starters for the forthcoming Towers Hotel Killarney Historic Rally (December 2nd) are: 1. Jonny Greer/Niall Burns (Ford Sierra Cosworth 4x4); 2. Alan Ring/Adrian Deasy (Subaru Legacy RS); 3. Neil Williams/Anthony O'Sullivan (Ford Escort RS1800); 4. Eamonn Kelly/Conor Mohan (Ford Escort RS1800); 5. Donagh Kelly/Rory Kennedy (BMW M3); 6. Duncan Williams/Guy Weaver (Ford Escort RS1800); 7. Mark Falvey/James O'Brien (Ford Escort RS1600); Michael McDaid/Declan Casey (Ford Escort RS1800); 9. Denis Moynihan/Martin O'Brien (Ford Escort); 10. Tomas Davies/Eurig Davies (Ford Escort) 

FORUM8 Rally Japan (Round 13 World Rally Championship) Nagoya: 1. E. Evans/S. Martin (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 Hybrid) 3h. 32m. 08.8s; 2. S. Ogier/V. Landais (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 Hybrid)+1m. 17.7s; 3. K. Rovanpera/J. Halttunen (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 Hybrid)+1m. 46.5s; 4. E. Lappi/J. Ferm (Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid)+2m. 50.3s; 5. T. Katsuta/A. Johnston (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1 Hybrid)+3m. 10.3s; 6. O. Tanak/M. Jarveoja (Ford Puma Rally1 Hybrid)+3m. 28.3s; 7. A. Mikkelsen/T. Eriksen (Skoda Fabia RS)+7m. 33.7s; 8. N. Gryazin/K. Aleksandrov (Skoda Fabia RS)+8m. 49.6s; 9. K. Kajetanowicz/M. Szczepaniak (Skoda Fabia RS)+19m. 25.9s; 10. H. Arai/H. Tachikui (Peugeot 208 Rally4)+22m. 22.7s. 14. E. Boland/MJ Morrissey (Citroen C3 Rally2)+28m. 38.6.

FIA World Rally Championship for Drivers’ (Final standings): 1. K. Rovanpera 235points; 2. E. Evans 191pts; 3. T. Neuville 184pts; 4. O. Tanak 162pts; 5. S. Ogier 114pts; 6. E. Lappi 98pts; 7. T. Katsuta 89pts.

FIA World Rally Championship for Manufacturers’ (Final standings): 1. Toyota Gazoo Racing World Rally Team 504points; 2. Hyundai Shell Mobis WRT 399pts; 3. M-Sport Ford WRT 271pts.