The event started on Saturday evening with a stage in the dark. Despite the very testing wet and misty conditions Wright stormed through the stage faster than any other crew in his Kumho Tyres, Proflex, Drenth, York Brewery and Grove Hill Garage-supported GPM Mitsubishi Evo 9.
“We went really well on the first stage, conditions were pretty tough but we knew that a good performance could give us a decent lead to take into the daylight stages,” said Wright. “I was very pleased to be 12 seconds faster than anyone else.”
The crews contested a further six stages on Sunday with the bulk of the action taking place in Grizedale forest. Wright continued his charge with fastest time on the first two stages of the day to extend his lead to 54 seconds.
Despite the good lead Wright pushed hard on the remaining four stages and was rewarded with second-fastest times on each of the tests, only beaten by a more powerful world rally class car. He arrived at the finish in Coniston with a lead of 1m 38 over the second-placed crew.
“Day two started with a fairly long stage and we wanted to be quick out of the blocks to drive home the advantage we had from stage one. Once we had built up a healthy lead it was tempting to back-off a bit but we decided to push as hard as we could while not taking any risks. I’m delighted with the win, we’ve had a mixed season this year so it’s brilliant to finish off with a victory.”
“Thanks to all my sponsors who made the win possible and also to GPM for the car. I can’t wait for the 2012 season to start!”
With his rally season finished Wright will now concentrate on building a new car which he hopes to use on some tarmac rallies next year. He will also contest selected forest events in his usual Evo 9.
