Yates heads north of the border

After notching up two top six finishes in the series so far, Yates lies an impressive fourth in the BRC standings in only his second year in the championship, just four points away from the podium spots.

The 24-year-old and co-driver Carl Williamson have enjoyed a successful season so far, culminating in a best ever fifth spot on the Border Counties Rally just along the Scottish border in Jedburgh.

The third round moves west to Dumfries and classic stages in the Twiglees and Ae forests lie in wait for the duo.

Driving his familiar Ford Fiesta R5, Yates made sure his preparation for the tough, two-day event was up to scratch by returning to the BTRDA Rally Series last weekend at the Plains Rally. Despite Williamson not being available, Yates and stand in co-driver James Morgan took the Brettex Fiesta to sixth. Yates was happy with the outing.

“We certainly didn’t enter the rally to win it, it was more about seat time and trying a few setup changes on the car to find out what worked better,” said Yates.

“The stages are not that similar to Scotland but they are equally as fast. It was good to fill the gap between the last rally and the Scottish, the seat time is really important.”

And added: “I didn’t have such a good run there [Scottish Rally] last year but I have learnt so much about the car and myself since then.”