William Creighton/Liam Regan have been seeded at number one for the 2025 Nicky Grist Stages (Saturday 12 July) – with the Quinton Motor Club organised event attracting another stellar entry.
The top seeds will be driving the same Toyota GR Yaris Rally2 that won the event last year (in the hands of Chris Ingram/Alex Kihurani) – with Castrol MEM Rally Team stable-mates Meirion Evans/Dale Furniss also contesting the event.
Double Protyre Asphalt rally champions Callum Black/Jack Morton will also appear in their Ford Fiesta Rally2, the celebrated pair contesting the event for the first time since winning the Interclub section in 2021.
Osian Pryce won the Nicky Grist Stages in 2022, in what was his 100th rally start. That victory in a Volkswagen Polo GTI R5 helped him become British Rally champion that year, and he returns this time in a Wales Motorsport-prepared Escort Mk2, co-driven by Phil Pugh.
Jonathan Brace wasn’t planning to rally this year, but the return of the Route 60 stage was too much of a temptation and he’s back out with co-driver Paul Spooner (2002 event winner) in his magnificent Dave Jenkins Motorsport-built Brace’s Bakery Ford Escort RS1600 Mk1.
Defending Protyre Autocare BTRDA Rally Series champion Elliot Payne, who won the Nicky Grist Stages in 2023 and scored maximum Gold Star points on the event last year, will be aiming to extend his championship lead when he and co-driver Patrick Walsh contest the event in their Alan Causey Autosport-prepared Ford Fiesta Rally2.
David Henderson leads both the BTRDA Silver Star and Jordan Road Surfacing BTRDA Historic Cup and, co-driven by Will Atkins, will be aiming for a hat-trick of victories in his 2-litre Escort. He’s only four points ahead of Lewis Hooper, who also leads the BTRDA Junior R2 Cup in his Fiesta Rally2 (co-driven by Silver Star leading navigator Rhys Edwards).
Meanwhile Dylan Fowler-Bishop/Dan Evans will be aiming to extend their lead in the BTRDA Bronze Star Series.
Over 50 crews from the Motorsport UK Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship will contest the event. These include the four-time and reigning champions Matthew Hirst/Declan Dear (Škoda Fabia R5), James Giddings/Aled Davies (Mitsubishi Evo 9), Rudi Lancaster/Guy Weaver (Escort Mk2), Bob Morgan/Ade Williams (Škoda Fabia R5), David Tomlin/Keith Ashley (Ford Fiesta R5) and Russ Thompson/Stephen Link, who claimed maximum Welsh points on the event last year in their Mitsubishi Evo 9.
Liam Clark arrives at the event leading both the Pirelli Welsh Championship overall and the Junior section. Should he still be leading the Under 25s at the end of the Nicky Grist Stages, then the young Fiesta Rally2 driver from Keighley in West Yorkshire will be invited to join the M-Sport Ford World Rally Team at Rally Japan later in the year and gain invaluable WRC experience working as weather crew. The same can be said for Hereford’s Jack Bowen, who comes into the event as top-placed Pirelli Welsh Junior co-driver.
In addition to historic-spec cars competing in the BTRDA and Welsh championships, there will be crews battling for points in the HRCR Stage Masters Challenge. These include last year’s champion Paul Holmes/Liz Beesley, who return in their Escort RS2000 Mk2.
Brecon duo Colin and Harri Evans (BMW 318ti) will be aiming to continue their challenge for the TCS Plant Rally Challenge title – a series which raises funds for the Wales Air Ambulance.
The leading competitors from the ANWCC Forest Stage Rally Championship will also be in attendance. It is one of the largest Motorsport UK regional associations, with over 130 member clubs.
Top seeded Quinton Motor Club crew are Paul Walker/Geraint Thomas, who will start at car 30 in their Subaru Impreza.
The event will continue its collaboration with Carbon Positive Motorsport, GoSafe (the Wales Road Casualty Reduction Partnership) and be part of Motorsport UK’s National Motorsport Week.
The 2025 Nicky Grist Stages will start from Strand Street in the centre of Builth Wells, with the first of the smaller capacity 1400cc and Historic class cars leaving at 08:31, followed by the top cars in seeded order – flagged away by the Mayor of Builth Wells, Cllr. Mark Hammond.
Crews will then tackle a loop of four stages – Monument, Route 60, Halfway and Bowlsey (the Crychan stage, named in honour of the late Pete Bowles, a long time Quinton MC committee member, previous Nicky Grist Stages event winner and Clerk of the Course) – before a 50 minute midday service halt on the Builth Wells RFC pitch, beginning at 11:35. The loop of four stages will be repeated in the afternoon, before the traditional champagne finish ceremony on the banks of the River Wye from 15:15 onwards.
Spectator information will be published on the event website soon and will feature two dedicated areas for fans to view the action – one in the much-anticipated Route 60 stage and the other near the end of the Halfway test.
2025 Nicky Grist Stages – top 10 seeded entries
1. William Creighton/Liam Regan (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2)
2. Elliot Payne/Patrick Walsh (Ford Fiesta Rally2)
3. Matthew Hirst/Declan Dear (Škoda Fabia R5)
4. Meirion Evans/Dale Furniss (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2)
5. Callum Black/Jack Morton (Ford Fiesta Rally2)
6. Jason Mitchell/Paddy McCrudden (Škoda Fabia R5)
7. Russ Thompson/Stephen Link (Mitsubishi Evo 9)
8. Liam Clark/TBC (Ford Fiesta Rally2)
9. Vivian Hamill/Lorcan Moore (Ford Fiesta Rally2)
10. Dan O’Brien/Niall Burns (Ford Fiesta Rally 2)
