When Mitsubishi Motors searched for someone to build and run their entries into the BRC they had to look no further than ADR Motorsport.
2007 sees the Mitsubishi Motors UK Works Rally Team back in action for its fourth season and it’s third as a two-car team in the British Rally Championship with ADR Motorsport building and supporting both cars.
Mitsubishi’s UK works team was launched in 2004 with a single Lancer Evolution VIII competing in the National Rally Championship. ADR Motorsport were appointed to prepare and run the car, with 2003 Evolution Challenge winner Brendan Crealey driving it - the Ulsterman awarded the seat as his prize for winning Mitsubishi’s high-profile one-make series.
The season saw the team claim the National Production title and finish third overall, the success of the works programme encouraging MMUK to move to the British Rally Championship for 2005 - this time with a two-car operation. Based on his victory in the 2004 Evolution Challenge, Rory Galligan would drive one of the new Evolution VIII MRs, with 2004 British Champion David Higgins in the other.
Throughout the season the two Group N Mitsubishis were consistently faster than any other car in the Production category, the year concluding with Mitsubishi winning the coveted British Team’s Award. Galligan finished runner-up in the Production Class, even though he won on five of the eight rounds - but there could have been so much more had the season not been punctuated with a run of bad luck and frustrating retirements.
Galligan’s performance in 2005 saw him return to the team in 2006, whilst the appropriately named 2005 Evolution Challenge Champion - Ryan Champion, joined him for a season in the new-look BRC - with no WRC cars, which meant N4 machinery would run at the head of the field.
Galligan’s season featured a second and a third overall, followed by his withdrawal due to ill health, whilst Champion went on to win all three gravel rounds outright on the Pirelli, Yorkshire and Rally GB.
And so to 2007: ADR Motorsport has prepared two brand-new Group N Lancer Evolution IXs for the season ahead, the cars appearing for the first time on the Pirelli Rally in their striking new Ralliart livery.
Having won the 2006 Evo Challenge it is the turn of non-other than Gwyndaf Evans to pilot a works Lancer for a season in the BRC. After some speculation, it was announced that regular WRC contender Guy Wilks would join the experienced Welshman for the team’s assault on this year’s premier British series, the task ahead of them to win both the Team’s and Driver’s titles. May the best man win!
