Rally driver sponsored by DHL

Press, 23 July 1986, Page 30

Rally driver sponsored by DHL

The AWA-Clarion Rally was an event followed with a lot of interest by DHL, which was the main sponsor for the DHL Toyota Corolla, driven by Mr Brian Stokes, of Walkuku. He finished fifteenth over all, and was the sixth Group A car. Most importantly Stokes, in the Corolla, won his class (1300 to 1600 c). Stokes won the 1985 New Zealand Rally Championship in a DHL Escort RS. He was the first South Islander to win the title. Over the winter months,

the Escort gave way to the DHL Toyota Corolla Sprinter for the 1986 season. The first event in the defence of his national title came in May with a double points round at Oamaru. It was Stokes’s first competitive outing in the new Group A car. Although he failed to finish the rally, his worst fears about the new car being uncompetitive proved unfounded. After 240 km of special stages, Stokes was in third place and satisfied with

the performance of the Corolla. He had not expected to keep up with the leaders at that point — Malcolm Stewart in an Audi Quattro and Mr Neil Allport in a Mazda RX7 — but the gap was so minimal that there was a possible win ' for the Corolla. This did not eventuate as the car pulled up when a suspension joint broke. The next event, the first South Island regional ■ round of the championship, resulted in a good drive over the 180 km of

special stages. Stokes was the first Group A car home, and third over all. Success was not limited to South Island rallies. He won the 1300 to 1600 class in the national championship and. drove in the 1983 Rally of New Zealand with a fractured arm. In spite of the considerable pain, Stokes completed the rally, finishing eleventh over all. He also collected the prestigious Dunlop Driver of the Event for local competitors. DHL supported Stokes

in 1984 with the Escort RS. The season, however, was to prove a frustrating one, although he won a national round in Oamaru, and came home fourth in the South Island Premier round at Timaru. Stokes’ most successful driving year has been 1986 with the AWA-Clar-ion Rally. The rally presentations were held at the Auckland Airport Travelodge on Wednesday. He accepted his prize of $2OOO and a silver goblet. Stokes’ next rally is at Nelson on Saturday, July 26.