Duo chase Japan victory
Rally driver Zeal Jones and co-driver Bayden Thomson have set their sights on securing their first outright win in the final three rounds of the Morizo Challenge Cup series in Japan.
The pair are second in the points after five rounds of the cup, which is a new category run as a class within the All Japan Rally Championship.
Their title ambitions received a blow in the latest round when they had to retire from Rally Kamuy when their Toyota GR Yaris was damaged after contact with a hidden concrete drain.
The New Zealand-based duo were in contention for a top-three spot before the incident and are now looking forward to the Rally Hokkaido on September 5-7.
Jones has reflected on the experience at Rally Kamuy, where they finished the first day with two stage wins and were second overall, 30 seconds behind the leader and a minute ahead of third.
“Overnight, we evaluated our chances for the championship and risk assessed what was possible,” he explains.
“In the morning we got the word to push hard on day two and apply some pressure to the leader to try to force a mistake.
“It was all looking great on a familiar surface, but with two corners to go we unfortunately took a small cut which pushed us wide out in the grass half a wheel width too wide.
“Hidden in the grass was a concrete drain that hit the rear left, which kicked us up and into the drain channel itself, which we drove in for 100 metres trying to get out before getting stuck.
“To make matters worse, we later heard we had been catching the lead car and it had a very similar moment at the exact same spot, but got away with it.”
Thomson, pictured below left, and Jones, below right, now trail the Morizo Challenge Cup leaders Otake Nao and Hashimoto Misaki by 73 points.
While they can still take the title, Jones says they are simply focusing on producing three solid results from the final three events.
“We certainly feel that if everything comes together we now have enough knowledge to push for that first win and at least keep the pressure on the top contenders in the championship,” he adds.
‘We are the top car in the Cusco team so that’s a positive as well, but I think we have to focus on making that next step up in terms of performance and in terms of results, so that’s how we will approach the final three weekends.”
The Morizo Challenge Cup is for drivers under 25 years old and all crews compete in Toyota’s GR Yaris, with tight rules and limited modifications putting the focus on driver skill and teamwork.
The objective of the new championship is to provide a stepping stone to higher rallying categories for Japan’s rising rally stars. Jones is eligible for the competition as he has a Japanese mother.
