Richard Mason is leading the rally championship after Wairarapa. Photo / Greg Bowker
Two times champion Richard Mason got his national motor rally championship title chase off to the best possible start by winning his home event, the Rally of Wairarapa, yesterday.
Mason, in a Subaru, did not have things all his own way though, finishing second in Saturday's first heat
to Hawkes Bay's Stewart Taylor by just 0.9 of a second.
But he dominated yesterday's second heat to take the overall win for the weekend.
"Saturday wasn't easy," Mason said. "We lost quite a lot of time in Sam Murray's dust after he rolled.
"Then we spent the rest of the day as first car on the road sweeping the loose gravel aside."
He was never headed in the second heat and was 50s in front of Taihape's Brett Martin. However the results are only provisional as former champion Chris West (Christchurch) and Geraldine's Hayden Paddon were both penalised a minute for delaying their start at the day's second stage in an effort to get a more dust free run.
The pair were waiting to see if their appeals were successful, which would move them up a place, to second and third respectively in yesterday's heats.
- NZPA
