Dutch driver Bob de Jong enjoyed an emphatic win on this weekend’s GTC Rally in Holland at the wheel of his MML Sports-prepared Mitsubishi Lancer WRC.
Based in the south of the country, the event comprised 16 stages, 15 of which were eventually run with one cancelled on the second day.
De Jong stamped his authority on the event from the outset – he was fastest on all but one of the eight stages that formed the first day, to head into the overnight halt with an advantage of 3m11sec.
Come Saturday morning, he continued where he left off, claiming a further four stage wins from the seven stages run on the day. By the time he and co-driver Kees Hagman reached the finish ramp, they had a winning margin of 4m56.1s – a huge difference, considering the competition that included another World Rally Car, a Ford Fiesta R5 and several Porsche 997 GT3s.
Commenting, MML Sports Managing Director John Easton said; “This was a superb performance from Bob. He completely dominated the event, showing how competitive he and the car are against other WRCars and the Fiesta R5, as well as the Porsches that have at least 50% more power than the Lancer.
“Once again, Bob enjoyed a trouble-free run. The only work the team carried out, other than changing wheels and tyres, was to replace the brake pads at the end of leg service, as the asphalt stages put a lot of strain on the brakes. But other than that, it was a textbook fuel-and-tyres win for him.”