Ryan Smart and John Allen hold high hopes for this weekends Snake Racing Coffs Coast Rally.

The boys have joined the team from Snake Racing to give the Side x side class a run for it’s money. Not only will they be up against the 3 other teams from Snake Racing but they will be up against some of the best in the business come Saturday.

Ryan Flanagan, manager of Snake Racing says “It is really exciting having a great driver such as Ryan Smart as part of the team here at Snake and he has fitted in really well with the guys and adapted well to the Snake XP900′s, We can’t wait to see him in action”.

Keep a look out for the results over the weekend and fingers crossed for all the team at Snake.

Reprinted from www.snakeracing.com.au

Mechanical failure has struck Smarty once again and has ended his Australian Rally Championship hopes for 2011. In their second full campaign of the ARC Ryan Smart and John Allen started the season with two round wins at the Forest Rally in Perth and their home event the International Rally of Queensland, setting themselves up to take the title in 2011.

“I’m absolutely shattered” Ryan said, clearly devastated before the final stage of the rally.

“After working so hard the whole year and having the pace,we are just so disappointed. A positive thing is that we have shown that we DO have pace, and it was great to be able to get some stage wins over Simon Evans today. It obviously wasn’t meant to be ours this year.”

The Smart Motorsport Corolla lost drive on the right front wheel in SS13 New Turkey 2, the second last forest stage of the event.

“We’re not sure what the problem is yet, it could be the driveshaft or the wheel bearing, we’ll get the car apart and work it out” said Smart Motorsport mechanic Ray Smart.

Rivals Justin Dowel and Matt Lee will take out the Championship after the final run through the Lardner Park Super Special Stage in Warragul being run as this goes to print.

“All we can say is well done to Justin and Matt, they have been here all season and have had their fair share of problems. Congratulations to them and their team, they worked hard for this win” Ryan and John commented.

Smart Motorsport would like to thank their sponsors and supporters for being a part of their most successful season ever!

It’s all come down to the final day of the championship.

Queenslanders Ryan Smart and John Allen have successfully maintained their lead in the 2011 Bosch Australian Rally Championship in Heat One of the final Round in Warragul, Victoria today.

Smart and Allen finished Heat One in second position 10.8 seconds behind four time Australian Rally Champions Simon and Sue Evans, who have come out of retirement to compete in their home round.

Championship rivals Justin Dowel and Matt Lee rounded out the top three for the heat today after a spin over the finish line on the first stage of the day. Smart and Allen’s Championship lead has extended to 10.5 points ahead of Dowel and Lee giving them some breathing room heading into the final heat of the championship tomorrow.

“Last year Becc and I were off the pace and I wanted to prove that I could be fast down here (in Victoria) as well and that’s exactly what we’ve done. It gives us a lot of confidence heading into tomorrow. I’m happy with what we’ve done today” Ryan said at the final service today.

“We beat Justin fair and square today in the stages where he had a clean run. I’m looking forward to some good racing with Justin tomorrow.”

“It’s all come down to the final day, we’re excited, bring it on!” Co-driver John Allen added.

The final heat of the championship kicks off at 6:40am Saturday Morning with 136km competitive and the final stage in front of spectators at Lardner Park in Warragul.

Keep up to date with Smarty and John’s progress on the Smart Motorsport facebook page, www.facebook.com/smartmotorsport.

Rally Victoria Heat One Results

1.      Evans/Evans       48:01.1

2.      Smart/Allen       +00:10.8

3.      Dowel/Lee          +00:54.7

2011 Bosch Australian Rally Championship Points

1.       Smart/Allen                       301

2.      Dowel/Lee                          290.5

3.      Shepheard/McCarthy    199.5

The 2011 Bosch Australian Rally Champion will be crowned thisweekend at Rally Victoria, based in forest around Warragul in Gippsland. After four rounds, Ryan Smart and John Allen head in to the final round in the lead of the championship, 3 points ahead of championship rivals Dowel and Lee. There are 101 points on offer this weekend, so it’s a case of whoever finishes in front, wins.

Ryan and John have led the championship for the majority of the season and are busting to get out on the roads in their Corolla to finish the championship in the top spot.

 “We tested today out in forest near Powelltown, the roads are awesome, just like the Coffs Coast Forest Rally roads. I just can’t wait to get out there and do the first stage on Friday.” Ryan said at testing today.

“We were pretty fast at Coffs, so seeings as the roads hereare pretty similar and damp this week, I’m feeling pretty happy and confident. I’m not worried (about the championship), I’m just going to go out and do what I have done all season, no changes to the car, no suprises. It’s worked so far.”

 “I’ve really enjoyed rallying this year with everyone, JD, Mark, Eli, Shep and all the other ARC guys, we have a great time even though we’re competitors. Rallying is such a great sport with so many great people, it’s a shame it’s going to be over after this one.”

Simon and Sue Evans are making an appearance at Rally Victoria this weekend, along with past winner Glen Raymond, co-driving for older brother Stephen, making up a large field for the final round.

“We’re happy with our road position this weekend, it seems our problems at Coffs have paid off! It’s also going to be great to see Simon and Sue out here too, especially because it gives us one more car to sweep the road!”John jokes.

Rally Victoria starts at Lardner Park this Friday Afternoon. Keep up to date and support Ryan and John on Facebook (www.facebook.com/smartmotorsport), Twitter (@SmartMotorsport) and their Website (www.smartmotorsport.com.au).

Smart Motorsport would like to thank their supporters for their help getting to Rally Victoria and for the season: Tony & Denise Allen, Speedie Contractors, South-East Superior Coatings, Signskins, Yandina Automotive, Elf Racing Fuels, V-Sport & Ferodo Brake Pads.

 Ryan and John were determined to take back their control ofthe Bosch Australian Rally Championship as quickly and decisively as possible, taking a 37.6 second lead over championship rivals Justin Dowel and Matt Lee bySS3 yesterday. With some off road adventures hampering Justin Dowel and Mark Pedder, Ryan was able to finish day one with a 1 min 39.3 sec lead over the nextclosest ARC competitors and fellow Queenslanders Steven Shepheard and John McCarthy.

“The plan from now is to stay on the road and get to the finish without any problems” co-driver John Allen said at the end of Day One.

Even with that plan Ryan and John took an equal first stage time with Pedder/Tierney on SS14 Unringa 1 stage.

“That stage (SS14 Urunga 1) is the best stage of the wholerally, because you can attack it aggressively all the way through” Ryan said in service park today.

At the end of SS15 Smart and Allen had established a massive lead of 2 mins 11.6 secs over Shepheard/McCarthy, and were looking to take a comfortable victory in the 4th round of the championship.

Unfortunately the corolla suffered a broken front driveshaft in SS16 and Ryan and John’s lead was diminished to 1min 23.7 secs by the final refuel in Bowraville. With some on-road repairs Ryan was able to remove the broken driveshaft and nurse the Corolla to the finish line in second position with three wheel drive.

“ We’re happy that we are now back in the lead of the championship, but also disappointed that we weren’t able to maintain first position after being so dominant all weekend. We pretty much handed the win to Shepheard.” Ryan said after the podium presentation.

“Though its great for the championship to see Steven and John on the top step and Eli and Glen in the Honda on the Podium again. As my dad said it’s great to see a two-wheel drive, three-wheel drive and a four-wheel drive on the podium” Ryan joked.

The Bosch Australian Rally Championship will conclude in Warragul Victoria in November.

Keep up to date with Smart Motorsport on facebook www.facebook.com/smartmotorsport, twitter @SmartMotorsport and www.smartmotorsport.com.au.

Results Coffs Coast Forest Rally 2011

1st           Shepheard/McCarthy

2nd          Smart/Allen                        +1:03.5

3rd           Evans/Weston                  +2:40.3

Bosch Australian Rally Championship Points

TBC

At the end of Day One of the Coffs Coast Forest Rally Ryan Smartand John Allen are sitting comfortably in the lead, 1 min 54.3 secs over fellowQueensland crew Steven Shephard and John McCarthy and 2 mins 40.8 secs over EliEvans and Glen Weston.

Rain fell consistently throughout most of the day creatingvery treacherous conditions, large ruts and water logged roads which claimednumerous crews from the WRC to the classic cars.

“We stayed on the road today and didn’t make any silly mistakes”Ryan said at the end of day service. “We’re going to go back out there and do the same tomorrow.”

The Coffs Forest Rally continues tomorrow morning in theForest around Coffs Harbour.

Stay up to date with Smart Motorsport on Facebook atwww.facebook.com/smartmotorsport , Twitter @SmartMotorsport and on our website www.smartmotorsport.com.au.

The fourth round of the 2011 Bosch Australian Rally Championship kicks off tomorrow evening at the waterfront of Coffs Harbour. The Coffs Coast Rally is part of the Australian leg of the World Rally Championship and will see Smart Motorsport competing on the same roads as the best in the world.

Ryan and John are trailing Justin Dowel and Matt Lee by 21 points in the Australian Championship, but with a maximum of 80 points on offer this weekend Ryan is confident to take the lead back from Dowel.

"The roads around Coffs Harbour are much tighter and more suited to the Corolla than the highways of Rally SA. We did well here last year and with the rally being very similar to my home event in Queensland we should be able to give Justin (Dowel) and Mark (Pedder) a run for their money." Ryan said.

"It's also exciting to be part of a WRC event, there is a lot of hype and energy around, it's great and I'm going to try and use that in the car."

The crews are finishing Recce today before the start of the event at the Super Special Stage at the Jetty in Coffs Harbour. The Coffs Coast rally finishes on Saturday afternoon.

Stay up to date with Ryan and John's progress at www.facebook.com/smartmotorsport, www.smartmotorsport.com.au and @SmartMotorsport on Twitter.

Ryan Smart and John Allen have the championship in their sights after maintaining second in the Bosch Australian Rally Championshipafter a less than perfect weekend at the Scouts Rally SA in the Barossa Valley this weekend.

The Rally SA roads are notoriously fast and Smart and Allen set a fantastic pace in Heat One, sitting comfortably in third position up until the final stage. The restricted Toyota Corolla’s front differential failed only 6kms from the finish of the heat, ending Ryan and John’s day in the Mt.Crawford forest.

“We were trying the new Ferodo DS UNO brake pads this weekend and they were working really well, everything was going great and I was driving as fast as I could.” Ryan said on Saturday Night

“ It was disappointing to get so close to the end of the day and then not finish, but I guess that’s rallying sometimes. Thankfully Will Orders and Ross Allen from www.rallyschool.com.au are here giving us a hand. We wouldn’t have been able to get the diff changed without their help.”

“ All we can do now if get the car fixed and get back out there tomorrow and try to get as many points as we can.”

Smart and Allen did just that finishing Heat Two in third position behind the Unrestricted ARC cars of Dowel/Lee and Boaden/Cheers after Pedder/Tierney DNF’d with an engine failure.

“It was really great to see Michael Boaden and Helen Cheers on the Podium today, they have been driving so well this year and last year and it’s great to see another family team like us getting up on the Podium” Ryan said at the end of Scouts Rally SA.

“Well Done to JD (Justin Dowel) and Matt and Eli and Glen too. I guess I’ll have to go to the gym 16 days in a row now before the WRC in Coffs so I’m as tough as Justin” Ryan Laughed.

“On a serious note we’re focused on winning the championship and though we would have liked to have been on the podium today we are happy with the points we recovered after our DNF yesterday. The WRC and Victorian roads are much tighter and trickier, more like my home roads in Queensland, so we are confident we will finish the season strongly.”

The Bosch Australian Rally Championship continues at the WRC in Coffs Harbour in six weeks time.

Keep up to date with Smart Motorsport on www.smartmotorsport.com.au, Facebook and Twitter.

2011 Rallyof South Australia – Heat 2 results

1. Justin Dowel / Matt Lee,Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX, 53m14.5s

2. Michael Boaden / Helen Cheers, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX, +41.3s

3. Ryan Smart / John Allen, ToyotaCorolla Sportivo, +49.4s

4. Eli Evans / Glen Weston, Honda Civic Type R, +1m27.8s

5. John Goasdoue / Martin Darch, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VI, +3m42.5s

Bosch Australian Rally Championship pointscore (provisional)

After 3 of 6 rounds

1. Justin Dowel / Matt Lee,Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX, 208 points

2. Ryan Smart / John Allen, ToyotaCorolla Sportivo, 187 points

3. Mark Pedder / Leigh Tierney, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX, 168 points

The third round of the Australian Rally Championship kickedoff for Smart and Allen with testing today in the Mt. Crawford Forest in theBarossa Valley South Australia. Currently leading the Bosch Australian RallyChampionship, Smart is looking to continue his consistent trouble free run.

“I know this rally is fast, so with our ‘less-restricted’Corolla we’ll have to keep an eye in the rear-view mirror for Mark Pedder.”Smart said today at the test stage.

“The key to this rally will be consistency and tyre choice.We tested a few tyres today and found the Kuhmo 800’s worked really well,especially in the sunshine we had today. I reckon the Corolla will do 0-100 in3.1 seconds now especially with our Elf fuel” Ryan laughed.

This weekend Smart Motorsport are joined by a new partner andfuel supplier with Elf Racing Fuel, joining other sponsors V-Sport Australia,Ferodo Brake Pads, Speedie Contractors and Yandina Automotive.

“We’ve got new Sabelt racing suits from our sponsor V-SportAustralia for this weekend, they feel and look awesome. It’s great to have asuit that fits me properly and looks professional coming into this round” RyanSaid.

“I guess there is a lot of hype going around coming intothis round, and after talking to Simon Evans through the week.  I’m just going to keep it real and drive myown event, there’s still a long way to the podium at Rally Victoria.”

 The Scouts Rally SAstarts on Saturday Morning with the mammoth 32 km Tweeden Stage.

Ryan Smart and John Allen have taken their second ARC victory at the International Rally of Queensland in the Sunshine Coast Hinterland today.

Following victory for Smart at the Quit Forest Rally last month, Ryan was confident and hoped to repeat what he did in Perth, taking thelead early and maintaining it throughout the rally. Things didn’t go as smoothing as planned making it a nail-biting finish right to the last stage.

Ryan and John finished Leg One in third place after having a number of troubles throughout the day.

“Everything just seemed to go wrong today, we had the power steering belt come off after hitting a rock, and then issues with the diff that was putting us in and out of three wheel drive, not to mention some of the close calls off the road and an intercom failure.” Ryan said at the end of Leg One.

“ We’re just glad to be here and hopefully we’ll have a good clean run tomorrow.”

Luckily this was the case and Ryan chased down Pedder and Dowel steadily through the day, decreasing his 32.4 second deficit. Before entering the final stage Smart and Allen were placed third in their Smart Motorsport Corolla with only 2 secs to leader Mark Pedder and 1.5 secs to second placed Justin Dowel.

“ With 34 kms in this stage I’m just going to do my best and drive as fast as I can” Ryan said at the final refuel.

Ryan and John put in an amazing time taking the overallvictory by 13.4 secs to equally second placed Dowell and Pedder, and winningLeg 2 by 29.7 seconds over Pedder.

“After everything that went wrong yesterday, it was just sogood that everything went right today and we were able to pull out the victory.I’m absolutely stoked.” Ryan said at the podium presentation.

“I think there will be a big party tonight!”

The next round of the Australian Rally Championship is theScouts Rally SA in the Barossa Valley 30th – 31st July.