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Atkinson takes Proton to victory in Malaysia

The opening round of the 2011 FIA Asia Pacific Rally Championship (APRC), 1 to 3 April, resulted in a historic achievement for the Proton team as their Australian driver Chris Atkinson and Belgium co-driver Stephane Prevot won their home event, the Malaysian Rally.

Driving a factory-backed Proton Satria Neo S2000, Atkinson had an untroubled run to victory, winning the event outright against one of the strongest fields seen for many years. He finished 1 minute, 36.6 seconds ahead of second-placed Indian driver Gaurav Gill, with New Zealand-based Australian co-driver Glenn Macneall, in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X after 15 special stages through plantations in the south-east region of Johor.

It could well have been a one-two for Proton but Atkinson’s team-mate Alister McRae had some overheating issues on the first day and backed off to save the car, finishing on the podium in third place.

“We have taken a big step forward with our performances here. The new suspension system and the development work done on the engine have paid off. It’s a great start to the year as we look forward to the rest of the rounds in the Asia Pacific Rally Championship,” said Atkinson.

“The secret to our success here for Alister (McRae) and me was the way the car responded. That’s why we could win by such a big margin.:

New Zealander Brian Green was fourth overall, followed by Japanese driver Aki Hatano, both driving Subarus. Chinese driver Fan Fan got his Mitsubishi home in sixth, followed by local man Mohammed Rafiq, in a Subaru.

The APRC’s new Junior class got off to a great start with Japanese drivers Akira Bamba and Kosuke Takashino eighth and ninth respectively, driving two-wheel-drive Cusco-prepared Proton Satrias.

Rally Malaysia is regarded as a tricky event at the best of times, and rain on Friday evening made the roads very greasy with seven retirements in the first loop of stages on Saturday morning.

After an earlier off-road excursion on the second stage, defending APRC champion Katsu Taguchi had rejoined the road just after Rifat Sungkar had passed. The Indonesian kindly pulled over to let Taguchi past but Taguchi was confronted by a huge rock in the middle of the road that tore off the front wheel.

Former APRC champion Cody Crocker didn’t even get past the first stage, sliding off the road and into retirement two kilometres after the start.

New entrant and former British champion Mark Higgins retired in the third stage after a communication problem in the car resulted in a roll-over. Hs team-mate Hao Yuan suffered a similar fate. Both drivers restarted on day two and used the opportunity to learn the car and prepare for the rest of the championship.

The second of six events on the 2011 calendar sees a record number of APRC teams travel to Australia for the International Rally of Queensland (http://www.rallyqueensland.com.au) which runs from 13 to 15 May. Competitors then head to Rally New Caledonia before the trip to New Zealand for the International Rally of Whangarei in July.

2011 Malaysian Rally overall results
Pos, driver, country, co-driver, country, team, car, time
1, Chris Atkinson, AUS, Stephane Prevot, BEL, Proton Motorsports, Proton Satria Neo S, 03:14:49.3
2, Gaurav Gill, IND, Glen Macneall, AUS, Team MRF, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo, +01:46.6
3, Alister McRae, GBR, Bill Hayes, AUS, Proton Motorsports, Proton Satria Neo S, +07:01.6
4, Brian Green, NZL, Fleur Pedersen, NZL, Brian Green Motorsport Ltd, Subaru Impreza WRX, +10:39.1
5, Fan Fan, CHN, Junwei Fang, CHN, Soueast Motor Kumho Team, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo, +10:14.0

2011 FIA Asia-Pacific Rally Championship for Drivers after round one of six - top five
1, Christopher ATKINSON, AUS, 33
2, Gaurav GILL, IND, 25
3, Alister MCRAE, GBR, 21
4, Brian GREEN, NZL, 14
5, Fan FAN, CHN, 11

2011 FIA Asia-Pacific Rally Championship for Co-Drivers after round one of six - top five
1, Stephane PREVOT, BEL, 33
2, Glen MACNEALL NZL, 25
3, Bill HAYES AUS, 21
4, Fleur PEDERSEN, NZL, 14
5, Junwei FANG, CHN, 11
6, Sean GREGORY, MYS, 8

2011 FIA Asia-Pacific Rally Championship for Manufacturers after round one of six
1, Proton, 35
2, Mitsubishi, 30
3, Subaru, 12

2011 FIA Asia Cup - Drivers after round one of three
1, Gaurav GILL, IND, 37
2, Alister MCRAE, GBR, 30
3, Masaaki HATANO, JPN, 21
4, Rafiq UDHAYA, MYS, 16
5, Akira BAMBA, JPN, 12
6, Tomohide HASEGAWA, JPN, 8

2011 APRC Teams Trophy after round one of six
1, Proton Motorsports, 54
2, Team MRF, 25
3, Soueast Motor Kumho Team, 19
4, Pertamina Cusco Racing, 7