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| Disappointment at Defi for Paladin Rally |
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The second day of Rallye Defi Ste-Agathe/Duhamel started well for Paladin Rally. The team was near the top of the order, with a vast bulk of the rally remaining in which to campaign for the win.
The first two stages of the day were short and mostly tarmac. The tarmac offered an uncommon challenge, and Paladin Rally worked to prepare Matt’s car for success. True tarmac street tires were mounted and put in the cab of the service truck, with the heat on full blast to help keep them warm.
“In terms of sheer aggression, that stage was great!” excailmed Matt after the first pass. Eager to have the opportunity to improve his skills on the surface, Matt explained “we were on the edge the entire time on tarmac.”
After the two tarmac stages, the real meat of the rally began, and cars were switched back to gravel spec to take on the strenuous and tough roads surrounding Duhamel, Quebec. On the very first of the gravel stages Matt and Ole got a flat tire and lost precious time while changing it. This bumped the team down the order, and into a distant fourth place.
When Sylvain Erickson pulled to the finish of the first gravel stage, his car was smoking heavily and dripping oil. Sylvain explained that the turbo was probably blown, or worse. The retirement of Erickson meant Matt was in third place overall, though not in a position to challenge for second.
Happy to finally be racing on real full-on stages, Matt concentrated on staying ahead of those nipping at his heels. “I’m just having fun,” explained Iorio. “I’ve never been at full throttle so much!” At the end of the day it appeared that Matt had finished third. Unfortunately, an error earlier in the day – reversing into a control – meant a ten minute time penalty knocking Paladin Rally down the order. Matt and Ole filed an appeal which remained unaddressed until the eleventh hour. When stewards finally responded, another mistake would cost the team. In a lapse when filing the appeal, the Paladin Rally crew accidentally wrote the car number they have at Rally America events rather than the “3” adorning the side of their car at Defi. Stewards leaned on this technicality as a way to deny the appeal.
A disappointing and frustrating end to the day, a silver lining remained. Paladin Rally proved reliability and speed all through the event, and were able to get beyond the crash here last year for a fast run at this year’s Rallye Defi Ste-Agathe/Duhamel. It is certain that Matt and Ole will be top challengers here next season! |
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