Osian Pryce has announced that he is withdrawing from the final round of the British Rally Championship at the upcoming Rally Isle of Man.
The 24-year-old has taken the decision to save his budget and make the journey across the Irish Sea in a bid to be in a better position for the 2018 season.
“This was not an easy decision to take,” said Pryce. “Everybody knows about the calibre of the stages on the Isle of Man and everybody knows just how good that rally is – but we have to be realistic.
“There’s an outside chance we could have taken the British Rally Championship title, mathematically we’re still in with a shot and I’m sure there will be people who say I should always go when the title race is still alive, no matter how much of a long shot it is. But I’ve achieved a huge amount from the BRC this year.
“Yes, of course it would have been nice to win the title, but that would have been the icing on the cake.
“We’ve still had the cake!” added the Welshman, “Don’t forget, at the start of this year, we were the newbies in these four-wheel drive cars at the highest level of the sport in Britain. We had never even started a BRC round in an R5 car before, so to come and fight right at the front of the championship from the very start and then lead the title race, is a big win for me.
“If things had gone slightly more in our favour, I’m sure we would have been getting ready for a title decider in Douglas and I’m sure we would have won some rallies. It hasn’t fallen that way, so we’ll take the experience we’ve gained from a brilliant year in a great championship and use it as a springboard for next season.”
