Ollie O’Donovan and his Team RX Racing outfit worked hard during the MSA British Rallycross Championship double header held at Pembrey as he fought back in round four to salvage a podium finish.
O’Donovan explained how hard he had to work on round four, “We had a nightmare in round three, it was really disappointing for the whole team that we retired so early. The conditions were really wet and that suits me well usually, so that’s a shame. Tony (Bardy) and the lads did a great job to change the engine, and it was a great result to finish second on Monday I think,” said O’Donovan.
“To be fair, Julian (Godfrey) drove a great race in a good final. He was all over me on the first lap, he put his nose between me and the wall going into the first corner on lap two – he didn’t touch me but he played a mind game trick and it worked for him.”
The London based Irishman was unable to take part in round three, which saw the field compete around the Welsh circuit in the reverse direction. However the Tony Bardy Motorsport outfit worked throughout the difficult conditions on Sunday to complete a full engine change on the Ford Focus Supercar to allow O’Donovan to compete in round four on Bank Holiday Monday
The 2007 British RX champion came out of the blocks well on Bank Holiday Monday as he set the second fastest times in both Qualifying One and Qualifying Two which gave him a pole position in Semi Final Two. O’Donovan would go on to take the victory to earn himself a front row spot in the MSA Supercar Final. After taking the early lead, a small mistake saw the London based Irishman fall to second place and then he would soon find himself embroiled in a spirited battle with Pat Doran. O’Donovan would hold on to finish second place at the flag.
After missing out on round three, O’Donovan has fallen to fifth place in the Drivers Championship on 75 points, four points behind Dave Bellerby. The London based Irishman is now preparing to begin his FIA European Rallycross Championship programme with the Tony Bardy Motorsport prepared Ford Fiesta he débuted last year.
