There's no place like home

David Higgins and Ieuan Thomas are heading to Rally Isle of Man as leaders of the British Rally Championship, and that’s exactly how they are planning to leave.

The TQ.com team crew took the lead of the championship after finishing third on the Jim Clark, the last time the BRC crews did battle. And since then, have worked further to improve their Subaru Impreza N14.

“We’ve done some more work on the suspension set up since Scotland,” said Higgins. “The main thing to keep in mind this year is that finishes will be key to maintaining the lead of the championship, so reliability to get to the end of the events will be key. There are a lot of good people to compete against for points, including my brother Mark, Guy Wilks, and Stuart Jones who pushed us so hard at the end of the Jim Clark.”

Rally Isle of Man is an event where the Higgins family always receive a special welcome, having been born on the island.

“It feels fantastic to be going to my home event leading the championship. Rally Isle of Man is one of my favourite events because it’s always great to rally back home on the island where there are lots of family and friends around,” said Higgins. “People expect me to know it well because I was born on the island, but I only did two rallies on the island when we lived there so it’s probably the round of the BRC I have least experience of. I’ve done well there in the past though.”

David and Ieuan will take part in a pre-event shakedown on the island on Wednesday, where they will be joined by their fellow TQ.com team mates Hugh Evans and Iestyn Williams. The two crews will carry out final testing in their sister FX Motor Sports-run Subaru Imprezas there, before the rally begins with the traditional run through Castletown on Thursday night.