ROUND three of the Motorsport News Circuit Rally Championship, in association with MSVR, took place at the Rockingham Stages last weekend, with two local competitors again making a big impact on the event.

Despite the storms which ravaged the country, the two-day event went ahead and after 12 stages around the NASCAR-style oval track near Corby, Staindrop co-driver Giles Dykes emerged victorious in the Proton Satria Neo he was sharing with Lincolnshire driver David Tinn.

The pair had endured a fierce scrap throughout the event, but after holding second place overnight, a big push on Sunday in the 2.5-litre Millington-engined car saw them eventually take the win by a minute and a half.

Meanwhile, rapidly emerging as one of the championship dark horses following excellent results in the opening two rounds, Bedale’s Joe Cunningham was again in fine form as he claimed another comprehensive class win in the 1400cc Vauxhall Corsa he was sharing with co-driver Marc Fowler.

The pair reported very few problems with the Procter's Coaches-backed car as they finished the 100-mile event in 24th overall, taking class one by nearly two minutes to confirm their superiority.

The same couldn’t be said for the Sinderby father and daughter team of Bill and Katy Bates, who were in action in their Tanfield Engineering-backed Lotus Exige. After promising results on recent events, the pair were hoping to continue their good form, but a collision with an errant competitor caused substantial damage to the car, including an engine fire which was quickly extinguished, but it meant retirement early on Saturday.

Ripon duo Tim Gray and Mark Casey had a good run in their Ford Puma to claim 33rd overall and fifth in class, but expected front-runners Graeme Bell and Russ Radford had to withdraw their entry at short notice due to a family bereavement.

RALLYCROSS fans in the region will again be very well catered for in 2016 with news that Croft Circuit will host three events next season, including both the opening and final rounds of the British Championship.

The recently announced calendar sees round one take place at the popular North Yorkshire track on Sunday, March 6, before returning on Saturday, October 22, for the all-important final round. As has become the tradition in recent years, the following day, Sunday, October 23, will see Croft host the British Rallycross Grand Prix, which next year is expected to see an increased number of continental competitors take on the best of British.

Rounding the season off will be the BTRDA Clubman’s Rallycross Championship on Sunday, November 6, which will again comprise the final round of that series and, with double points up for grabs again, it will see another packed entry list, which this year saw more than 80 cars competing.

For tin-top fans, the British Touring Car Championship makes its annual visit to the region in midsummer and will take place on June 18 and19. Advance tickets are expected to go on sale in the new year. For further information, including Christmas offers on driving experiences at Yorkshire’s only permanent circuit, visit croftcircuit.co.uk.

REIGNING British Superbike champion Josh Brookes and former MotoGP star Karel Abraham will take to the World Superbike grid next season as team-mates in the new Milwaukee BMW team.

Both Brookes and Abraham will ride BMW S 1000 RRs built by Guisborough-based Shaun Muir Racing and backed by Milwaukee Power Tools after a three-year extension to their title partnership deal was agreed.

Team principal Shaun Muir said: “This is a brand new challenge for us and, as a team, the support and enthusiasm shown by BMW Motorrad Motorsport was hugely confidence-building. They know exactly what we need to be competitive and the level of backing has made our decision to join them much easier."