21/09/2026
🏁 HILLS FORD RALLY 2026 – NOT THE ENDING WE WANTED 🏁
Unfortunately, our Hills Ford Rally 2026 came to a premature end on Sunday morning – and after the pace we had started to show on Saturday, this one really hurts.
We started Sunday with SS5, a fast, narrow and extremely challenging Shropshire stage.
During recce we had already marked the water splash with caution, but when we arrived at the stage start we learned the stage had already been stopped following cars sustaining damage through the water.
That warning went straight into the notes – double caution, slow through the water.
While waiting at the start, we also learned that our times from Saturday had been adjusted following an infringement for cutting a corner, which a number of cars ahead of us had also taken. It wasn’t the news we wanted just before starting Sunday’s stages, but we had to put it behind us and concentrate on the job ahead.
5…4…3…2…1… GO.
Only five corners into the stage, we came across a silver mk2 Es**rt off the road and on its side in the trees, with the driver climbing from the car.
We immediately stopped to make sure the crew were okay before being waved on. Further along we were instructed to stop again by a marshal because of the incident.
Most importantly, we sincerely hope both the driver and co-driver are okay. It was a nasty-looking accident and that’s far more important than any rally result.
After another competing car continued past our stopped position, we made the decision to continue and deal with any timing implications afterwards.
Martin worked quickly to find our position again in the pace notes and gradually we started getting ourselves back into a rhythm.
Then came the water splash.
Knowing what had already happened, we weren’t taking any chances. We entered it extremely slowly, as the video shows.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough.
Water was drawn into the Fiesta Rally2’s intake system and ultimately into the engine, causing it to hydrolock.
Our Hills Ford Rally was over.
We weren’t alone. Several other Fiesta Rally2s were also stopped on the side of the stage after encountering problems through the water, highlighting just how difficult the conditions were.
With the help of another competitor, we managed to get some tools and removed the spark plugs in an attempt to clear the water and see if we could get the engine running again.
Unfortunately, the damage had already been done.
The engine has suffered significant damage and will now require a full rebuild.
It’s a difficult way to finish a rally that had started to show so much promise.
After our Stage 1 spin on Saturday dropped us from 43rd to 90th overall, we fought back and started producing some really encouraging times:
🔥 SS2 – 19th quickest overall
🔥 SS3 – 11th quickest overall
🔥 SS4 – 19th quickest overall
Against a field of around 150 cars, we were beginning to show the pace we knew was in the car and ourselves.
Unfortunately, the Hills Ford Rally proved incredibly tough this year, with around a third of the field failing to reach the finish through mechanical problems and accidents.
That’s rallying. Sometimes you can do everything possible to protect the car and still end up on the wrong side of it.
The biggest disappointment is that the engine damage is likely to bring our 2026 season to an early end while we undertake the rebuild.
But we’ll be back.
A massive thank you to everyone who supported us over the weekend, sent messages, shared photos and videos, followed our progress and cheered us on from the stages.
We’d also like to thank the competitors who helped us when we were stranded. That’s one of the things that makes the rally community what it is.
We’ll keep everyone updated as the Fiesta comes apart, the engine rebuild begins and we start working towards getting DATTS Motorsport back on the stages.
This wasn’t how we wanted the Hills Ford Rally to end…
But it’s certainly not the end of the story. 🏁
Dean Grimes / Martin Corbett
🚗 DATTS Motorsport – Ford Fiesta Rally2
