Class-winning Yorkshire Terrier driver plots big finale (From York Press)

Class-winning Yorkshire Terrier driver Gary Simpson plots big finale

10:26am Wednesday 2nd November 2011 in Motorsport By Stuart Martel, Sports editor

YORK racer Gary Simpson is aiming to end his 2011 season with a bang at Croft Circuit this weekend.

The 46-year-old driver is contesting the Rallycross Grand Prix at the North Yorkshire track fresh from winning his class in the British Trials and Rally Drivers’ Association Clubmans Rallycross Championship.

Slingsby-born Simpson, who now lives in Clifton, York, steered his 1989 BMW E30 to second place in the Supermodified rankings and won the over-2100cc class.

“It has been a good year on not a lot of money,” said Simpson, who competes under the banner of The Yorkshire Terriers racing team.

“Motorsport is all about how fast you can afford to be, so I tackled the Clubmans Championship.

“Having done everything from building the car, to come away with something like the class win gives you a great sense of achievement.”

The season started at Blyton in April, with Simpson finishing down the field, but he then claimed a third-place finish in a night race at the same venue in May.

The upward curve continued in round three at Blyton in June, with Simpson securing a runners-up spot, before an accident curtailed his involvement in round four.

The driver topped the podium for the first time in round five at Blyton, before claiming second at Lydden in August and then second again at Knockhill in last month’s final round.

He said: “I only had a couple of bad scores and if I had got another second or third I could have won the Supermodified championship.”

Simpson is one half of The Yorkshire Terriers, working in tandem with 50-year-old John Clayton, of Huntington.

While Simpson will head for Croft with the trusty BMW that carried him to title glory this season, Clayton is aiming to debut the car he has spent several months building.

When the pair first teamed up, Simpson turned from spectator to driver.

“John has been rallying for a lot of years and I was helping him look after his car,” he said. “A couple of years ago it was getting expensive and he wanted to do something different.

“I have been watching rallying all over Europe for 30-odd years. When I actually had a go driving, I loved it.

“Last year we shared the driving, but this year John wanted to sort his car out, so I did most of the rounds.

“Now we are hoping to enter both cars at Croft and then, next year, we will compete in the Clubmans Championship again and share the drives.”

Anyone interested in sponsoring Simpson and Clayton should visit the www.theyorkshireterriers.co.uk website.