Trebert unfazed by second-seed billing for Guernsey Rally
Taking his driver’s seat as the home favourite and second seed overall is uncharted territory for Paul Trebert.
He and co-driver Jason Carre begin the Guernsey Rally tomorrow in this privileged position, which reflects the surprise second-place finish they achieved with their No 15 car during the last edition in 2023.
They have since boosted their Ford Escort MK2 with an engine upgrade.
This should offer them a welcome pace advantage, though their engine capacity remains at two litres, paling to the 2.5s of many expected front-runners.
‘I’m really looking forward to it,’ Trebert said.
‘We’ve done some work and put a new engine in the car, so it’s a bit unknown.’
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Trebert has consistently made the top three within his class in Channel Islands rallies, usually alongside Carre – but the move to Escorts in 2023 saw his overall placings rise significantly.
They stayed out of trouble to outperform all crews last time out bar that of Jersey ace Ross Le Noa, who returns as top seed this year alongside Domonic Volante. Fellow Sarnians Dale Crowsley and Will Rutherford will be seeded fourth after losing out to an unfortunate mechanical in 2023.
Trebert admitted that the vastly improved seeding this time around does come with added pressure.
‘It’s a pressure I had not really thought about, being right at the front.
‘I did have a good result, two years ago. So I don’t know, really, what to think.’
Much like the previous edition, Trebert and Carre will be hard-pressed to contend with the fastest Jersey and UK crews in tomorrow’s stages, which are fast and primarily coastal.
But getting through those will put them in a strong position for Saturday’s challenges.
‘Friday there’s a lot of fast stuff, so that’s where the extra power will be an advantage to some of the others,’ Trebert added.
‘On Saturday there’s still some quick bits, but also a lot of technical stuff, so that should help out – it’s more of a leveller. We’re not as powerful as the 2.5s, but we’re not as far off as we were. We will try our best.’
