A disappointing non-finish on Rally Northern Ireland last weekend has left the 20-year-old Team UK driver feeling that concentrating on getting as much asphalt testing mileage as possible before the French WRC event would benefit him more than contesting the gravel event in Yorkshire.

“The difficulty is that Rallye de France is just one week after Yorkshire,” explained Dave. “So if we compete in Yorkshire that would leave us less than a week to change the car from gravel to asphalt spec, test on asphalt, travel to France and recce before the event begins.

“I have performed better on gravel than asphalt this year, so because we are not fighting for the British Rally Championship title I feel I would rather ensure we have the best chance possible in France by possibly sitting out Yorkshire to enable us to switch the car to asphalt spec earlier and complete a few days testing.”

Rally Yorkshire was one of the first rounds of the BRC Dave ever tackled, finishing fourth overall on his first attempt in 2008, just months after moving up to a Group N Subaru.

“I will be sad to miss Yorkshire if we don’t do it because I have fond memories of it, but it is a big opportunity for me to be able to finish the year off with three rounds of the WRC,” said Dave. “So I want to pay back my sponsors, Prodrive, Ramsport, Team UK and everyone else who has helped me, by putting in as much preparation as I can to ensure we get the most out of the event in terms of learning ahead of our plans to enter the PWRC in 2011.”

Trackrod Rally Yorkshire runs on 24 / 25 September while Rallye de France takes place on 1 – 3 October

Dave was chosen by the MSA to represent the UK at the international driver shoot out.

“It was an amazing opportunity and fantastic to be chosen for such a prestigious event,” said Team UK driver Weston. “We just missed out on going to the next stage of the competition though because we finished third after the five stage Snapphane  Rally qualifier and only the top two go through.

“I was disappointed not to get further for the MSA and my team, but congratulations to fellow British Rally Championship competitor Craig Breen who got through for Ireland.”

Dave’s thoughts now turn back to the BRC as he, his co-driver Ieuan Thomas and the Ramsport team head to Northern Ireland for International Rally Northern Ireland.

“With two BRC events left to go this year we lie fifth in the drivers points, so we’ll aim for podium finishes on each to try to push our way a bit higher up the points table, before we head off to the World Rally Championship for the final three events of the year.”

Dave and Ieuan are seeded tenth on the Northern Ireland event, which runs on Friday and Saturday, based in Antrim.

The Motor Sports Association (MSA) has selected MSA Team UK member Dave Weston Jnr as the UK’s candidate for the 2010 Pirelli Star Driver Northern European Shootout.

Weston Jnr, 19, will head to Hässleholm, Sweden, from 13-14 August to contest the Snapphane Rally against drivers nominated by up to five other national governing bodies, including Sweden, Finland and Ireland. The top two drivers on the five-stage event will go through to the FIA Pirelli Star Driver Global Shootout, where they will compete for a sponsored drive in a 2011 FIA World Rally Championship support category.

Weston Jnr said: “I’m over the moon to have been nominated; it’s not every day you get asked to go to Sweden to represent the UK. I’m hoping for a good run and I’m confident that I can challenge for the prize.”

Weston Jnr’s selection was confirmed by MSA Performance Director and 2001 World Rally Champion co-driver Robert Reid.

Reid said: “Dave has shown good pace in both the MSA British Rally Championship and the Intercontinental Rally Challenge this season. I am sure that he will represent the UK’s national squad with distinction and make it through to the Global Shootout.”

MSA Chief Executive Colin Hilton said: “The Pirelli Shootout has been a welcome addition to the sport in the past two years and the prize has created the kind of opportunity that our Team UK drivers are aiming for. We wish Dave every success in Sweden and will be following his progress with interest.”

The 19-year-old Team UK driver from Aberdeen is also close to finalising a budget for a two-year programme in the WRC in 2011 and 2012.

“It’s always been my aim to contest the WRC, to compete at the highest level against the best drivers, so to be able to finish off the season with three rounds is a dream come true,” said Dave. “Our last British Rally Championship round in Yorkshire is in September so we will go straight to Spain to compete a week later.

“What a way to end the year. We’ll do the rounds in our Subaru Impreza N2010. We’ve had a great year in the car, it’s a fantastic car to drive and I’ve learned a lot through working with it and having the support of Prodrive.”

The Subaru will be run by Ramsport, and Dave will be co-driven by his BRC partner Ieuan Thomas on all three events.

After sitting second equal with Gwyndaf Evans following the opening stage, Dave lost over three minutes in stage two when he was forced to stop and change a puncture on his Ramsport-run Subaru Impreza N2010 mid stage.

“After that stage we were lying 29th overall,” said Dave. “Then in stage five we lost more time when the car slid off the road and got wedged in a gateway.

“I’ve not really rallied in the wet much, and the Isle of Man conditions have been extremely wet at times. My confidence built by the end of leg one though and we were second fastest through Marine Drive and the two Castletown runs. We went home for the day having worked our way up to 14th overnight.”

Good times continued on leg two, a day when a lot of the frontrunners including Dave fell foul of the wrong tyre choice with conditions in the TT Grandstand base being so different to those on the opening stages.

“As our times improved we worked our way back up to finish sixth overall and thankfully had quite a problem free day apart from dealing with more Manx downpours,” said Dave. “In the end we lost out on fifth overall by just a tenth of a second to Finnish driver Jarkko Nikara which is really gutting, but when I was lying 29th overall I suppose I would have been grateful for sixth.

“The Manx lanes can be trying even when they’re dry so to take home a sixth place BRC points haul on a Manx rally where conditions have been so testing is great. Even the local drivers were saying it was the worst rain they could ever remember on the event.”

The team’s next event will be the fifth round of the BRC, International Rally Northern Ireland next month. The crew go to the event with Dave lying fifth overall on the BRC points table.

You can listen to the interview here.

Having lost around five minutes yesterday with a puncture and when the car skidded and became wedged in a gate, sixth place is a great result for Dave and the Ramsport team.

Their next points scoring round of the British Rally Championship will be the Ulster Rally on 20th and 21st August.

Most of the leading drivers were just glad to get through SS17 saying the cars were aquaplaning on the water.

Dave was pleased with the time he set in SS19 to move him up the points, and he has now gone into service where the Ramsport team were ready and waiting for the car to arrive.

Only two more stages of Rally Isle of Man left. More news after that.

Like many crews, Dave had the wrong tyres on this morning for the first two dry stages, with the weather on most of the rest of the island appearing to be extremely wet.

The crew had a slight overshoot in SS15 which has left a small dent in the front of the Subaru Impreza N2010, but otherwise all is good with the Ramsport team.

More news after SS19.