Maldon rally driver Nabila Tejpar endured a difficult weekend behind the wheel of her PT Racing Peugeot 208 R2 to finish the FIA World Rally Championship qualifier, RACC Rallye de Espana (25th – 28th October), in an impressive tenth in class RC4.
The 25-year-old managed to guide her Peugeot into 41st overall against the best drivers in the world and in the process, secure 13th place in the Peugeot Rally Cup Iberica which enjoyed its fifth round of the season during the opening seven stages of the event.
The Essex driver would head to her second WRC event of the month after securing a finish at her home round of the series, Wales Rally GB at the beginning of October.
The four-day Spanish event would provide the next instalment of the Iberica Cup and although the points would be counted after day two, Tejpar elected to continue in the full event to gain experience for the future.
Rally Spain offered a unique twist thanks to the mixed surface format, as the unforgiving stages changed from gravel to asphalt after Friday’s leg. Tejpar and co-driver Max Freeman would be looking to put in a strong performance on the gravel stages to secure points for the Cup, before being able to relax and enjoy the final two days on the twisty and super-quick asphalt tests.
The opening stage of the event blasted off around the streets of Barcelona under the cover of darkness on Thursday night, before the rally proper would get underway on Friday. Despite being fresh from the forest roads of Wales Rally GB, Tejpar would struggle during the opening leg due to the very different nature of the surface.
