Campbell strives for consistency

Tauranga's Phil Campbell is looking for more of the same at the penultimate round of the Brian Green Property Group New Zealand Rally Championship in Pukekohe this weekend.

Campbell currently leads the NZRC Category two for homologated two-wheel drive cars after a season-long battle with Josh Marston, driving an identical car to Campbell's Letts Construction Ford Fiesta R2.

Phil Campbell in action at the Drivesouth Rally Otago held in Dunedin this year. Photo: Euan Cameron.

The rally also stages as the 10th anniversary of the Possum Bourne Memorial Rally.

With the NZRC points system allowing teams to drop one of the first five rounds, Campbell can only gain two more points on his current season tally before the final round, but a top result for Campbell will see him deny Marston points.

With the event taking in the gravel roads of Maramarua Forest tomorrow morning, Campbell and co-driver Venita Fabbro are confident of good speed having recorded a strong result at the Maramarua Rally earlier in the year.

But in a twist from the organisers, the event moves to tarmac for the afternoon and having only contested the odd hillclimb on seal, Campbell is looking forward to the challenge.

'For us, we don't have much to lose but by keeping Josh behind us, we can gain quite a bit heading to the final round of the championship,” says Campbell.

'I'm fairly confident we can be quick on the gravel and we will just have to see in the afternoon.”

The Possum Bourne Memorial Rally kicks off in Pukekohe at 7am, with close to 100km of gravel stages before completing a further 28km of tarmac prior to the finish at Pukekohe Park Raceway just after 5pm.

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