Gallery: WRC cars let loose in darkness

On a convoluted course incorporating the iconic start/finish straight, the chicane, Woodcote corner, and sections of the surrounding tow road, 14 Group A, B and other cars have been letting rip over the weekend.

After driving from the paddock to Parc Ferme, yesterday’s practice unfolded at 18:30, with the cars blasting up and down the stage. Suitably warmed, the first round got underway under the cover of darkness, with heroic rally offerings from Audi, Toyota, BMW, MG, Subaru, Ford and more piercing the darkness with their spotlights, while setting the circuit alight with a whole host of howling engine configurations. 

With the stage set entirely on tarmac, tyres screeched as the powerful cars took it on, drifting their way around obstacles in as efficient a manner as possible. The cars ran once in each direction, timed at an intermediate point and the finish line. Of the Group 4 and Group B class, Stuart Larbey took the title in his MG Metro 6R4 with a time of 82.70 seconds, while in Group A and WRC, it was Stig Blomqvist in his Ford Escort Cosworth who triumphed at 77.80 seconds.

Photography by Pete Summers, Joe Harding and Jordan Butters.