LLOYD AND WILLIAMS STAR ON RALI CEREDIGION
9 SEPTEMBER 2025 12:10
Ioan Lloyd and Sion Williams were the home heroes on Rali Ceredigion (September 5-7) as they dominated the ERC4 class within the FIA European Rally Championship and finished tenth overall against the top European and British championship crews.
Lloyd and Williams contested the Aberystwyth based rally, which is the biggest rally of the UK season, as part of their programme in this year's European Rally Championship. Although Ceredigion was not a round of the Junior ERC this year, they delivered a blistering performance in front of their home crowd and commercial partners and are now in a position to challenge for the ERC4 title during the final round in Croatia in early October.
Lloyd, 22-years old from Llandysul in West Wales, was keen to compete in Rali Ceredigion. This huge event for UK and Welsh rallying started on Friday evening with an incredibly popular spectator stage around the streets and seafront of Aberystwyth. Saturday and Sunday took in closed road special stages covering some of the most spectacular and scenic roads in mid-Wales. Many drivers rated the Welsh stages as some of the most technically challenging in the European championship.
Their pace was sensational from the start in their two-wheel drive Peugeot 208 Rally4 and Ioan and Sion were soon beating experienced crews in far more powerful four-wheel drive cars.
Lloyd’s result on the challenging event was remarkable. They finished tenth overall, won class RC4, were the first two-wheel drive car home and were over three minutes ahead of the leading Junior British Rally Championships crews in identical cars.
Their only moment came on the second stage on Saturday morning, the 22-mile Y Diafol stage that ran over the mountain road known as the Devil’s Staircase. “We had little bit of an off road excursion that cost us a bit of time,” confirmed Lloyd. “There was lot of mud pulled out onto the road and a lot of water running across the road in some places, which I didn't expect. There were some nasty surprises, but we managed to get through it. I was happy to get in the groove after that and just really enjoyed the stages. It's been absolutely fantastic. It's such a good feeling being so close to home as well. I really enjoyed the second run of Diafol.
“This result means the world in front of a home crowd,” continued Lloyd. “It is something really special. The rain on Sunday changed things up a bit, but it was a really good test for Croatia, as we haven't been on wet tarmac for a long time. It was very tough in the rain with a lot of shiny tarmac which becomes very slippery. This was my first time on the Hankook wet tyres and they held up very well. The event conditions certainly threw everything at us.
“It’s been a fantastic weekend and I was really happy with our progress over the last 12 months and our pace this weekend. This is a confidence boost going into the final JERC round in Croatia, for sure. Doing the ERC has been a massive factor in our progress this year and you can see just how much we have come on since this rally a year ago. We’re loving every minute of it. Sion did a fantastic job again on the notes and it’s great that we are progressing together.
“This is such a brilliant event and it is so cool to be involved in it. Having the ERC come to Aberystwyth is really important for Welsh and UK rallying. It's a fantastic feeling just to be able to enjoy it and no real pressure from a championship point of view. I'd like to thank all of our supporters, including those who are based in the Aberystwyth area, for their support.”
For Rali Ceredigion, Ioan welcomed support from his Aberystwyth-based partners ARE Refrigeration and Electrical, Wyn Thomas Heating, Sonny Vaughan Electrical, Brodyr Thomas Construction and Tipi Cymru.
Ioan Lloyd is proud to be supported by David Byrne Auto Repairs, West Wales Rally Spares, Huw Jeffreys and Sons Plumbing and Heating Engineers, Suirway Forklifts, Towy Works, Mark Jukes Containers, Allglass Anglia, ARE Refrigeration and Electrical, 2300 Club John Easson Award, Towy Electrical Ltd, BCC IT, Wyn Thomas Heating, Peugeot Sport UK/Ireland, Motordrive Seats, Castell Howell Foods, Garej Tyn y Pistyll, Monit Motorsport, Solid Designs, Gomer Press, Atech Racing, A1 Detailing, Neil Spain, Mintex, Kielder WT, Gareth Owens Building Contractor, Safety Devices International Ltd, TRS Safety Equipment, Abba Trees and Stepside Agricultural Contractors.
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