Career best finish for Alex Rullo in ARC

Alex Rullo and Steve Glenney have delivered IntelliSpatial Fleetcare Racing with their best result yet in the hotly contested EROAD Australian Rally Championship.

After finishing third overall in the opening day’s rallying, they doubled down and remained fast and consistent to nab yet another podium on Sunday’s Heat 2.

Those results secured them second overall for Accent Benchtops Rally Queensland, behind their teammate and former World Rally Championship star, Hayden Paddon.

It’s Rullo’s third time on an ARC podium, and the result elevates him into fourth on the series points table.

“This weekend was really good for us, it's a great result,” he said after collecting his spoils on the podium.

“We struggled a little bit for confidence yesterday, but it might have been a good thing, because we backed off a little bit and kept it on the road. There was a bit more confidence today, and that helped us get our pace up a little bit, so I’m pretty happy.”

Overnight rain fell on the gravel roads to the northwest of the rally base in Gympie, making conditions different from the day prior, but the action was still as fierce as ever.

Rullo and his Hyundai i20 N Rally2 were on song, securing the second fastest time on the long, tough Glastonbury stage.

Its narrow roads were kind to him on both runs, as another second place came in the afternoon, with these times well ahead of the likes of Harry Bates, Lewis Bates, and Irish international, Patrick O’Brien.

“The Hyundai works well, but there are little pockets that you have to find for each rally,” Rullo said.

“With these Rally2 cars, you can't take one setup and go to every rally, especially in the Australian Rally Championship. Every surface is different.

"From wide forest roads and ball bearing gravel in Western Australia to the narrow stuff over crests here in Queensland... I’m always learning new things with this car.”

Alongside stablemate Paddon, they also achieved Hyundai’s first 1-2 finish in the Australian Rally Championship’s long history.

While it took until the 350th round for the brand to do so, form suggests it will be far fewer events until the next such result.

Using the assets around him, Rullo is increasing his speed, and has a world-class driver in Paddon to compare data and setup information with.

“We are using him as a benchmark to see where our time loss is, and for sure, there's still another gear to pull for us,” Rullo said.

“There are certain types of corners where we're missing a bit of speed, but 80% of our stuff is quite good.

“It's just improving on that last little bit and unlocking some more speed.”

IntelliSpatial Fleetcare Racing will return to action in the national championship next month at The Middle of Everywhere Gippsland Rally in Victoria.

Crews know the event’s fast, flowing mountain stages well, and the team will be eager for another podium place there.

The Middle of Everywhere Gippsland Rally will take place August 22-24.

RESULTS | ACCENT BENCHTOPS RALLY QUEENSLAND

1. Hayden Paddon/John Kennard, Hyundai i20 N Rally2

2. Alex Rullo/Steve Glenney, Hyundai i20 N Rally2

3. Clayton Hoy/Erin Kelly, Mitsubishi Lancer

4. Lewis Bates/Anthony McLoughlin, Toyota GR Yaris

5. Patrick O’Brien/Shane Farrell, Ford Fiesta

6. Toby Price/Holly Kilbride, Subaru WRX

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