Reinhold Taus Wins Bergrallyecup Season Finale in Markt Hartmannsdorf
Reinhold Taus drove his Subaru Impreza P4 Turbo to overall victory at the Bergrallyecup season finale in Markt Hartmannsdorf as 78 drivers contested the Austrian hillclimb event.
The Bergrallyecup concluded its season with the Bergrallye Markt Hartmannsdorf, organized by MSC Gleisdorf under race director Jimmy Kahr. Held in sunny autumn weather in front of large spectator crowds, the event featured a 78-driver entry list taking on the high-speed layout measuring just over 2 kilometres in length. Practice runs faced multiple delays due to incidents, pushing the start of racing heats to 13:00.
Styrian driver Reinhold Taus secured the overall victory behind the wheel of his Subaru Impreza P4 Turbo. Despite needing to replace a faulty temperature sensor on site ahead of the second heat, Taus increased his pace to finish narrowly shy of his own track record from the previous year. Peter Probhardt took second place overall in his Mitsubishi Lancer WRC 05 Evo 3, taking the class victory in Pf Class 2a. Andreas Miletich rounded out the overall podium in third driving a VW Scirocco Type S 4x4, having resolved a mid-event electrical failure that knocked out four-wheel drive in heat two, which earned him his first cup victory in Pf Class 2b.
Hannes Kaufmann placed fourth overall in a Ford Escort Cosworth, missing the overall podium by just 0.62 seconds over two timed heats while claiming second in Pf Class 2b. Rupert Schwaiger completed the top five overall in his Porsche 911 3.5 Bi-Turbo, also finishing runner-up in Pf Class 1. Patrick Mayer took sixth overall in a VW Golf 1 16V 2.0, trailing fifth by only 0.55 seconds while taking the victory in Pf Class 4a.
Stefan Wiedenhofer finished seventh overall in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9, securing third in Pf Class 2b and clinching the overall cup title. Heiko Fiausch took eighth overall and won Pf Class 3b in an Opel Astra STW, completing an undefeated season sweep of class wins and securing the AMF Bergrallye Cup title. Christian Strobl (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 8) finished ninth overall and second in Pf Class 4a, while Felix Pailer completed the top ten overall driving a Lancia Delta Integrale, claiming second place in Pf Class 2a.