23/09/2026
Trackrod Rally Yorkshire is good to go
• Biggest UK gravel rally of 2026
• Strong local entries
• Ceremonial start and finish at Filey
• Close championship battles
Trackrod Rally Yorkshire, which runs on Friday and Saturday September 25-26, will be the biggest gravel rally in the UK this season with a capacity field of more than 170 cars.
The event will be a massive boost for both rallying and for Yorkshire hospitality businesses, as thousands of people head into the region for two days of spectacular action.
The event will be based in Filey on the East Yorkshire coast but the heart of the competition will be in the Yorkshire forests of Dalby, Staindale, Gale Rigg and Cropton as the Trackrod forms a round of two major national rally championships.
The Trackrod Historic Cup, running over 55 stage miles, will have a ceremonial start and finish on the seafront at Filey. It is the penultimate round of the Fuchs British Historic Rally Championship and will open with a 12-mile stage in Dalby Forest in the dark on Friday evening.
Running over 43 stage miles will be Saturday’s Trackrod Forest Stages, round five of the Protyre BTRDA Rally Series. This element of the event will also be based in Filey but the start on Saturday morning for all crews will be closer to the forests at the Galtres Retreat and Lodge Park, formerly the Pickering Showground.
At the head of the Forest Stages will be the battle for this year's BTRDA title and two local drivers are vying for the crown. A maximum score on this event for Elliot Payne (Harrogate) and Patrick Walsh will make them champions for the fourth time in five years after their recent switch to a Skoda Fabia RS Rally2. Meanwhile, Yorkshireman Matthew Hirst (Doncaster) and his co-river Declan Dear have to beat Payne and Walsh in their Skoda Fabia if they are to maintain a chance of retaining their 2025 BTRDA crown.
Yorkshire-based crews feature prominently in the Trackrod Historic Cup, where the title race is coming down to a three-way battle between Ben Smith (Porsche 911RS), Damien Tourish (Ford Es**rt Mk2) and Martin McCormack (BMW M3).
Set to feature prominently in this battle will be local drivers Dan Mennell from Malton and Paul Thompson from Driffield, while Adam Milner (Malton), Matthew Stroud (Malton) and Jack Mathewson (Thornton-le-Dale) all run towards the head of an incredibly strong historic field.
Among the modern cars running over the longer event is the Opel Corsa Rally4 of Catterick's Luke Constantine, who is using the event as preparation in his bid to win this year's Junior British Rally Championship. His category rivals include Charlie Matthewson from Scarborough.
Spectators will be able to watch all the action unfold, and full details of the spectator locations in the forests are at www.rallyyorkshire.co.uk/
Meanwhile, the ceremonial start and finish on Filey seafront is free to everyone. Friday evening’s start will be from 7pm while the rally finish on Saturday will be from 3pm.
