Zoom A good result from Piepers in Ypres boosts his chances

Honda driver Marcel Piepers has emerged as an outside bet for the 2WD Cup honours in this year's Intercontinental Rally Challenge following his victory in the emerging class on the recent Belgium Ypres Rally.

Piepers was the first of two Honda drivers in the top three of the 2WD category at the popular asphalt event. Fellow Dutchman Martijn Braat was third in a similar Civic Type R, while fourth place for Belgian Patrick Vandeputte completed an astonishing Honda performance after it scored more manufacturer points than any other make on the event.

Although Piepers will skip the next two rounds in Russia and Madeira, he is set to return for Barum Rally Zlin in August when he will be a favourite for 2WD Cup honours.

"The result means that we are now joint second in the IRC 2WD Cup drivers' rankings and we have also boosted Honda's score in the IRC manufacturers' standings," said Piepers.

"It was an excellent rally for us and our Honda performed perfectly throughout all 16 stages," he reported. "All we did was put in fuel and change the tyres."

Alessandro Mariani of JAS Motorsport, the company responsible for overseeing the Honda Civic Type R rally programme, added: "To achieve such a successful result on one of the toughest events of the IRC only increases our satisfaction."

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