Four wins from four starts in US for Brendan
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Australian brother-sister rally team Brendan Reeves and Rhianon Smyth have again stamped their authority on the US Rally Championship, winning the 2WD class for the fourth time in four starts. They topped off their successful weekend by finishing the rally third outright, an impressive effort in a 2WD car.
Reeves started the sixth round of the series, the Ojibwe Forests Rally, as he finished - in dominating form - and finished with a lead of over six minutes, also taking third outright in the rally which was won by Ken Block.
Held in the Detroit Lakes area of Minnesota, the event was run in hot and dusty conditions with many crews struggling with lingering dust on the stages, particularly on the three stages run in the dark on the rally's opening day.
Going into the Ojibwe Forests Rally, Reeves was sitting second in the 2WD title race having not contested the opening two rounds. With another convincing win he has bridged the gap to current leader, Andrew Comrie-Pickard with one round remaining. If Reeves can win the final round and Comrie-Pickard finishes lower than second, Reeves will clinch the 2WD Rally America title for 2013.
Reeves and Smyth started their US rally campaign when they teamed with Team O'Neil in May, driving a Ford Fiesta R2 in each event. They instantly came to grips with the car and the US roads, winning the Oregon Trail Rally, Susquehannock Rally and New England Forest Rally before this weekend's Ojibwe Forest Rally.
Reeves and Smyth will now return to Australia where they will compete in Coates Hire Rally Australia, the fifth round of the Australian Rally Championship, in a Mazda 2 for RallySchool.com.au. The final round of the Rally America series is the Lake Superior Performance Rally to be held on October 18 and 19.