RALLY ace Osian Pryce has been crowned the 2016 Drive DMACK Fiesta Trophy champion after he produced a brilliant high-pressure drive on Rally of Spain.

The series runs alongside the FIA World Rally Championship for six rounds across Europe and attracts up to 12 Ford Fiesta R2s on each round, with the prize for the champions being six rounds of the 2017 World Championship in a Ford Fiesta R5, run by the Ford World Rally Team.

A nail-biting climax in Salou saw Pryce, from Aberangell, near Machynlleth, and Finland’s Max Vatanen go into the final four stages level on points - and Pryce emerged ahead of the son of 1981 World Rally Champion Ari Vatanen on points.

Pryce’s hopes of victory on the rally itself were lost on the first day, when a misfire slowed his Fiesta R2 dramatically.

Despite that problem, Pryce and co-driver Dale Furniss kept their composure and they absorbed enormous pressure to put together a fantastic recovery drive to bounce back from 10th to fifth position, albeit with the help of some retirements.

“It hasn’t sunk in yet, and I don’t think it will sink in for quite a while,” said Pryce.

“This sport can be so cruel at times, and I was really on the floor on the Friday.

“I couldn’t believe we’d come so close, and it looked like we were going to lose it. But we picked ourselves up and got on with it, and now we are the Champions.

“People really recognise this as the place where the up-and-coming talent comes from, so to take the title across five rallies, all so different in nature, is brilliant.

“We were quite steady going through the final stage. When we got to the final roundabout, the one where you’re supposed to do a big slide, we were so steady.

“Getting across the finish line was the biggest moment of my rallying career.

“What’s even better is that everybody was there, the whole family – everybody who has believed in me for so long and helped make this happen. I just hope this title goes some way to repaying them.”

Ten crews from across the world had tackled the only mixed surface outing of the season in the holiday resort of Salou.

They were confronted with treacherous conditions on Friday, when torrential rain turned gravel roads into mud baths.

There followed a busy extended evening service for the M-Sport team as the competitors’ identical Ford Fiesta R2 cars were switched to Tarmac specifications. This brought a change of suspension, the addition of bigger brakes, and a move to DMACK’s asphalt tyres for the final two days on Spain’s fast-flowing roads.

An electrical problem on the Friday had hampered the Welsh wonders and saw them plunge down the Spanish leaderboard, whilst Trophy veteran Vatanen pulled out all the stops to remain in close pursuit, benefiting from past experience.

He was ultimately unable to overhaul 23-year-old Pryce and Furniss, aged 28, however, at the Championship summit.

Jon Armstrong, 21, secured the last pair of prize drives to round off a memorable year, with the Northern Irishman, along with co-driver Noel O’Sullivan, tasting victory at the final rally of the season.

Event Classification on Rally de Espana: 1. Jon Armstrong / Noel O’Sullivan 3h 47m 36.6s; 2. Gus Greensmith / Katrin Becker 3h 48m 28.4s; 3. Max Vatanen / JJ Renucci 3h 48m 33.9s; 4. Jakub Brzezinski / Jakub Gerber Rookie 3h 53m 02.4s; 5. Osian Pryce / Dale Furniss 4h 00m 19.8s.

The Drivers’ Overall Classification, after Round 5: 1. Osian Pryce 112; 2. Max Vatanen 105; 3. Jon Armstrong Rookie 97; 4. Gus Greensmith 52; 5. Bernardo Sousa 47.