Manx rally driver David Higgins is Rally America champion for the fourth consecutive year after overcoming late adversity to win the New England Forest Rally in Newry, Maine.The Subaru Rally Team USA man and co-driver Craig Drew took their fifth victory of the season to secure the Championship with two events still remaining.
A trouble-free victory was in mid-Wales-based Higgins’s sights for a majority of the event after team-mate and closest challenger Travis Pastrana was slowed early on the first day after hitting a large rock.
Higgins then maintained a comfortable lead until drama unfolded late on the final day when his Subaru struck a large rock on stage 10 which heavily damaged the rear suspension.
After limping the car out of the stage, Higgins and Drew began performing repairs so they could drive the car back to service.
While making repairs under the Subaru WRX STI a small fire flared from a burst brake line and Higgins accidentally received a face full of fire extinguisher spray.
In discomfort and with his eyes painfully irritated Higgins made it to service to receive medical attention while his crew feverishly repaired the Subaru.
Pushing adversity aside Higgins and his fully repaired Subaru WRX STI then won the final three stages of the rally to take victory by 44 seconds from ex-supercross champion Pastrana.