Molly Taylor is set to become DirtFish’s latest star as she looks to take on the very best in the American Rally Association (ARA) behind the wheel of a four wheel-drive Limited Subaru WRX STI.
Taylor’s prowess behind the wheel includes experience at the very highest level. She was one of six drivers – including World Rally Championship podium finisher Craig Breen – to drive in the 2011 WRC Academy with Pirelli thanks to its Star Driver scheme, and has performed well in the European Rally Championship as well as the WRC over the years.
Campaigning with the Subaru do Motorsport factory team, she was the first female and youngest ever driver to become Australian Rally champion in 2016, and has continued to challenge for honours in a Subaru.
This year was set to present a new challenge. As well as contesting more rounds in the Pacific region, Taylor had planned to head over to the USA for the first time in her career and drive the official DirtFish Subaru on the Olympus and Oregon Trail rallies.
Both events have been postponed due to the global coronavirus pandemic but Taylor is hopeful she can continue this opportunity as soon as the national lockdowns begin to ease.
“Like Australia, America is where there’s regulations that provide a top level category for the WRX STI, so competing with the Subaru internationally is one of the big draws,” Taylor told DirtFish.
“Rally is also growing a lot over there and there’s a lot of buzz around it [the ARA]. It would be a completely new opportunity and you never know where those things might lead, so I think the appeal of trying something new, throwing in another challenge and being able to do that at a high level in a Subaru kind of ticked all the boxes for me.
“I’m still aiming to compete in Australia, and there are some opportunities in the Asia Pacific Championship that I’d like to tackle and add to an international program. Obviously everything is up in the air given the current situation, but hopefully we will still be able to put something together later in the year.”
Taylor is excited to be working with DirtFish too as she looks to embark upon a new chapter in her career in “the right way”.
“Their reputation comes before them and particularly now all the work that they’re doing raising the profile of rallying is really exciting for the sport,” Taylor said.
“Sometimes rallying feels like a best kept secret so to be able to work with people that are trying to expose how exciting it is to new audiences is great. I think DirtFish’s media push is at the start of something really big. You don’t want to put all the resources into trying to put a program together and do it half-baked so it’s important to do it the right way.”
Justin Simpson, DirtFish CEO, added: “I first met Molly just this year after DirtFish purchased her ARC-winning race suit to support the fire relief in Australia. She is a very talented rally driver and has similar objectives as DirtFish in supporting the growth and exposure of rallying globally.
“DirtFish Motorsports is really excited about the opportunity for Molly to compete in the 2020 Olympus Rally and Oregon Trail Rally. Our four-wheel-drive Limited Subaru WRX STI wasn’t in the 2019 ARA season and we have been looking for the right opportunity to get back out there. With Molly’s interest in rallying in the USA, DirtFish as the title sponsor of both rallies, and having our headquarters located in the Pacific Northwest it all seemed like a great fit.
“As you can expect, both rallies are currently on hold but our intentions still remain the same and we look forward to getting back out on the stages once our local governments deem it safe to do so.”
Look out for more exciting content with Taylor over the coming weeks and months.
