1973 Press-on-Regardless Rally

1973 Press-on-Regardless Rally 25th Press-on-Regardless Rally
Round 11 of the 1973 World Rally Championship season ← Previous event Next event →
Host country	United States
Rally base	Detroit, Michigan
Dates run	31 October 1973 – 4 November 1973
Stages	85 (549.15 km; 341.23 miles)
Stage surface	Gravel
Overall distance	3,284.15 km (2,040.68 miles)
Results
Overall winner	Walter Boyce Toyota Motorsport Toyota Corolla
Crews	58 at start, 23 at finish

The 1973 Press-on-Regardless Rally (formally the 25th Press-on-Regardless Rally) was the eleventh round of the inaugural World Rally Championship season. Run at the outset of November in the State of Michigan in the United States, the rally was run entirely on gravel.

Report[]

Due to a combination of scheduling and location, the event was not attended by most European competitors. Giving teams only two weeks following the preceding Sanremo Rally to travel across the Atlantic Ocean, and then giving even less time for a return to Europe for the following RAC Rally in England, proved unrealistic for most teams, and in the event, only a few teams from Poland made the trip with their domestic Polski Fiat 125p vehicles. As it turned out, the event was primarily a local affair, with a Canadian, Walter Boyce, taking the win ahead of a field of American drivers.

In 1973, and for several years afterward, only manufacturers were given points for finishes in WRC events. With the teams focused on the prestigious RAC Rally upcoming, and with the year's championship already sewn up by Alpine Renault, the works teams did not make an effort to compete in the American leg of the championship. Toyota became the beneficiary as it was a Corolla that carried Boyce to victory, while other makes popular on the North American market filled out the ranks. Datsuns were particularly prevalent—especially the locally popular Datsun 510—and Polski Fiat was rewarded for their effort in making the trip by a finish in the points, but overall, the results factored little into the factory efforts for the championship.

Results[]

1973 Press-on-Regardless Rally results

Finish	Total time	Car #	Driver Co-driver	Car	Mfr. points
1	6 h : 58 m : 28.2 s	110	Walter Boyce	Toyota Corolla	20
2	7 h : 22 m : 43.2 s	116		Volvo 142 S	15
3	7 h : 33 m : 36.0 s	105		Datsun 240Z	12
4	7 h : 39 m : 1.8 s	114	John Buffum	Ford Escort RS1600	10
5	7 h : 45 m : 0.6 s	127		Datsun 1600 SSS
6	7 h : 57 m : 30.6 s	108		Polski Fiat 125p	6
7	8 h : 5 m : 4.6 s	123		Ford Capri 2600
8	8 h : 8 m : 12.0 s	130		Datsun 510
9	8 h : 9 m : 28.2 s	136		Datsun 510
10	8 h : 16 m : 12.6 s	121		Datsun 510
11		122		Datsun 510
12	8 h : 20 m : 47.4 s	117		Polski Fiat 125p
13		113	Gary Neil Don Ramsay	Datsun 1600 SSS
14	8 h : 35 m : 58.8 s	160	Edgar Herrmann	Subaru GL
15	8 h : 39 m : 10.8 s	120		Polski Fiat 125p
Retired (accident)		104		Opel Manta
Retired (mechanical)		106		Jeep Wagoneer
Retired (mechanical)		107	Ken Pogue	Jeep Wagoneer
Retired (excluded)		109		Dodge Colt
Retired (accident)		112		Datsun 1800 SSS
Retired (time barred)		147		Alpine-Renault A110

Source: Independent WRC archive^[1]

Championship standings after the event[]

1973 World Rally Championship for Manufacturers points standings after round 11

After round 11		Team	Season end
Position	Points		Position	Points
1	127	Alpine Renault	1	147
2	84	Fiat	2	84
3	46	Ford	3	76
4	42	Saab	5	42
5	34	Datsun	6	34
6	34	Volvo	4	44
7	33	Citroën	7	33
8	25	Toyota	10	25
9	24	BMW	8	28
10	24	Porsche	9	27
11	18	Polski Fiat	12	18
12	17	Lancia	13	17
13	15	Wartburg	14	15
14	15	Opel	11	25
15	14	Volkswagen	15	15
16	13	Peugeot	16	13
17	4	Mitsubishi	17	4
18	3	Škoda	18	3
19	1	Audi	20	2

References[]

External links[]

• Official website of the World Rally Championship
• 1973 Press-on-Regardless Rally at Rallye-info