Molly Taylor

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Molly Taylor
Profile Image Molly Taylor.png
Born (1988-05-06) 6 May 1988 (age 33)
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
NationalityAustralia Australian[1]
CitizenshipDual – Britain & Australia
Alma materUniversity of Sydney
OccupationRally driver
Parent(s)Mark Taylor
Coral Taylor[2]
World Rally Championship career
Debut season2011
Awards
Pirelli Star Driver
Australian Rally Championship
Years active2007–2009; 2015–2018
TeamsSubaru do Motorsport
Championship titles
2016Australian Rally Champion
Awards
2007 & 2008F16 Champion
British Rally Championship
Years active2009 – Present
Awards
2009 & 2010British Ladies Rally Champion
Websitehttp://www.mollytaylor.com.au/

Molly Anne Taylor (born 6 May 1988 in Sydney)[1] is an Australian rally car driver who is the 2016 Australian Rally Champion.[3] She is the first and only female driver to win the Australian Rally Championship,[3] and was the youngest, regardless of gender, to do so at the time.[4] Subaru left the Australian Rally Championship at the end of the 2019 season, but Taylor continues to be an ambassador for Subaru Australia.

Taylor was the first female accepted into the Australian Motor Sports Foundation (AMSF) International Rising Star Program and also awarded the New South Wales (NSW) Confederation of Australian Motorsport Young Achiever of the Year Award in 2006.[5] In 2011, she was part of the World Rally Championship Pirelli Star Driver program and one of the youngest and the only female driver participating in the WRC.[6] She has won several championships including back to back Australian Rally Championships in the F16 Class for 2007 and 2008.[5] In 2009, she became the British Ladies Rally Champion, the first ever driver from outside of the United Kingdom to win the title,[7] which she won again in 2010.[8] She also competed in the FIA 2013 European Rally Championship.[9] In 2016, Taylor won the Australian Rally Championship overall classification.

Early life and education[]

Taylor is the daughter of rally driver Mark Taylor and four-time Australian Rally Champion co-driver Coral Taylor. Molly has one sister, Jane. Molly attended New England Girls' School in Northern New South Wales. She had a love of horses growing up and competed in cross-country events.[8] While attending school, her focus was on equestrian events where she competed in national level events.[10] Taylor sold her horse in order to purchase her first rally car. She was quoted as saying, "I got 100 horsepower for one horse so I thought that was pretty good."[8]

After attaining a Universities Admissions Index of 98/100, Taylor commenced a Bachelor of Commerce at the University of Sydney. She left university to pursue rallying full time. She also has a Certificate in Automotive Studies and is a qualified personal trainer.

Career[]

Driving Citroën DS3 R3T for United Business in WRC Rally Finland.

Early career pre-2010[]

While working with her father at his rally school, Taylor was offered a car to compete in some local motorkhanas where she took first in class and placed ninth outright. It was during her time at the rally school with her father teaching her to be a safe driver that she decided to pursue a career in rallying.[11]

In 2006, Taylor was selected into the Women's Driver Development program where she was considered a standout performer.[5] The same year she upgraded from a Holden Gemini and won her first outing in her new car by a full five minutes. She was recognized as the New South Wales Young Achiever of the year by CAMS[5] after winning the 2006 New South Wales Rally Championship, taking both the 2WD and 2-Litre titles.[12] She used 2006 as a year to gain experience in a rear-wheel drive rally car before moving into a front-wheel drive car and moving up to the Australian Rally Championship.[2]

Taylor debuted in the Australian Rally Championship in 2007 where she won the F16 class, a feat she repeated in 2008.[5] She moved to the United Kingdom a year later in order to compete in the Suzuki Swift Sport Cup, where she won three out of her six races and became the British Ladies Rally Champion.[7] In 2009 and 2010 she was selected for the Australian Motor Sport Foundation International Rising Star program.[13]

2010–2016[]

While driving in the British Rally Championship, she was noticed by Pirelli and World Racing Championship Academy officials.[11] She was then invited to participate in the Pirelli Star Driver Shootout where she competed against sixteen of the top young drivers in rally racing from throughout the world. Based on her performance at the Shootout, she was awarded one of only six scholarships to the FIA World Rally Championship Academy, which allowed her to compete in the World Rally Championship in 2011.[13] The scholarship allowed her to participate in six events for the World Rally Championship with all of her racing expenses paid.[11] She finished the final race of the championship at the Wales Rally Great Britain with a stage win, also winning the Richard Burns Trophy for the season.[14]

Taylor also competed in the FIA European Championship in 2013.[9] She also competed for the first ever FIA European Rally Championship ladies trophy.[15]

In 2015, she became the first woman to win a heat in the Australian Rally Championship in heat one of the opening event in Western Australia,[16] and then the first woman to win an event outright at the National Capital Rally in Canberra.[17] Molly achieved podium positions at every Championship round and finished second overall in the Championship.[4] She was also invited to take part in a 1000 km Endurance Race in Lithuania where her team finished third in their class.[4]

She was awarded the Peter Brock Medal, one of the most prestigious awards in Australian motorsport, awarded to the driver who has demonstrated similar characteristics to the late Peter Brock AM, including outstanding ability, a fair and sportsman-like attitude and a willingness and capacity to promote the sport in the wider community.[18][19]

In 2016, she became both the first female driver to win the Australian Rally Championship and the youngest to do so at the time,[20] with co-driver Bill Hayes.

2017–2019[]

A strong start to the 2017 season and consistent performance throughout the year put Taylor in a strong position for a consecutive back-to-back victory, but an engine failure during the final round in Coffs Harbour pushed Taylor and new co-driver Malcolm Read to second overall, handing the outright win to Nathan Quinn.

It was another crushing finish to the year for Taylor in 2018 when, once again, her Coffs Harbour weekend was brought to an early conclusion following a spectacular crash during the second stage. Taylor and Read escaped unharmed despite a significant impact that caused their Les Walkden Subaru WRX STI to catch fire.

For the 2019 season, Taylor and Read entered the ARC with an all-new AP4 WRX STI built and supported by Orange Motorsport Engineering. It was to be a challenging year with persistent mechanical problems and a serious crash in Ballarat punctuated by successes but, once again, the season would conclude under unusual circumstances. The penultimate Adelaide Hills round – and subsequently the 2018 season – was won by championship favourite Harry Bates, finishing day two and more than 97 kilometres ahead of Taylor by just two tenths of a second. Bates secured the overall victory on points for the Neal Bates Motorsport Toyota team at the penultimate round, ahead of the final round in Coffs Harbour. The Subaru do Motorsport team finished third overall for the season.

However, the 2019 Australian bushfire crisis lead to the cancellation of the Coffs Harbour round and an early finish for the 2019 tour. It was the final year in Subaru Australia's contract with Taylor and a four-year commitment to the ARC, and the carmaker did not return for the 2020 championship.

In 2019, Taylor also made her series circuit racing debut, competing in the TCR Australia championship. As part of the Kelly Racing TCR team, Taylor raced one of two Subaru WRX TCR cars entered into the championship but ARC commitments meant she was only able to compete in five of the season's seven races.

2019–present[]

Following Subaru's exit from the Australian Rally Championship, Taylor had planned to compete in a number of rounds of the 2020 American Rally Association championship in a DirtFish Limited Subaru WRX STI,[21] but the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic put an hiatus on her ARA assault.

In May 2020, Taylor joined the driver program of the inaugural Extreme E international electric rally series, which commenced in 2021. She partners Johan Kristoffersson at the Rosberg X Racing team. The pair won three of the five rounds of the season on their way to becoming the series' first champions.[22][23]

Taylor continues as a brand ambassador for Subaru Australia.

In 2020, it was announced Taylor would be participating the Seven Network's reality program SAS Australia.[24]

Career rally record[]

Richard Burns Trophy, Wales Rally GB
  • 2021 – Extreme E
  • 2017 – Australian Rally Championship – runner up
  • 2016 – Australian Rally Championship – overall champion
  • 2016 – Twilight Rallysprint Series – 37th in Round 1
  • 2015 – Australian Rally Championship – runner up; awarded Peter Brock Medal
  • 2013 – FIA ERC Ladies Rally Champion
  • 2012 – Signed With United Business Rally Management, Selected World & European Rally Championship Events
  • 2011 – Pirelli Star Driver – World Rally Championship Academy
  • 2010 – British Ladies Rally Champion, 3rd Citroën Racing Trophy (BRC), IRDC Most Improved Award
  • 2009 – British Ladies Rally Champion, Greenlight TV Star Performer Award
  • 2008 – F16 Champion, Australian Rally Championship
  • 2007 – F16 Champion, Australian Rally Championship
  • 2006 – 2WD Champion, NSW Rally Championship
  • 2006 – 2 Litre Champion, NSW Rally Championship

Complete World Rally Championship results[]

Year Entrant Car 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 WDC Points
2011 Molly Taylor Ford Fiesta R2 SWE MEX POR
NC 		JOR ITA
Ret 		ARG GRE FIN
NC 		GER
NC 		AUS FRA
NC 		ESP GBR
NC 		NC 0
2012 Molly Taylor Citroën DS3 R3T MON SWE MEX POR ARG GRE NZL FIN
Ret 		GER GBR
20 		FRA ITA ESP NC 0
2013 Molly Taylor Citroën DS3 R3T MON SWE MEX POR ARG GRE ITA FIN GER AUS FRA ESP GBR
23 		NC 0
2014 Molly Taylor Citroën DS3 R3T MON SWE MEX POR
37 		ARG ITA POL
45 		FIN
35 		GER AUS FRA ESP GBR
32 		NC 0
2016 Les Walkden Racing Subaru WRX STI MON SWE MEX ARG POR ITA POL FIN GER CHN
C 		FRA ESP GBR AUS
13 		NC 0
2021 M-Sport Poland Ford Fiesta Rally3 MON ARC CRO POR ITA KEN EST
Ret 		BEL GRE
Ret 		FIN
20 		ESP MNZ NC 0

* Season still in progress.

Complete Extreme E results[]

(key)

Year Team Car 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Pos. Points
2021 Rosberg X Racing Spark ODYSSEY 21 DES
Q
3 		DES
R
1 		OCE
Q
2 		OCE
R
1 		ARC
Q
3 		ARC
R
5 		ISL
Q
2 		ISL
R
1 		JUR
Q
2 		JUR
R
4 		1st 133

Career circuit racing record[]

Complete Bathurst 12 Hour results[]

Year Team Co-drivers Car Class Laps Overall
position 		Class
position
2009 Australia Jim Hunter Motorsport New Zealand Heather Spurle
New Zealand Christina Orr 		Subaru Impreza 2.0R G 203 27th 2nd

TCR Australia results[]

TCR Australia results
Year Team Car 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 Position Points
2019 Kelly Racing Subaru WRX STI TCR SMP
R1
14 		SMP
R2
15 		SMP
R3
12 		PHI
R4
Ret 		PHI
R5
11 		PHI
R6
13 		BEN
R7
15 		BEN
R8
Ret 		BEN
R9
DNS 		QLD
R10
14 		QLD
R11
15 		QLD
R12
Ret 		WIN
R13
11 		WIN
R14
Ret 		WIN
R15
Ret 		SAN
R16 		SAN
R17 		SAN
R18 		BEN
R19 		BEN
R20 		BEN
R21 		19th 116

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ a b Viastaras, Ana (3 August 2011). "Molly On A Rally Mission". The Daily Examiner. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
  2. ^ a b Mansell, Lachlan (22 March 2006). "Daughter of a Gun". Auto Action.
  3. ^ a b McCowen, David (23 November 2016). "Molly Taylor wins Australian Rally Championship with Subaru". Drive. Retrieved 29 September 2017.
  4. ^ a b c "Molly Taylor – Bio". mollytaylor.com.au. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  5. ^ a b c d e "A Dream Taylor-Made". CAMS Magazine. May 2009.
  6. ^ Barari, Aman (12 July 2011). "WRC's Only Female Drive Gears Up For Home Rally". Motor Ward. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
  7. ^ a b Mckay, Peter (28 August 2009). "Aussie Molly Taylor is the British Ladies Rally Champion". Motoring. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
  8. ^ a b c Jordan, Bev (1 December 2010). "Molly Taylor's Rally Trip From Arcadia To England". Hills Shires Times. Retrieved 15 April 2013.
  9. ^ a b "Molly Taylor". Fiaerc. Archived from the original on 24 September 2013. Retrieved 15 April 2013.
  10. ^ "About Molly Taylor". Molly Taylor Motorsport. Archived from the original on 10 April 2013. Retrieved 25 March 2013.
  11. ^ a b c Ottley, Stephen (12 November 2010). "Rallying To The Cause". Drive.com (Sydney Morning Herald). Retrieved 22 March 2013.
  12. ^ "Moscatt Teams Up With Molly Taylor". 13 March 2007. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
  13. ^ a b Keene, Neil (6 January 2011). "Molly Fast-Tracks Her Career". Daily Telegraph.
  14. ^ "The Wales Rally GB Closes Molly Taylor's 2012 Sporting Season". 22 September 2012. Archived from the original on 18 April 2013. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
  15. ^ "Fast Lady Taylor Signs Up For Eight-Round ERC Bid". 29 March 2013. Retrieved 15 April 2013.
  16. ^ David McCowen (4 April 2015). "Molly Taylor makes rallying history by winning a heat of the Australian Rally Championship". Drive.com.au. Retrieved 15 April 2015.
  17. ^ Pollard, Trent (28 May 2016). "Molly Taylor aims to defend National Capital Rally title continue her Canberra streak". Canberra Times. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  18. ^ "Molly Taylor Honoured To Receive Peter Brock Medal". www.cams.com.au. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  19. ^ "Molly Taylor Wins Peter Brock Medal – The Deadline Network". racedeadline.com.au. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  20. ^ van Leeuwin, Andrew. "Taylor becomes first female Australian rally champion". Motorsport.com. Retrieved 21 November 2016.
  21. ^ "DirtFish's newest star: Molly Taylor". 3 May 2020.
  22. ^ (4 April 2021) [1], Autosport. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
  23. ^ Kew, Matt (19 December 2021). "Rosberg team seals Extreme E title on countback, X44 wins Jurassic X-Prix". Autosport. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
  24. ^ (2 October 2020) Media Release: SAS Australia's full line up and air date revealed, TV Blackbox. Retrieved 2 October 2020.

External links[]

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