American rally and extreme sports star Ken Block is close to a deal to join the World Rally Championship in a new Ford team, this week’s AUTOSPORT magazine reveals.

Former Subaru driver Chris Atkinson has been lined up as Block’s team-mate in the all-new Monster Energy Drink World Rally Team.

The three-year deal, which is likely to be agreed in the next month, would offer the World Rally Championship the chance to break into the all important North American market – a move seen as pivotal to the sport’s development.

The deal, which is being brokered by Block’s management team Wasserman Media Group, is reckoned to be one of the most significant in the sport’s history.

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Kyle Sarasin, the 2007 Rookie of the Year, recently met with Malcolm Wilson to discuss Sarasin.
Malcolm Wilson, the managing director of M-Sport, which manages, prepares and supports the
BP-Ford Abu Dhabi entry in the World Rally Championship invited Sarasin to the spendour of
Dovenby Hall in Cumbria, U.K., the home of M-Sport.

Malcolm Wilson, with over 20 years’ experience of rallying at world rally championship level,
has won two British national titles. As recently as November, 2008, Wilson, as a driver, claimed
an emphatic victory in the 2008 RAC Rally in North Yorkshire, Cumbria and the Scottish Borders.

Kyle Sarasin, at 19 years-old, has rewritten the records in U.S. rally, becoming the youngest
driver in Rally America history to: win Rookie of the Year (in a Ford Focus, earning a 4th place
overall at the Ojibwe Rally, the only 2WD in the top ten and the highest finish for a 2WD in Rally
America history), earn a podium finish (in his first career open class race!), win a special stage,
set a new stage record (actually, two, at the oldest performance rally in North America), finish
on the overall championship podium, and his highlight make it to the quarterfinals of the 2008
ESPN X Games, succumbing only to the ultimate gold medalist.

Under Malcolm Wilson’s direction, Sarasin will provisionally compete in five World Rally
Championship events including Italy, Poland, Finland, Spain and Great Britain. Wilson, and M-
Sport, will coordinate logistics and Sarasin will continue to secure sponsorship to compete in the
Ford Fiesta SportTrophy International series.

Sarasin will continue his quest to become the “Two-Continent Kid,” competing in both the U.S.
rally series as well as the World Rally Championship. Sarasin’s ultimate goal is to reach the
podium in the World Rally Championship on his way to a World Rally championship.
Sarasin’s dream, to be a part of Ford’s World Rally Championship with Malcolm Wilson’s M-
Sport, looks to be soon within reach. Support remains the key to Kyle’s success. With the
proper sponsorship and backing, Sarasin looks to continue to the top of the ultimate rally series,
the World Rally Championship.

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Rally Race driver Bill Holmes and his co-driver Sean Gallagher pulled off another overall win in the California Rally Series. The High Desert Trails Rally was held at the Area 51.5 Motorsport Facility in Ridgecrest, California on February 20-21 2009.

The two wheel drive Bilstein/BFGoodrich sponsored 2008 Ford F-150 Rally Racing truck was the first vehicle on the road with a good turn out of all wheel drive cars starting behind. Vehicles started at one minute intervals. From the start to finish the team of Holmes/Gallagher won all eight stages of the event.

The overall victory was won despite having some fuel issues with the truck. On long right hand turns the truck was running out of fuel. During the short time in a service break, the team quickly replaced the fuel pump and fuel filter hoping to resolve the problem. Unfortunately, it did not, and the truck was still running out of fuel. Holmes determined that the fuel pick up hose in the fuel tank came apart, causing the massive 358ci V-8 motor to be starved of fuel. After this realization, they filled the tank to overflow at the next service and were able to finish the event with no more problems.

The team is leading both the California Rally Series and the Southwest Rally Series in the points championships. The next event for the team will be the Southwest Rally Series’ Desert Storm Rally to be held in Quartzite, Arizona on March 21-22, 2009.

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