by Rebecca Hannant
One of the country’s largest closed-road rally events is set to take place across East Yorkshire this weekend, with hundreds of competitors, teams and spectators descending on Beverley and Holderness.
The East Riding Stages Rally will return on Saturday, February 21, and Sunday, February 22, when Beverley and District Motor Club hosts the annual event, which will see more than 100 rally cars race it out on the region’s rural roads for the chance to be crowned the winner.
Now in its fifth year, the event has grown from a local fixture into a nationally recognised competition and will form the opening round of the Protyre Motorsport UK Asphalt Rally Championship, with two days of racing across 14 stages.
The weekend will begin on Saturday evening, when competitors will be set on their way from the ceremonial start at Beverley’s North Bar Within.
The opening leg will feature three tests, including a new version of the Westwood stage, which will be run twice. The event will also include the new Little Wold and Great Wold stages.
For the first time, the event will start at 6pm, meaning stages will run in the dark.
On Sunday, the focus shifts toward the Holderness area. Following a restart from the FanZone in Saturday Market, the cars will head out to tackle a loop of four stages in Seaton, Rise, Ellerby and Swine.
These stages will be run twice, before the event concludes with a final pass of a revamped Westwood circuit.
Ahead of the stages, Beverley town centre will provide a backdrop for fans to get up close to the cars and drivers, while the Spectator SuperSpecial Stage on Beverley Westwood delivers fast-paced action.
Every car taking part in the rally passes through, giving fans the chance to see the full entry list up close in a safe and accessible environment.
Once the stages are concluded, the rally will return to the FanZone for a ceremonial finish and trophy presentation.
The rally will also see the return of Ian Jarvis and Paul Train, Hornsea Rotarians who have competed together since 1996.
Ian, who won the Volvo Norwich Union UK Safe Driver of the Year competition in 1989, will compete in a Dommy Buckley RSC-prepared Ford Fiesta Rally2, with stages close to his own home.
He said: “When the rally is literally passing your house, it’s hard to resist. The East Riding Stages is a leading national event with huge local support, and a real community feel.”
He will be co-driven by Paul Train, with whom he previously competed in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The pair reunited after he returned to competition via the Winter Circuit Rally Championship, where he won his class in a Mitsubishi EVO IX.
The entry is supported by Fabricast, while the car will also carry the Marie Curie daffodil logo. He is a Yorkshire patron for Marie Curie, the end-of-life care charity, which is also the East Riding Stages Rally’s chosen charity for 2026.
Marie Curie volunteers will be present across the event collecting donations, with funds raised going directly back into end-of-life care services for people and families across the East Riding.
Ian added: “Motorsport is about enjoyment, but it’s also about giving something back. Marie Curie does extraordinary work locally, and it’s a privilege to represent them on an event that means so much to this area.”
The East Riding Stages Rally attracts competitors and spectators from across the UK and is widely regarded as one of the most significant closed-road motorsport events in England, bringing economic and community benefits to Beverley, Holderness and the surrounding villages.
For more information, visit bdmc.org.uk/east-riding-stages, and to see a detailed map of the routes and timings, visit rally-maps.com/East-Riding-Stages-Rally-2026.