CLITHEROE and District Motor Club member Paul Blanchard has set his sights on winning this year's SD34 Championship outright - starting at the Legend Fires North West Stages in Blackpool next month.

Blanchard and co-driver Derek Lewin finished first in class in the SD34 Stage Rally Championship last year and fourth overall.

But he is confident he can take his standard Nissan Micra, sponsored by Whitegate Motors of Padiham, to the very top.

He said: "I want to win the Championship outright and I'm quite confident that, if I do enough events, and I don't have too many problems, that we can do it."

And he was hoping to get off to a flying start at the sea-side in what will be the first multi-venue event he has ever tackled.

He added: "The North West Stages is one of the biggest rallies in the local area and I'm hoping for a good result.

"I was a spectator last year and I remember thinking that this was a rally I really had to do."