SAM Bilham had the best possible start to his BTRDA Fiesta ST Trophy campaign by taking the category win by two minutes from his nearest rival at the Malcolm Wilson Rally.

The 20-year-old Bingley driver led the nine competitors in the hotly contested single-make series from the second stage of the event and was never bettered on the remaining tests in the Lake District.

Bilham had finished last season as runner-up in the Fiesta Trophy, so was looking to go one better.

Joined by the first time by Scottish co-driver Cameron Fair, the newly-formed duo headed to the event expecting a tough challenge thanks to almost double the entrants in the series from last year.

Despite the lack of pre-event testing due to a parts shortage for his car, Bilham was in a confident mood as he began the opening round of the seven-event championship.

Perhaps understandably, he had a tentative stage time through the opening Hobcarton test as he and Fair found their feet in the slippery conditions.

But any signs of pre-event uncertainty were soon banished as Bilham quickly found his rhythm and ended the opening leg with three fastest stage times to lead both class N3 and the Fiesta ST Trophy at the first service halt of the day.

The Cumbrian forests are notorious for the changeable grip levels and the recent damp conditions made going tricky for the 120-odd crews in the event.

Two stages in the Grizedale forest complex had all the potential to unseat Bilham's performance but the Calvert Construction and Reis Motorsport Insurance-backed driver emerged with a commanding lead.

All that was left was a repeat run through the Greystoke stage and, with a healthy lead, Bilham took a mature approach to the 5.6-mile final test to cross the finish ramp with a two-minute gap to the second-placed Fiesta.

"I think that has truly been the perfect event for us," said Bilham.

"We had a few things against us going into this event and it's always difficult to have a new co-driver as you need time to gel.

"But everything just clicked and once we got the first stage out of the way, we found a comfortable pace and just stuck to it for the rest of the really. No risks, no heroics and it just seemed to work well for us.

"We couldn't have had a better start to the season. The Fiesta ST Trophy was such an unknown this year and with 11 crews out, everything was pretty much up in the air as to who would come out on top.

"But it was really important to get this win under our belts so we can head to the remaining rounds with a points buffer and renewed confidence.

"I have to say a huge thank you to the team and our supporters for believing in us and helping us get our season off on the right foot."

The next round of the series, the Somerset Stages Rally, takes place on April 8 in Minehead.