But yesterday it was looking more like an own goal after claims that their actions could jeopardise the British leg of the world championships.

Colin McRae, Britain’s first world champion, who was yesterday fined £150 and given three penalty points, accused police of trying to run the Rally of Great Britain out of Wales with a heavy-handed attitude. The event, sponsored by the Welsh Development Agency, brings the region around £15 million.

McRae and 16 other drivers were punished yesterday for speeding between legs of last year’s rally. The names up before Neath magistrates read more like a championship line-up than a court list. They included Carlos Sainz, of Spain, Mikko Hirvonen and Tommi Makinen, of Finland, and Richard Burns, of Britain.

The Belgian driver Freddie Loix’s £250,000 Hyundai, plastered with sponsors’ stickers, was caught seven times by the same speed camera. He was one of four drivers banned, losing his licence for six months. He was also fined £1,750.

Paul Trotman, for the defence, said: “People are prosecuted for speeding because of the risk to other road-users but the degree of danger from these men is likely to be far less than with other drivers. They’re the most sophisticated vehicles, with better-functioning brake systems than normal cars.”

But Mr Trotman’s argument failed to sway the magistrates. The chairman of the bench, Cliff Jones, said: “The area where these offences happened is particularly dangerous for people to exceed the limit.”

The police crackdown did not just include speeding. Marcus Gronholm, the defending world champion, was stopped near Swansea with a damaged front wheel. Officers prevented him from trying to reach the service park. He said: “An escort service might have been a better solution.”

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