Juliet Ward, the gorgeous rally fanatic from Cork has been voted the first ever Irish winner in the 2002 rallyXS Pirelli Girl competition.The Championship is about real heroes including past and current world champions Colin McRae and Richard Burns, real roads and real driving and along the way, the teams, drivers and co-drivers experience every imaginable condition, environment, terrain and culture.
It's not just about sitting behind the wheel of a £400,000 WRC car, which are all road legal machines derived from marques we all know such as the Ford Focus and the Subaru Imprezza: a top-class World Rally Championship driver must be instinctive, brave, technical and tactically skilful. He must also be passionate, concentrated, precise and having unflinching trust in his co-driver. They both need to be a bit mad!
National Navigation Trial returns
Following the long enforced lay off due to Foot and Mouth scare, the Motorsport Ireland National Navigation Trial Championship returns for the 2002/03 season2002/'03 Championship Calendar.
October 5/6th Monaghan 'Drumlin' Navigation Trial.
October 26/27th Cavan Navigation Trial.
November 16/17th Carrick-on-Suir Navigation Trial
December 7/8th Munster 'Reggie Tilson' Nav Trial
January 18/19th Cork '1000 Shakes' Nav Trial
February 1/2nd Skibbereen '100 Isles' Nav Trial
February 15/16th Midland Navigation Trial
March 8/9th Monaghan Navigation Trial
A competitors best 6 scores from the 8 rounds will count.
So dust off your potti's, romers and maps! Get the car out of the long grass and check that the electrics still work! All roads point towards Monaghan for the traditional Championship opener - the 'Drumlin' on 5/6th October.
Thanks to Fergus Casey
Disappointment in Ulster , Determination for Clare
The latest round of the Ford of Ireland Focus Challenge was the Ulster Rally on 7th and 8th of September , which saw crews competing in the Toshiba Tarmac Championship meet up again with the Pirelli British Rally Championship regulars over the twisty roads of Co. Down.
Unfortunately it turned out to be a tale of woe for the Midland Crew of Brendan Kelly and Cathal Shanahan when they were forced to retire from the event.
The Event:
After spending many nights and days planning for the event, the look of disappointment on Brendan and Cathal's faces was obvious when they had to retire their Ford Focus from the Ulster International following the first road section.
The cause of the problem, a slipping clutch, appeared on the long road section to the first competitive stage and was traced to an oil leak from the gearbox onto the clutch following a precautionary change of drive shafts. Following this disappointment Brendan appeared glum when he said " This has come as a major blow to both us, our sponsors and the team but that is rallying, when things appear to be going well it bites back with a vengeance. Following this non-finish we feel our championship win hopes have all but gone but we will continue to fight all the way on the following rounds. If the drive shafts were not changed who knows.... what the result might have been ...or we could have suffered the same faith as poor Colm", meaning Colm Murphy who suffered a drive shaft failure while leading the event. All Brendan and Cathal can do is put the disappointment down to experience and have started to give the car a good check and shakedown in preparation for the classic Clare stages such as Maurice's Mills, the Village of Ruan and O'Brien's Castle where it is guaranteed the Midland team will be committed to driving at 110%.
Next Event:
The next event for the team is the third round of the Focus Challenge, the Clare Stages Rally, and takes place on September 22nd in Ennis. The event which is based in the West County Hotel comprises of three stages, which are repeated three times with centralized service area in the Gort Industrial Estate on the N18.First car is away from the start ramp at Mangans Cash & Carry at 11.15am and will finish back at the Post Office on Bindon Street at 18.30pm on Sunday evening. This year the event is Round 9 of the Dunlop National Championship, Round 4 of the West Coast Rally Championship, as well as round 3 of the Focus Challenge and the eight crews will be joined by a 9th, David Delaney from Tipperary.
"Whitford wins Lakeland stages."
Stephen Whitford and Mark Crowe have won the Lakeland Stages Rally in their Group A Clubman spec Mitsubishi Lancer!The pair took victory by fourteen seconds from the Toyota Celica of Eugene Donnelly and Paul Kiely.
Glen Allen finally completed an event without encountering any major mechanical problems and finished in a strong third position, just six seconds behind Eugene Donnelly. Charlie Donnelly finished fourth in his Toyota Celica while Derek McGarrity finished fifth and Raymond Mason took sixth and Group N honours
Full report and results on www.ral.ly
PEUGEOT GUNNING FOR AN ITALIAN HAT TRICK
After recording its sixth one-two points finish of the season in the recent Deutschland Rally, Peugeot continues to top both the Manufacturers' and Drivers' World Championship tables going into the eleventh of the 2002 calendar's fourteen rounds, the Sanremo Rally. The French team has won the last two visits to the all-asphalt event in 2000 and 2001, and Gilles Panizzi, the man behind its most recent successes on the Riviera, will be back to lead its bid to make it a hat trick this time round.
Should it succeed, it would clearly give a tremendous boost to the firm's chances of securing its third consecutive Manufacturers' title. Panizzi himself spent the weeks leading up to the Sanremo Rally completing an intensive re-education programme to ensure he will be on top form following his injury in August (see attached interview). After their excellent performance in Germany last month with the 206 WRC, Richard Burns and Marcus Grönholm will join Panizzi in the Peugeot squad for Italy.
With four rounds of the 2002 World Championship remaining, the series has taken an extremely positive turn for Peugeot Sport. From the ten rallies organised to date, the French team has secured no fewer than six championship one-twos (Sweden, Corsica, Spain, Cyprus, Finland and Germany) and has systematically finished in the points, with the exception of Argentina where its two cars were disqualified after the chequered flag. Its most recent maximum haul came in Germany where Richard Burns and Marcus Grönholm had the satisfaction of completing the distance in second and third positions behind Sébastien Loeb, whose car was not eligible for championship points. The Anglo-Finnish pair collected a maximum score despite the absence of their team-mate, asphalt ace Gilles Panizzi.
This performance has seen Peugeot strengthen its hold at the top of the provisional Manufacturers' standings with a capital of 115 points compared with a score of 81 points for its closest chaser, Ford. "The situation looks quite favourable," says Jean-Pierre Nicolas, the man in charge of Peugeot Sport's rallying activities. "Ford will effectively need to finish regularly in the big points if they are to bridge the gap and that puts the pressure very much on them rather than us. Even so, it goes without saying that we will be out for the highest score possible in Sanremo…"
Peugeot Sport enjoys an enviable record on the Italian round, including consecutive WRC one-twos in 2000 and 2001. The French team's maximum points haul last October contributed significantly to its end-of-year comeback that saw it go on to win the 2001 Manufacturers' World Championship.
Meanwhile, in the Drivers' series, Marcus Grönholm continues to fly Peugeot's colours high and proud. Since the beginning of the season, the Finn has accumulated 51 points, while second-placed Colin McRae and third-placed Richard Burns have notched up 33 and 31 points respectively. Thanks to his wins in Corsica and Spain and his sixth place in Kenya, Gilles Panizzi figures in an excellent fifth place while eighth place for Harri Rovanperä makes it four Peugeot drivers inside the provisional top-ten. Although Marcus Grönholm's enjoys a sizeable cushion at the top of the table, his lead is by no means unassailable and, with ten points up for grabs for the winner of each round, the situation remains very open with four events still to go.
As winner of the last two Sanremo Rallies, Gilles Panizzi understandably has a soft spot for the Italian round which takes place in the mountains close to his home in the south of France. "Unfortunately, it's difficult to say exactly how I will feel physically when the rally starts, but I'm extremely fired up at the idea of competing again after being forced to sit out two rallies in succession," underlines the Frenchman who is as motivated as ever!
Marcus Grönholm has good knowledge of the Sanremo Rally following his three previous visits with the 206 WRC in 2001 (7th), 2000 (4th) and 1999 (8th) and the Finn is in a particularly buoyant mood following his recent strong showing in Germany.
Meanwhile, Richard Burns has failed to reach the finish of the Italian round in the past three years, either because of accidents (2001 and 2000) or as the result of mechanical trouble (1999). That said, prior to his retirement in 2000, the British driver was lying an excellent third overall behind the two Peugeot 206 WRCs, an eloquent pointer to his skill on this type of terrain. "This might not be my favourite rally but I will be looking to score a positive result with the championship in mind. For sure, Marcus has pulled out a big lead in the Drivers' points table, but I will carry on fighting as long as I have a reasonable chance of retaining my title."
Clare Stages Preview
Preparations for the up and coming annual Lynch Hotels Clare Stages Rally are well under way. The rally, which takes place on Sunday, 22nd September 2002, is based in the West County Hotel, Ennis. The format of the rally is three stages, which are repeated three times with centralized service area in the Gort Industrial Estate on the N18
.
First car away, from the start ramp at Mangans Cash & Carry, is at 11.15am and will finish back at the Post Office on Bindon Street at 18.30pm on Sunday evening.
"As the Clare Stages Rally is recognized as being one of the main events in the Dunlop National Rally Championship and the West Coast Rally Championship, we hope it will be one of the most exciting and enjoyable events on the calendar", says Dermot Kelleher, Clerk of the Course. An entry of 230 cars has been received and this very popular event with drivers from all over Ireland and some from the U.K. hope to get a start.
The Rally is Round 9 of the Dunlop National Championship, which incidentally was recently won in Clonmel by Niall Maguire and Paul McLoughlin in a Subaru Impreza WRC. The National Champions have also confirmed that they will compete in Clare – and enjoy the craic.
The Rally is Round 4 of the West Coast Rally Championship, which consists of rallies run in Kerry, Limerick, Galway and Clare. The leader in the Championship is Stephen Bird and Dominic Downey.
The Rally is Round 3 of the newly launched Ford Ireland Focus Championship consists of 5 rounds. Oliver Stanley and Des Moran currently lead this Championship.
The big news in Clare this weekend is that Ollie O'Donovan and David Moynihan has secured a deal with Hyundai Preparation Giants Motorsport Development (MSD) to bring an Accent WRC to Ireland. MSD has planned a two-day tarmac test in Ireland to confirm the potential of the WRC Accent as a competitive Irish tarmac car. And following discussions between the two parties, it has been confirmed that Ollie O'Donovan will carry out the testing duties of the Hyundai and follow the test up by competing in the Lynch Hotels Clare Stages Rally on Sunday, 22nd September 2002. The car will then return to its Melton Keynes base where it will undergo a rebuild before it returns to Ireland for it's Irish International debut in the Cork 20 Rally
. This will be a new experience for O'Donovan as the Hyundai is left hand drive, equipped with a sequential gear change and active differentials. It is a debut which both O'Donovan and Paul Risbridger (General Manager Customer Support) of MSD are very excited about.
This is the first time for a Hyundai Accent rally car to be tested on Irish tarmac and brings the number of world rally cars competing in Clare on the 22nd Sept to 5. The others are 2002 National Champion Niall Maguire from Monaghan, recent Galway Summer Rally winner Michael Barrable from Swords and Hugh Dunne from Kildare, all driving Subaru Impreza WRC. Also, Liam McCarthy from Cork in a Toyota Corolla WRC.
The Clare Stages Rally 2002 Committee has spent many hours of hard work and dedication over the past number of months to ensure that the rally passes off safely and smoothly. Heading up the whole operation is Dermot Kelleher, Clerk of the Course, from Clarecastle. Assisting him are: Richard Talbot, Deputy Clerk of the Course; David Hogan, Assistant Clerk of the Course; Carmel O'Brien, Secretary of the Event; Jim Casey, Richard Casey and Pat Miniter, Stage Commanders; Joe McEnery, Michael Rodgers and John O'Mahony, Assistant Stage Commanders; Gerry O'Brien, Chief Marshal and Brian Carpenter, Service Area Co-coordinator. This year, the Committee has decided to use what is known locally as the Classic Clare Stages, which incorporates Maurice's Mills, the Village of Ruan and O'Brien's Castle.
Top Entries:
1 Niall Maguire Paul McLoughlin Monaghan Subaru Impreza WRC 8
2 Michael Barrable Dermot O'Gorman Dublin Subaru Impreza WRC 8
3 Ollie O'Donovan David Moynihan Cork Hyundai Accent WRC 8
4 Patrick Elliot Sean Moriarty Cavan Subaru Impreza 8
5 David Armstrong Herbie Blackburn Armagh Ford Escort RS 15
6 Tim McNulty Anthony Nestor Meath Subaru Impreza 8
8 Hugh Dunne Derek Branningan Kildare Subaru Impreza WRC 8
9 Denis Cronin Helen O'Sullivan Cork BMW M3 14
10 Anthony O'Halloran Kevin Synott Clare Mitsibushi EV06 4
11 Sean Gallagher Liam Costelloe Leitrim Ford Escort 15
12 Ed Synan David Doherty Limerick Subaru Impreza 8
14 Liam McCarthy Kieran Murphy Cork Toyota WRC 8
15 Thomas Randles Diarmuid Lynch Kerry Ford Escort
San Remo Preview
The Rallye d'Italie, round eleven of the 2002 FIA World Rally Championship, begins on Thursday 19 September from the Italian Riviera town of Sanremo.The Sanremo rally, as it is more commonly known, is the final all-asphalt event of the season and 57 cars are expected to cross the start ramp next week to tackle the mountain roads of the Ligurian Alps. It has been the setting for classic battles since it became a World Rally event and is famed for technical stages which feature tight hairpins, smooth high-speed straights and narrow, twisty sections.
The rally will see drivers battling over 386 competitive kilometres run as 18 special stages. Like last year, the event will be based around a central service park at Imperia, 40 kilometres along the coast from Sanremo while rally HQ will stay at the Hotel Royal in central Sanremo for the whole event.
N° 1 Richard Burns Peugeot 206 WRC
N° 2 Marcus Grönholm Peugeot 206 WRC
N° 3 Gilles Panizzi Peugeot 206 WRC
N° 4 Carlos Sainz Ford Focus WRC
N° 5 Colin McRae Ford Focus WRC
N° 6 Markko Martin Ford Focus WRC
N° 7 François Delecour Mitsubishi Lancer WRC
N° 8 Alister McRae Mitsubishi Lancer WRC
N° 10 Tommi Makinen Subaru Imprezza WRC
N° 11 Petter Solberg Subaru Imprezza WRC
N° 12 Achim Mörtl Subaru Imprezza WRC
N° 14 Kenneth Eriksson Skoda Octavia WRC
N° 15 Toni Gardemeister Skoda Octavia WRC
N° 16 Roman Kresta Skoda Octavia WRC
N° 17 Armin Schwarz Hyundai Accent WRC
N° 18 Freddy Loix Hyundai Accent WRC
Rally Accident in Wexford
Today, 14th September 2002, during the running of a stage of the Wexford Stages Rally a competing car was involved in an accident near Ballycullane, Co. Wexford. A number of spectators were injured and were taken to Wexford General Hospital.
They are currently in the hospital and are receiving medical attention. It has been confirmed by the hospital that none of the injuries are life threatening.
A full investigation is now underway and the result of this investigation will be available for consideration by the Motor Sport Commission (Ruling Council) at their meeting on Thursday 19th September 2002.
Issued by Wexford Motor Club @ 5.30pm on Saturday 14th September 2002
Dick Bailey (Wexford) Rally Preview
The Wexford Rally enters a new stage of recognition the weekend of September 14th and 15th at the newly-renamed Dick Bailey Stages Rally, fittingly on the 30th birthday of the event.
Dick was a great supporter of the event, and was a much-loved and heavily-active member of the Wexford rally scene, who sadly lost his life in Easter's Hillclimb event in Inistioge.
As he is the only club member to lose his life as a result of the sport he adored so much, a unanimous club vote decided to rename the annual two-day rally in his honour, and what a battle should ensue to see who becomes the first driver to win the event under its new title. The first two-day and first open event to take place in Wexford since Eamonn Boland recorded his four-in-a-row in September 2000 sees a strong field seeking to remove the crown from the Wexfordman^Òs head Boland himself is vying to keep it there. Within days of regulations being issued, the rally immediately became fully subscribed, with every single position on the 190-strong start and reserve list immediately filled. Within days of regulations being issued, the rally immediately became fully subscribed, with every single position on the 190-strong start and reserve list immediately filled. Wexford's top driver Boland is top seed for the 2002 running of the event, sponsored for the third consecutive year by Crosbie Cedars Hotel, Rosslare.
The four times winner, partnered by Damien Morrissey in his S7 Subaru World Rally Car, is aiming to join Stephen Murphy in the record books as a five-times Wexford champion Other high-seeded front-runners see British drivers coming to the fore in the first Wexford rally open to international fields in two years.
Hereford's John Price, former champion Pete Doughty of Nottingham, Steve Hendy from Dorset and Welshman Bob Fowden head the overseas challenge, with Tom Holton, Aaron McHale, Kieran Molloy and Willie Carroll leading the rest of the home challenge.
Price, partnered by wife Caroline, as always will be one to watch.
The leader of both the Get Connected Championship and the UK Tarmacadam Championship, Price has steered his Metro to a number of notable wins this year, particularly in the Welsh-based Tour of Eppynt, the Harry Flanders Rally (also in Eppynt) and the Promenade Stages in Wallasey.
He's also emerged as leading preparer of cars, inspiring five victories for other drivers so far this year.
Boland himself has enjoyed quite a year, and will be difficult to beat on roads that he loves.
His four previous traversals of the county have on each occasion resulted in victory.
His most facile win was the most recent of the four with the withdrawal of Michael Barrable the Thursday before the 2000 event, it left Price and Melvyn Evans as the only serious contenders for Boland's crown. Even then, those two rivals for the title dealt the Wexfordman a huge favour - both by developing mechanical problems on the very first stage.
From then on, despite the best efforts of English raiders Steve Fleck and Jon Mercer and Armagh's David Armstrong, Boland gained an advantage on average of twelve seconds every stage.
Among his more impressive performances this year were third spots in both the Circuit of Ireland and Jim Clark Rally.
Jimmy Lambert's 17th-seeded Escort will also be much-viewed, as the Tipperary man aims to add the Dick Bailey crown to his success in Wexford last Christmas.
The affable Ardfinnan driver finally rewrote the record books by storming to victory in the December running of the Crosbie Cedars Hotel Wexford Single Stage Rally by 14 seconds - his first ever win in a Slaneyside event after many years of trying. Gorey's David James finished fourteen seconds down, only to re-emerge in the following June^Òs Fethard Rally in the best possible style, having a 23-second margin to spare over Tipperary's David Percy. James, partnered by trusted sidekick Ron Guha, produced the two fastest times of the day on stages one and two, and was uncatchable from there.
Also watch out for an army of drivers from Wexford across virtually every class.
Speedsters such as Tomás O'Rourke, James M Stafford, Sean Gaul, Mark Kennedy, Graham Scallan, Martin McGrath, Willie Whitty and David Dunne will create huge local interest among the many thousands of rally fans who will line the course. All of this adds to the tremendous history of the event, going back to when Billy Coleman and Dick O'Brien in their little blue Renault Alpine won the first Wexford Rally, after a fierce battle with the Cullen brothers, Des and Jim, in the Mini Cooper S. The Cullens led for most of the event but Coleman overhauled them on the last three stages to win.
The "Wexford" proved a breeding ground for most of the country's leading rally drivers, with Coleman, Ronnie McCarthy, Ger Buckley and Jimmy Stewart all competing throughout the seventies, with Austin McHale a three-time winner in 1982, 1983 and 1988, the late Frank Meagher took the honours in 1985 and 87, with another sadly-departed great Bertie Fisher a winner in 1981. As for this year's event, Saturday will feature eight stages in two loops of four around Ballycullane, Dunmain, Aughlare and Oakland.
The action starts at 9:15 with the cars leaving Parc Ferme Special Stage 1 begins at 10:18.
After the second service halt, at the end of the first day, the cars and crews will head back to Parc Ferme in Rosslare around 5:00.
The second day's racing will see the cars head into the last eight stages around 11:30, a loop of four stages repeated, in Mayglass, Knocktown, Ballymitty and Forth Mountain.
The champagne will be cracked open at Parc Ferme outside the Crosbie Cedars around 6:00, and who's to say it won't be another local winner?
Top Ten:
1 EAMONN BOLAND/DAMIEN MORRISEY SUBARU IMPREZA WRC 44S (8)
2 JOHN PRICE/CAROLINE PRICE METRO 6R4 (15)
3 PETE DOUGHTY/TIM STURLA FORD ESCORT WRC (8)
4 STEVE HENDY/MARK MILTON ESCORT RS COSWORTH (8)
5 TOM HOLTON/ANDREW CULLEN TOYOTA CELICA TURBO 4WD (8)
6 BOB FOWDEN/JERRY HYNES MITSUBISHI LANCER EVO 6 (4)
7 AARON MACHALE/DAMIEN CONNOLLY MITSUBISHI LANCER EVO 5 (4)
8 TIM BALL/ROB WATSON DARRIAN T90 (12)
9 KIERAN MOLLOY/BRIAN BOLAND MITSUBISHI LANCER EVO 6 (4)
10 WILLIAM CARROLL/JASON MERNAGH ESCORT RS COSWORTH (8)
North East Single Stage
This years event again sponsored by Triton Showers will be based in the Oasis Hotel in Carrickmacross.The event which will be the usual 10 mile stage with 1 familiarisation run and 3 timed runs is off the restricted type with a maximum 2 litre 2WD.
Clerk of the course Tom Taffe has selected a stage which comprises of a good mixture of roads.
Regs are now available for this event by posting an A5 S.A.E. to:
Susan Storan
The Cottage
Rathbran Beg
Collon
Co. Louth
Or alternatively telephone: 087 9758078
Lakeland Stages Rally
Trevor Moore and Philip McCrea head the entry list for round seven of the M.E. Crowe Northern Ireland Stage Rally Championship, the Lakeland Stages Rally.Winners of the previous round based in Limavady, the pair will be looking for their second win on the trot. Stiff competition will come in the form of championship regulars such as Derek McGarrity, Denis Biggerstaff and Eugene Donnelly while Stephen Harron is bringing his Impreza to Enniskillen in a bid for outright victory. Other top contenders include Kevin O'Kane, James Gillen, Charlie Donnelly, Stephen Whitford and Gary White
Full entry list available from:www.ral.ly
"Subaru Test for New Zealand."
Last week the 555 Subaru World Rally Team completed a five-day gravel development test near the town of Jyvaskyla in Finland in preparation for next month's Rally New Zealand. Regular drivers Tommi Mäkinen and Petter Solberg, together with test driver Pasi Hagstrom, drove a total of 918kms between them in a Subaru Impreza WRC2002 test car.Petter Solberg was at the wheel for the first two days on two separate test roads. On the first day a wide, fast stage was used for Solberg to test dampers and differential settings as well as brakes. The team moved to a slightly slower road for the second day, which started with a loose surface before moving onto a more compacted base with higher grip. Petter worked on damper and diff settings again as well as doing some aerodynamic work.
On day three Tommi took over driving duties and moved to a smooth, high-speed road in Makki. Tommi continued the work that Petter had started, testing suspension, transmission and aerodynamic set-ups of the car. Tommi stayed on the same road for day four of the test, where he put more miles on the car and carried out additional work on the brakes.
Tommi's gravel crew driver, Pasi Hagstrom, took the wheel for the final day of the test and again looked at damper and differential set-ups, brakes and aerodynamics. He also evaluated a couple of new tyre compounds from team partner Pirelli.
Tommi and Petter will travel this week to Italy to carry out a pre-event test ready for Rallye Sanremo, which begins on Thursday 19 September.
Cork Forestry Results
1 Eugene Donnelly/Paul Nagle (Celica) 43m 46s,2 John Donnelly/Greg McCarthy (Escort WRC) 46m 14s,
3 John Drislane/Paul Goodman (Impreza) 46m 29s,
4 Niall Driver/Francis Corrigan (Lancer Evo 6) 46m 34s,
5 John McGaffin/Alan Russell (Legacy) 46m 45s,
6 James Murphy/Con Mulcahy (Escort Cosworth) 46m 49s.
O'Reilly scores maiden victory
Belfast, 7th September 2002: Cathal O'Reilly from Cavan has won the second round of the 2002 Ford Ireland Focus Rally Championship, the Ulster Rally based in Belfast.The two-day Ulster Rally based in the Antrim Hills and Sperrin Mountain ranges saw the crews tackle in excess of ninety of the harshest stage miles that some of the crews have ever experienced. The event started as the opening round had finished, with a gigantic nip and tuck battle between Cathal O'Reilly, Oliver Stanley (Durrow) and Colm Murphy (Limerick).
Day One saw the crews tackle a total of four stages in the Antrim hills. Colm Murphy in the Kingdom Fast Fit/Guerin Crash Repairs Ford Focus once again set the early pace, setting fastest Focus stage time on the opening three stages, to move into a thirty three second lead. Due to this early pace, Colm not only lead the Focus Rally Championship but also the National Rally overall after day one. Cathal O'Reilly in the Autotech Body Shop Ford Focus despite a cautious start proceeded to set one fastest and three-second fastest stage times to move into second position overall. Oliver Stanley in the Perry Motors Ford Focus, winner of the opening round, had a huge spin on stage one sapping him of vital confidence in the conditions but continued to finish day one in a secure third position from John Foley (Cork).
Day Two saw the crew's head to the Sperrin Mountain Range to tackle a total of seven treacherous stages in atrocious weather conditions. Once again Murphy revelled in the slippery conditions to set fastest time on the opening stage. Following an overnight decision Stanley decided to fight for the lead and record a time just two seconds slower than Murphy but more significantly eighteen seconds faster than O'Reilly on the opening stage of the day. However on the next stage Stanley's spare wheel came loose, the flailing wheel costing him vital seconds and all hopes of victory. The fifth stage, Drumahoe should have been renamed Murphy's folly as two miles from the finish Colm broke a driveshaft and coasted to a halt in sight of his first victory. O'Reilly witnessing his great rival parked at the side of the road eased off and cruised to his maiden 2002 Ford Focus Rally Championship victory and also secured second position overall in the National Rally.
"It is a shame that Colm suffered such bad luck today, he really put the fight up to us over the last two days. However I experienced the same fate on the opening round of the Championship and I am delighted that my luck has changed at last. We had a great battle over the last two days not only with Colm but also with Oliver Stanley. I relaxed a little too much on the last three stages after we passed Colm and it cost me victory on the National Rally" said Cathal.
The Championship battle will continue between all nine crews of the 2002 Ford Focus Rally Championship at the Clare Stages Rally based in Ennis on the 22nd of September.
Tom Collins
"Jennings goes for close finish in Ulster"
Day 2 of the Stena Line Ulster Rally, the 6th round of the Pirelli British Rally Championship, began dark and threatening as cars left parc ferme in Belfast City Centre just after 5.00 am.
The rain was pouring down as the drivers arrived at the Stage 7, Davagh 1, the first stage of the day just north west of Cookstown. David Wright set the early pace, beating Garry Jennings by two seconds on the stage, but an early casualty was Martin Evans whose rally finished before breakfast when his suspension collapsed.
Wright again set fastest time on Stage 8, Doraville 1, four seconds ahead of Jennings who still held the overall lead. He remarked "I'm going steady and the car is fine, I'm just keeping an eye out for Wright coming up behind." Fourth fastest man MacHale complained that the marshals on the start line had warned him about the very slippy conditions in the stage and as a result he had been too cautious. George Phillippedes rally was not about to get any better than yesterday, as he was last seen in a ditch hopefully holding out a towrope, but managed to catch the TOTAL award for his spirited efforts despite the off. Alan Ring thought he was lucky to arrive at the finish, confessing to being sideways over a crest at 80 mph.
Chris Moore's event ended on Stage 9, Barnes Gap 1, when he went off on a fast series of bends as a result of coming across a stranded car on the road over a crest. Andrew Pawley clipped a bridge near the end of the stage, entering service with one wheel at a 45 degree angle and the car "crabbing all over the place". Meanwhile Wright had put in a charge and taken the lead by one second from Jennings with Gallagher in third place.
Special Stage 10, Mary Gray, claimed Mike Faulkner who went off into a ditch, and was also responsible for David Wright dropping time after landing in a hedge on a right hand corner where he was stuck for one minute. This handed the lead back to Jennings who was 9 seconds faster than Gallagher who had a small overshoot.
Gary Jennings was seen to be "grinning like a loony" at the finish of Stage 11, having beaten Gallagher by 9 seconds. Marko Ramanen commented that he was going to fit a radio at service as they were going so slowly and Gareth MacHale was bemoaning his tyre choice as his intermediates would not cope with the standing water. Ben Roper also had tyre troubles of a different sort; his car was too low and the wheel arches were cutting into the tyres on heavy landings. David Wright was frustrated by his error on the previous stage but pronounced Gallagher to be "catchable". Mike Bird complained of having to negotiate three stranded cars in the stage, which had distracted him from the task in hand.
Wright's sterling efforts all came to an end on Stage 12, a rerun of Doraville, when he went off into a ditch in an attempt to regain the lead. Jennings was fastest, 3 seconds ahead of Gallagher and retained a 17 second overall cushion.
Rain like "stair rods" greeted competitors at the start of Stage 13, Barnes Gap 2, and Gary Jennings reportedly told Gallagher "I don't mind giving you a couple of seconds, there's only two stages left"!
Ramanen had a puncture on Stage 12, so drove Barnes Gap with a mix of intermediate and slick tyres and had a minor spin as a result. The Dunbabin twins were happier when it had dried out nearer the end, but Gareth MacHale contradicted him, claiming the pair of stages had been "fierce slippy".
Mike Bird landed heavily on a jump and a wire on the fuel pump came adrift. Unfortunately, the dashboard was in bits and two minutes lost before the errant wire had been found. Ben Roper too had a frantic time as his throttle stop came off and rattled round his feet. Alan Ring meantime, nearly "had the bank" on a bit of mud but maintained his improvement on his first season in a rally car to take the Motorsport News Award for best Improvement on seeding.
The final visit to Gortin service saw Jennings 17 seconds up on Gallagher. The duo were nearly four minutes up on nearest rival Ramanen, such was the ferocity of the pace.
There was to be no cruise to the finish, and on Stage 14, Doraville 2, Jennings increases his lead by only one tenth of a second. Gallagher rose to the challenge however, and on the final stage, Davagh 2, took an incredible 15 seconds back out of Jennings. The margin at the end saw Jennings clinch the victory by the smallest of margins, a mere nine tenths of a second. And after 128 miles of intense competition, just how close is that?
Gallagher keeps his lead in the championship, but Jennings now looks very strongly placed as the dropped scores start to come into play on the next round.
Posn. Num. Driver/Co-driver Total
1 35 Jennings/Nagle 2:17:52.6
2 34 Gallagher/Pashley 2:17:53.5
3 36 Ramanen/Bevan 2:22:11.2
4 51 MacHale/Downey 2:23:39.9
5 50 Dunbabin/Dunbabin 2:24:41.8
6 55 Wright/Panes 2:25:02.4
7 67 Roper/Roper 2:30:09.8
8 69 Ring/Duggan 2:32:32.2
9 65 Bird/Burke 2:35:33.5
"Dale Secures Super 1600 and Manufacturers' Championships"
What was a grey, wet day for most of the Stena Line Ulster Rally, the 6th round of the Pirelli British Rally Championship, proved to be a fantastic day for Peugeot official works driver Justin Dale as he finished second in class securing the 2002 Super 1600 Drivers Championship and Manufacturers' Championship for Peugeot.
The rain was pouring down as the drivers arrived at Stage 7, Davagh 1, the first stage of the day just north west of Cookstown. Peugeot Super 1600 driver Dale suffered from his overnight lead which forced him to run first on the road and he reported the conditions to be "really slippy." Rory Galligan had his windscreen, which had been broken in his Stage 1 accident, replaced overnight but along with privateer Martin Sansom was having problems with it misting up in the wet conditions.
Stages 8 and 9 proved extremely wet for the Peugeot works team particularly Justin Dale as he was first into the stage meaning he was clearing the stages of water for everyone else. "I'm doing a lot of aquaplaning" commented Dale.
Dale reported Stage 10, Mary Gray, to be very slippy indeed and on Stage 11 admitted he was now holding station in the Super 1600 Category as his lead was under attack from MG driver Gwyndaf Evans. "If I try to stay with Gwyndaf, I'm having some moments and I can't afford to lose 6 points in the Championship for the sake of an event win." Meanwhile, Rory Galligan was getting his confidence back although he was having some problems with the gearshift and thought his tyres were going off.
After a brief return to the Gortin service area, the rally returned to Doraville for Stage 12 where Dale reported a heavy landing over a bump, landing the car on its nose but there was no damage. Dale found Stage 13, Barnes Gap 2, much better this time with less standing water. Having briefly lost the overall Category lead to Gwyndaf Evans on the previous stage, Dale once again set fastest time and retook the lead by 8 seconds.
Evans was reported to have left the Stage 13 again with only three cylinders but following service at Gortin he went into a nine second lead with only one stage remaining. Everyone in the team held their breath waiting for the outcome. Stage 13 – Barnes Gap - was a tricky one for Rory Galligan after his windscreen wipers flew off, and the rain started.
A battle for a Super 1600 win continued into Stages 14 and 15 between Peugeot's Justin Dale and MG's Gwyndaf Evans. An impressive stage time put in by Dale left him a tenth of a second behind Evans.
With Dale content that he had secured the Super 1600 category he wasn't taking any chances in the overall drivers championship, finishing less than a second behind Evans at rally end, Davagh 2, Stage 15, 6th overall in the event. Galligan undeterred by a challenging rally finished 3rd in the Super 1600 category and 19th overall.
Peugeot Sport UK Motorsport Manager, Mick Linford commented; "It's great that Justin has secured the two championships today. Our aim is to secure the third one, the overall driver's championship, and get the triple. The Trackrod is certainly going to be an interesting event."
The 7th round of the Championship takes us to, Yorkshire for the Trackrod Rally on September 27/28th.
Courtesy of ClareBarton
Peugeot announce Marlboro sponsorship
Peugeot announces its sponsorship agreement with Marlboro over the next 4 years in the World Rally Championship and is looking forward to working with an organisation that has had such a successful involvement and heritage in motorsports over the last 30 years. The team will compete under the name "Team Marlboro Peugeot Total" with the following four crews :Richard Burns – Robert Reid
Marcus Grönholm – Timo Rautianen
Gilles Panizzi – Hervé Panizzi
Harri Rovanpera – Risto Pietilainen
"With this new prestigious support, we will carry on our quest to win new world titles for the years to come" Peugeot Sport Director Corrado Provera commented.
Ends.
Peugeot S1600 for Castle Hellfire Rally
Peugeot Sport would be grateful if you could join their Works Team Driver Rory Galligan at the Castle Hellfire Rally September 8th 2002. The support team, plus Rory and co driver Gordon Noble and the 206 WRC Simulator will be present. All are invited to attend, see the Works Super 1600 206 car in action and indulge in the thrill of the 206 WRC Simulator. Service support crew and Simulator will be at the Rally Service The Green, Oldcastle from 10am onwards all day Sunday.Rory Galligan/Gordon Noble Peugeot 206 S1600 will run as car Zero in the Hellfire Event "Competing in my works Peugeot 206 at my local rally, although only as the zero car, gives me a lot of pleasure. Locally everyone has always been very supportive of me and my rallying" Commented Galligan.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank you in advance for taking time to read this invitation and look forward to seeing you there and supporting Rory on his home event.
Dunlop National Update
OVERALL POSITIONS
Posn Driver Points Posn Navigator Points
1 Niall Maguire 156 1 Paul McLaughlin 138
2 Patrick Elliot 102 2 Sean Moriarty 102
3 David Armstrong 88 3 Herbie Blackburn 91
4 Sean Gallagher 78 4 Liam Costello 63
5 Michael Barrable 58 5 John Loughran 59
6 Aaron Mac Hale 58 6 Dermot O'Gorman 58
7 Mac McKenna 52 7 Paul McCann 51
8 James McCann 50 8 Damien Connolly 49
9 Joe Mac Hugh 39 9 Harvey Bell 36
10 Jim Harrison 36 10 Noel Hall 35
Class Leaders:
1 Aidan Bourke 50 1 Robert Nolan 50 (Class 1) , 1 John Hegarty 40 1 Patrick McGlynn 30 (Class 2) , 1 Thomas Taaffe 44 1 Susan Doggett 44 (Class 3)
1 Aaron Mac Hale 55 1 Damien Connolly 47 (Class 4) , 1 Kenneth Mulvaney 51 1 Christina Shanahan 48 (Class 5) , 1 James Travers 38 1 Niall Keogh 38 (Class6)
1 Breen McNamee 38 1 Keefe Kilcoyne 28 (Class 7) , 1 Michael Barrable 28 1 Dermot O'Gorman 28 (Class 8) , 1 Kenneth O'Neill 30 1 Gareth Doherty 20 ( Class 9)
1 James O'Sullivan 40 1 Bill Fitzgerald 30 (Class 10) , 1 Rodney Wilton 44 1 Graham Kelly 41 (Class 11) , 1 Trevor Lancashire 55 1 Noel Hall 56 (Class 12)
1 Mac McKenna 60 1 John Loughran 60 1 Mac McKenna 60 1 John Loughran 60 (Class 13) , 1 Douglas Richardson 43 1 June Long 36 (Class 14) , 1 Sean Gallagher 56 1 Liam Costello 46 ( Class 15) and 1 Peter Kelly 61 1 Mark Tierney 30 ( Class 16)
New Single Stage in Tipperary
The following are the details for the single stage Rally to be held on 13th of Oct 2002.The Rally will be based in Chair Co Tipperary:
Title: Cooney Engineering/Esso Restricted Single Stage Rally
Promoted by Tipperary Motor Club.
Regs: Regs will be posted to all the entries and reserves at the Stonethrowers or Regs are available by posting a SAE to the following Address,
Tipperary Motor Club,
c/o An Post
Cahir
Co., Tipperary
Regs will be posted out on the 12th of September and not before, with closing datefor entries Monday the 30th of September.
Regs to be posted back to
Noeleen Mulcahy,
10 Tivoli Heights,
Powerstown Road,
Clonmel,
Co., Tipperary.
086/8196192 or 087/2550536.
"Castle Hellfire Single Stage Rally."
Sunday the 8th September sees the running of the Hellfire Single Stage rally being promoted by Castle Motor Club.Under the guidance of Breen McNamee the headquarters for the event , which comprises of a ten mile tarmac stage run 4 times ( 1 familiarisation run and 3 timed runs) and centralised servicing in Oldcastle, is the Lakeside Manor Hotel in Virginia.Top 20 Entries:
1 Tim McNulty/Andrew Cullen Subaru Impreza 555 (8)
2 Patick Elliott/Martin Cahill Subaru Impreza 555 (8)
3 Ivan Stewart/Timothy Duggan Escort RS Cosworth (15)
4 Paul McCann/Shay McCann Escort RS Cosworth (15)
5 Tom Holton/Ron Guha Toyota Celica Turbo 4WD (8)
6 Enda Keenan/Raymond Aughey Escort 2.4 (14)
7 in memory of Joe McGurk
8 Dessie Keenan/Enda Sherry Escort 2.4 (14)
9 James Cole/John Clarke Toyota Celica Turbo 4WD (15)
10 James Foley/Dominic Markey Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6 (4)
11 Dominic Loughran/Danny McGee Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6 (4)
12 Michael Cadden/TBA Sierra RS Cosworth (14)
14 James Cribben/Bob Kelly Subaru Impreza Sti 6 (4)
15 Martin Brady/ Escort RS Cosworth (4)
16 Willie Fannin/Brian Duggan Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6 (4)
17 Adrian McElvanney/Paul Goodman Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6 (4)
18 Paddy White/TBA Subaru Impreza WRC (8)
19 Noel Conaty/Bernard Cosgrave Escort 1.6 (11)
20 Mervyn Wedlock /Philip Smith Escort 2.0 (13)
Cork 20 all set
The organising team comprises of several well known Irish rally competitors, who bring a wealth of experience to the event that will provide a significant boost to the tourist economy in what is normally described as a relatively quiet time of the season.
Clerk of the Course, Hugh McPhillips, remarked, "We are delighted to have secured Murphy Construction as overall sponsors of the Cork "20" International Rally. It is the first time in almost a decade that we have an overall sponsor. Murphy Construction is a very progressive and dynamic company, the fact that it's a local company, is another boost for the Munster Motor Cycle and Car Club. We feel very confident that the event will prosper under this new sponsorship arrangement and look forward to the first weekend in October." The rally has already attracted interest from Irish, overseas and European competitors and regulations for the two-day spectacular will be issued in the coming weeks.
The fusion of the Cork "20" International Rally and Murphy Construction was explained by Kieran Murphy, Managing Director of Murphy Construction, "As a competitor, I wanted to put something back into the sport and when the opportunity arose to sponsor the Cork "20" International Rally, it seemed very appropriate. Murphy Construction are heavily involved in projects in Cork City and East Cork and I feel that sponsoring the rally is also a means of promoting the company. The fact that the organising team is comprised of several competitors, it is perhaps fitting that it's also sponsored by a competitor
" The Murphy Construction Cork "20" International Rally will utilise the superb infrastructure around the city to link the competitors from their base at the Rochestown Park Hotel to the action on the special stages. Plans are at an advanced stage and the team of officials are continuing to work on many elements of the rally. The itinerary features a total of 14 special stages over the two days. Saturday's stages - a loop of four repeated twice - take place to the west of the City and will include some of the classic stages of former years. On Sunday, in East Cork, a further six stages - based on a loop of three - will be completed by early afternoon.
Along with the competitors, service crews, several thousands of spectators will converge on the Southern capital, speaking at the reception, Munster Motor Cycle and Car Club President, Frank O'Mahony stated "The Murphy Construction Cork "20" International Rally is much more than a major sporting fixture. It will provide a huge financial boost to the tourist sector that is estimated to be in the region of €15 to €20 million.
On behalf of the Munster Motor Cycle and Car Club, I wish to thank Murphy Construction for their financial support and look forward to our new partnership.
" The Murphy Construction Cork "20" International Rally is a counting round of three rally championships:
· The Toshiba Computers Irish Tarmac Championship.
· The Ford Ka Championship
. · The Ford Focus Championship.
· The 023 Tiles Southern 4 Championship
Latest News and Regulations are available at their new website www.cork20.pro.ie Click Here
Cork Forestry Preview
This years Cork Forestry rally is named after its main sponsor ,The Windscreen Company, and will take place on September the 8th.Headquarters for the event is The Duhallow Lodge on the main Mallow-Killarney road and the rally will consist of of 4 stages run 2 times each in the forests near Kilavullen & Banteer with first car crossing the start ramp at 9.00am.
Provisional Top 20:
1 Dominic McNeill/Francis Regan Ford Escort WRC
2 Kevin O' Kane/Stephen Griffith Subaru Impreza 555
3 Eugene Donnelly/Paul Nagle Toyota Celica Turbo 4WD
4 Dermot Kelly/John Brennan Ford Escort WRC
5 Niall Driver/Francis Corrigan Mit. Lancer Evo 6
6 Glenn Allen/Seam Morarity Ford Escort WRC
7 John McCarthy/Dan Maguire Ford Escort WRC
8 John Donnelly/Greg McCarthy Ford Escort WRC
9 Eddie Kinirons/Greg Shinnors Toyota Celica GT-Four
10 James Murphy / Con Mulcahy Escort RS Cosworth
11 Brian McCloskey/TBA Ford Escort WRC
12 Paul Staunton / Bruce Burgess Escort 2.0
14 Paul Barrett/Dermot Colgan Escort RS Cosworth
15 John McGaffin/Alan Russell Subaru Legacy RS
16 Sean Cassidy/TBA Escort RS Cosworth
17 John Brislane/Paul Goodman Subaru Impreza 555
18 Trevor Harding/Charlie Boland Subaru Impreza
19 John Hickey/Nicholas Burke Subaru Impreza
20 Michael Tynan/Colin Brady Astra GSi
21 Jason Roche / Tom Snell Escort 2.0