Superb Result For Greyabbey's Michael Curran!

Posted: October 14, 2004 10:10 AM

Partnered with Crossmolina's Killian Duffy, Michael was competing against the National Championship regulars for the first time. A host of World Rally Cars appeared at the start ramp including none other than current Championship leader, Niall Maguire. But Michael was unfazed by the quality of the opposition and was determined to impress on his first visit to National Championship territory with his Leslie Wright and Son sponsored Mitsubishi.

Michael said: "At the start I was really hoping for a top three finish in the Production category but unfortunately we had the first two stages from hell! Less than a mile into stage one we came across Pat Donegan who was blocking the road after crashing his Escort. We lost more than 20 seconds there but it got me really fired up and I pushed hard to the finish of the stage."

Despite losing so much time, Michael and Killian arrived at the stage one finish just 12 seconds slower than Production category leader, Andrew Stewart. It was very encouraging for the 24-year-old Greyabbey driver, who is also sponsored by Bulrush Horticulture Ltd and Lyons European, but stage two was to provide more dramas in the Curran camp.

"On stage two I made the mistake of trying to recover all of the lost time in one go! I had a half spin and a full spin, losing even more precious seconds. So from then on I woke up and kept everything neat and tidy."

Michael kept his head down for the remainder of the event and by the time the crew reached stage seven of eight, they had moved from 21st overall and 7th in class to joint Production category leader and ninth overall.

"I was one second faster than Willie Fannin on stage seven so I knew it was going to be project 'win it or bin it' on the final stage! It was definitely the hairiest and most on the ragged edge stage of my life! We were 12 seconds faster than Willie and 20 seconds faster than Andrew Stewart. In fact, we were only one second slower than National Championship leader Niall Maguire in his Impreza WRC. So it was more than enough to clinch the Production category victory and, as an added bonus, it moved us up to fourth overall as well!"

"It goes without saying that a big thank you must go out to all of my sponsors, all the boys at DGM for the top class work, Killian Duffy and family for their great support, and my Dad for his invaluable help."

It was truly a superb display of driving ability from the Greyabbey driver and will raise more than just a few eyebrows from interested onlookers. Michael now plans to contest November's Ballymena based Toshiba Rally, the final round of the Pacenotes Northern Ireland Rally Championship, where he has a chance to lift the overall N.I. Production category title.

• Donegal Harvest Rally - (Sat) 9 Oct 04

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05/10/04
Greyabbey's Michael Curran has a chance to lift Production Category title
Driving his Father's Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 7, Curran knew he needed another good result in order to keep his Championship hopes alive.

Michael said: "I sold my Evo 6 just before the event so I had to hide the keys to my Dad's car! We took our time to settle in and were a bit slow in the morning but once I got used to the car we were on the pace. I pushed hard towards the end and at the finish there were just 15 seconds separating fourth and second position. I had a real fight on my hands to keep Stephen Moore, Charlie Donnelly and Raymond Mason who is this year's Scottish Champion behind me. There were 25 starters in the category and the pace was fierce!"

24 year old Curran now lies second in the Production category championship standings with one round remaining. November's Toshiba Rally will see a fitting finale to a hard fought season.

"The Championship tables show that I'm seven points behind Seamus Donnelly but when dropped scores come in to play he's just one point ahead. So it's all there for the taking at the Toshiba Rally. I need to go for a win and hope that Seamus finishes third or lower. If I win and he finishes second then we'll be equal on points but he'll take the title on the tie-break. It's just unfortunate I missed the first two rounds of the series as the story might have been slightly different!"

The Championship battle will be decided in some of the country's most demanding forestry stages when the ninth and final round of the Pacenotes backed series, the Ballymena based Toshiba Rally, kicks off on Saturday 6 November.

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17/09/04
Greyabbey's Michael Curran wins Group N at Lurgan Park!
Greyabbey's Michael Curran took an excellent Group N victory at Saturday's Triton Showers Lurgan Park Rally!
With UTV news reporter Claire McCollum co-driving, the 24-year-old man guided his MSJ Carryduff and Leslie Wright & Son sponsored Mitsubishi Lancer through the tight tree-lined stages to take a two second victory over his father, Dickie Curran. The event, which was celebrating its 25th anniversary, is renowned for being unforgiving to drivers who make the slightest mistake, but Michael made no such errors.

However, it wasn't an all Curran family affair as both Michael and his father faced stiff opposition from a number of other drivers. Raymond Johnston initially held the upper hand in his new Lancer but Michael put his foot down and moved into the lead after the second stage. Dickie then relegated his son to second in class after the third test but once the crews moved onto the gravel section of the park, Michael moved to the fore. Under pressure from the chasing pack, he kept his cool and arrived at the finish of the demanding event 11th overall and winner of the Production category.

Michael said: "I was definitely looking for the win before the start but I knew it wasn't going to be easy. I decided to be neat and tidy and stay clear of the handbrake as much as possible - not the most exciting for the spectators to watch but very stopwatch friendly."

"I opted for the new Pirelli RE tyres for the first few stages and they worked well. By the half way point we were second overall behind my Dad. I knew I was going to have an advantage over him on the fifth and sixth stages as they included a fair bit of gravel. After doing the Dogleap Rally the week before (a gravel based event) I knew it was my only chance to sneak into the lead! I was four seconds quicker on the fifth stage and from there on it was a matter of keeping it safe and steady but I still had to push to maintain the lead."

"I thoroughly enjoyed the day and big thanks must go to the boys at David Greer Motorsport as well as Claire for getting through the day without being sick! But most of all my Dad for his support and a great battle!"

ENDS. Triton Showers Lurgan Park Rally: Class results - Group N

1. Michael Curran / Claire McCollum - Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VI - 15mins 46.7secs
2. Dickie Curran / Alexandra Forde - Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VII - 15mins 48.8secs
3. Raymond Johnston / Richard Bell - Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VIII - 15mins 50.8secs
4. John McGlaughlin / David McElroy - Mitsubishi Lancer Evo V - 16mins 12.8secs
5. Conor Byrne / Niall Byrne - Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IV - 16mins 37.1secs
6. Garry Jennings / Pamela Ballantine - Subaru Impreza - 17mins 11.7secs
7. Dominic Carson / William Browne - Subaru Impreza - 17mins 38.3secs

Additional info: Michael Curran is sponsored by D. Curran and Sons, MSJ Carryduff, Leslie Wright & Son, Rich Sauces, Lyons European, Charles Gilmore Galleries and T.K. Motors.

• 2004 Lurgan Park Rally - (Sat) 14 Aug 04

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15/07/04
Maiden Rally Victory for Greyabbey's Michael Curran!
Greyabbey's Michael Curran has taken his first outright rally victory at Tuesday's R.H. Preparations Clubman Stages Rally!

Driving his father's Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 7 for the first time and sponsored by the family business, Bangor's D. Curran and Sons Ltd, 24-year-old Michael and co-driver Jonny Hart (Moneyreagh) took a start to finish victory at Bishopscourt Race Circuit. The County Down venue marked the third round of the Clubman's Northern Ireland Rally Championship and although Michael faced few four-wheel-drive adversaries, the circuit suited the more nimble two-wheel-drive cars giving the multiple Irish ProKart Champion plenty of competition. Michael said: 'The layout of the stages was quite tight suiting the smaller cars and it proved to be quite hard to get the big Evo around the circuit! It was the first time that I had driven my Dad's car and it was surprisingly very different in handling to my own Evo 6. I just had a good steady run during the first stage and we set fastest time. It was perfect as we weren't really pushing that hard!'

As the day progressed, Michael started to push a bit harder and a string of fastest times followed. In fact, he was fastest on all eight stages and the Greyabbey man, who is also sponsored by Lyons European, Charles Gilmore Galleries, Rich Sauces and L.T. Wright and Sons, arrived at the finish victorious for the first time! 'We had a few problems with tyres but it was the same for everyone,' Michael said. 'Bishopscourt is renowned for shredding tyres due to the abrasive surface and the hot sun didn't help matters. Our tyres were scrap after the third stage and when we were doing two laps per stage it gave them even more stress. We also had a minor overshoot on the seventh stage but we survived to tell the tale. It was a great day's craic!'

Michael's attention now turns to the Punchestown Rally on Sunday 25 July where he will drive his father's car once again before focusing on the remainder of the Pacenotes Northern Ireland Rally Championship. After his Group N victory at round five of the series, Michael has a very good chance of taking the overall Group N honours at the end of the year.