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2005 Circuit of Ireland - 26-28 Mar 05Posted: April 1, 2005 12:11 AM - 29147 Hits
Meteor Electrical Circuit of Ireland International Rally
 Derek McGarrity/ Dermot O'Gorman Photo: www.roydempster.com In Enniskillen on Monday night, Belfast car dealer Derek McGarrity held off a late charge from his Armagh rival Andrew Nesbitt to win the Meteor Electrical Circuit of Ireland International Rally after three days of stages in the north west of the country. Posted: April 1, 2005 12:11 AM
O’Mahony Magic  Photo: Seamus Counihan The 3rd and final day of the rally was not an easy day for the crew as they encountered fading brakes and gear selection problems, which were getting progressively worse as the day went on. Starting the last stage at St. Angelo, the crew were lying 12th overall but made one mistake on a square left and under-steered into a mound of slurry, no damaged was sustained but they lost 40’s, and two places overall, trying to reverse out. Speaking after the event Brian said “ We are very happy with the result, we were pushing very hard early on but after Peter (Wilson) had his problems the pressure was off so we were able to go at a real steady pace” John went on to add “ I am really happy with the result but I must say I was getting a small bit worried when the car was beached on the slurry in St.Angelos because the car couldn’t get traction for awhile and Brian had just asked me to get out and push when the car moved, my boots would have been destroyed if I had to get out!!” Three of the four Cars running under the banner “Rally 4 Charity” finished the event, Frank O’Mahony, Michael Cooper and Brian, Emily was sidelined on Sunday after she slid wide and dropped into a ditch. Your support is still needed in order to reach the final goal of E40,000. Thanks to all the people who have helped out so far and more information about how to donate can be found on the Temple Street Children Hospital’s website www.childrenshospital.ie Paddy White takes top ten placing on the Circuit of Ireland Navan rally driver Paddy White took his Prodrive Subaru Impreza S9 took an excellent 9th place overall after 3 arduous days of challenging stage rallying on the 2005 Circuit of Ireland. The event was a difficult one at 3 days long and 400miles in total, the Circuit of Ireland in days gone by took place over as much as 5 days but this year was not to be taken lightly as it wound its way from its Enniskillen headquarters through Counties Fermanagh, Donegal, Monaghan, Leitrim, Sligo and Cavan. Paddy was settling in with a new co driver Graham Stewart and began the event with a cautious approach as he adjusted to the new partnership. The pace increased with the mileage and Paddy and Graham finished day 1 in a very creditable 15th overall in his DMG prepared machine. Day two brought a further build in pace as Paddy climbed to 11th place, on a day when many rivals were succumbing to the slippy and difficult stages. The final day Monday saw 6 stages culminating in a ‘WRC’ Style super special where the cars raced head to head on a 2 lane track. Despite worries over a noise coming from the cars transmission Paddy and Graham concentrated on building on their pace and position while balancing the pace in wet conditions with the need to stay on the slippy tarmac and get the car back to the St Angelo airport finish. The Super Special stage was like all stages of this type a place so tight and twisty that it’s hard to gain time and so easy to loose time, unfortunately Paddy had a small spin in the farmyard section which saw him slide into a waiting slurry pit. Other crews were similarly caught out in this muck, and this small spin cost 17 seconds and dropped Paddy to 9th overall, bad luck given the faultless run on the previous 22 stages, but even more of a pity it left the previously gleaming S9 Subaru with a decidedly mucky pattern and with a slight odour. However Paddy and Graham crossed the ramp in an upbeat mood despite the mucky car very satisfied with the top ten finish after 3 long days. Paddy is now making plans to tackle the first round of the French Championship which will see the team travel to Lyon in April. Paddy White Rally sport is supported by Goldman Securities, DMG Motorsport, Pirelli, Ramada Hotels, and The Lough Allen Hotel Drumshanbo www.loughallenhotel.com For more information and updates visit  Alan Nesbitt/James O'Brien Photo: www.crspics.com The Pirelli Impreza driver became only the third driver ever to win the Circuit three times in a row, while his Athlone co-driver Dermot O’Gorman also scored his third victory, although his are spread over thirteen years. As they set out yesterday morning for the final leg of the three day rally, the three leading crews were all covered by just 17 seconds, and Nesbitt and his Cork partner James O’Brien in their ADL Impreza showed their intentions by beating everyone on the opening stage at Bocket’s Hill, bringing them within half a second of Eugene Donnelly in second place. The Kingspan Corolla driver was slow on the next stage, dropping to third place overall, while Nesbitt lost about ten seconds when he went up an escape road on Boyd’s Mountain, leaving McGarrity 19 seconds ahead at service in Cookstown. On the second run through the same three stages, Donnelly retired with gearbox trouble, while the Armagh driver’s continued charge cut the lead dramatically to just 4.6 seconds as they headed for the final spectator superspecial at St Angelo Airfield. There, Nesbitt didn’t give up the chase, but landed heavily from a bridge and later slid wide into a slurry pit, losing 13 seconds, and his hope of victory, while a delighted McGarrity completed his hat-trick of wins. Wexfordman Eamonn Boland had an undramatic but quick drive to a well deserved third place ahead of Tim McNulty from Co Meath to complete a Subaru clean sweep of the top places, while veteran Austin McHale had a troubled weekend in his Sanyo Focus, overcoming various problems to finish fifth. Local Fermanagh driver Garry Jennings dominated the Group N Production class, finishing seventh overall, with the National and Historic rallies being won by Paul Gallagher and Mervyn Johnston. Report: www.motorsportireland.com International 1 Derek McGarrity/Dermot O’Gorman (Subaru Impreza WRC) 2h 34m 42.7s, 2 Andrew Nesbitt/James O’Brien (Subaru Impreza WRC) 2h 35m 00.9s, 3 Eamonn Boland/Francis Regan (Subaru Impreza WRC) 2h 36m 46.6s, 4 Tim McNulty/Eugene O’Donnell (Subaru Impreza WRC) 2h 38m 17.7s, 5 Austin McHale/Brian Murphy (Ford Focus WRC) 2h 39m 50.8s, 6 Sean Devine/James McKee (Subaru Impreza WRC) 2h 46m 11.9s, 7 Garry Jennings/Rory Kennedy (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo Gp N) 2h 47m 48.8s, 8 Alan Nesbitt/Paddy Robinson (Subaru Impreza Gp N) 2h 52m 24.2s, 9 Paddy White/Graeme Stewart (Subaru Impreza WRC) 2h 52m 25.3s, 10 Aaron McHale/Gerard McMonagle (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo Gp N) 2h 53m 26.3s. Group N Production class: 1 Garry Jennings/Rory Kennedy, 2 Alan Nesbitt/Paddy Robinson, 3 Aaron McHale/Gerard McMonagle. Class winners: Peter Wilson/Lisa Roe (Honda Civic VTi), Brendan Cumiskey/David Roe (Honda Civic Type-R), Aisling Dooris/Wendy Blackledge (Suzuki Swift), Brian O’Mahony/John Higgins (Ford Puma S1600), Brian Doherty/Michael O’Kane (Ford Escort Maxi), Tim McNulty/Eugene O’Donnell. Leaders After SS1 Derek McGarrity/Dermot O'Gorman (Subaru Impreza WRC) SS2-7 Andrew Nesbitt/James O'Brien (Subaru Impreza WRC) SS8-9 Derek McGarrity/Dermot O'Gorman (Subaru Impreza WRC) SS10-11 Andrew Nesbitt/James O'Brien (Subaru Impreza WRC) SS12-23 Derek McGarrity/Dermot O'Gorman (Subaru Impreza WRC) Fastest Times SS1 Derek McGarrity/Dermot O'Gorman (Subaru Impreza WRC) SS2 Eugene Donnelly/Paul Keily (Toyota Corolla WRC) SS3 Andrew Nesbitt/James O'Brien (Subaru Impreza WRC) SS4 Andrew Nesbitt/James O'Brien (Subaru Impreza WRC) SS5 Andrew Nesbitt/James O'Brien (Subaru Impreza WRC) SS6 Bogey Time Beaten SS7 Derek McGarrity/Dermot O'Gorman (Subaru Impreza WRC) SS8 Derek McGarrity/Dermot O'Gorman (Subaru Impreza WRC) SS9 Andrew Nesbitt/James O'Brien (Subaru Impreza WRC) SS10 Andrew Nesbitt/James O'Brien (Subaru Impreza WRC) SS11 Eugene Donnelly/Paul Keily (Toyota Corolla WRC) SS12 Derek McGarrity/Dermot O'Gorman (Subaru Impreza WRC) SS13 Andrew Nesbitt/James O'Brien (Subaru Impreza WRC) SS14 Andrew Nesbitt/James O'Brien (Subaru Impreza WRC) SS15 Cancelled SS16 Andrew Nesbitt/James O'Brien (Subaru Impreza WRC) SS17 Andrew Nesbitt/James O'Brien (Subaru Impreza WRC) SS18 Andrew Nesbitt/James O'Brien (Subaru Impreza WRC) SS19 Eugene Donnelly/Paul Keily (Toyota Corolla WRC) SS20 Andrew Nesbitt/James O'Brien (Subaru Impreza WRC) SS21 Andrew Nesbitt/James O'Brien (Subaru Impreza WRC) SS22 Andrew Nesbitt/James O'Brien (Subaru Impreza WRC) SS23 Derek McGarrity/Dermot O'Gorman (Subaru Impreza WRC) NATIONAL EVENT: 1 Paul Gallagher/Karl Reid (Toyota Corolla 2.0) 2h 06m 59s, 2 Brian Brogan/Damien McGettigan (Ford Escort) 2h 09m 07s, 3 Declan McNaughton/Barry McCarte (Ford Escort) 2h 09m 46s. Class winners: Nigel Scott/Conal McCartan (Honda Civic), Seamus Devine/Cathal Lagan (Mitsubishi Lancer), Gary Sheridan/Lloyd Cochrane (Vauxhall Nova), Damian McAleer/Jimmy Thompson (Toyota Corolla), Jim McKenna/Thomas Treanor (Toyota Starlet), Arthur Kierans/Conor Foley (Ford Escort), Mervyn Wedlock/Philip Smith (Ford Escort), David Craine/Janet Craine (Ford Escort). HISTORIC EVENT: 1 Mervyn Johnston/Richard Hyland (Mini Cooper S) 2h 20m 04s, 2 Niall Creighton/Greg Roberts (Lotus Cortina) 2h 23m 50s, 3 Stuart Hyland/Jonathan Charlesson (Ford Cortina) 2h 27m 33s
Alternative address 81.136.183.90 Rallynews (by Brian & Liz Patterson)
Roy Dempster Anthony Hunter Paul McLlory crspics.com - Seamus Counihan James Burke rallypics.org NG Motorsport Images
PRE EVENT NEWS
www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk Under Sport + General 
Nail McShea, John Conway & Neil Malcolm at the Launch of the Meteor Electrical Circuit of Ireland Rally Photo: www.roydempster.com 16/02/05 The Ulster Automobile Club has received 217 entries for the Meteor Electrical Circuit of Ireland International Rally, which will start in Enniskillen next weekend. Over the Easter Weekend three Rallies will be held and the number of entries in each event is as follows:
Meteor Electrical National and Historic Rally – 73 Meteor Electrical Easter Stages Rally – 88 The joint Pirelli Tarmac Champion and winner of the last two Circuit of Ireland’s, Derek McGarrity, is seeded at number 1. He has entered in a Skoda Fabia but there are rumours that he will start the Rally in a Subaru Impreza. Trying to ensure that Derek does not get a hat trick is Eugene Donnelly, who won the opening round of the Championship in Galway, and two previous winners of the Easter classic, Austin McHale and Andrew Nesbitt. However, as Tim McNulty, who led the Cork 20 last year, and the current Northern Ireland Stage Rally Champion, Kevin Lynch, are also in the top 10, they too could prevent Derek from winning the Circuit again. Seeded at number 1 in the National and Historic Rally are Paul Gallagher and Karl Reid, who won the National section of the Galway International Rally in February. At number 2 is Seamus O’Connell, followed by Raymond Spence. Seeded at number 20 is the first Historic car which is driven by Frank Cunningham. He will be pushed all the way to the finish by Mervyn Johnston, Philip McDowell and Niall Creighton, who are seeded directly behind him. International Top 20 Comp No Driver/Co Driver (Car) 1 Derek McGarrity/Dermot O'Gorman (TBA) 2 Eugene Donnelly/Paul Kiely (Toyota Corolla WRC) 3 Austin McHale/Brian Murphy (Ford Focus WRC) 4 Andrew Nesbitt/James O'Brien (Subaru Impreza WRC) 5 Eamon Boland/Francis Regan (Subaru Impreza WRC) 6 Peadar Hurson/Glenn Patterson (Subaru Impreza WRC) 7 Tim McNulty/Eugene O'Donnell (Subaru Impreza WRC) 8 Kevin Lynch/Gordon Noble (Subaru Impreza WRC) 9 Maurice Gass/Andrew Cullen (Subaru Impreza WRC) 11 Roy White/Greg Shinnors (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 8.5) 12 Colm Murphy/Ger Loughrey (Subaru Impreza N10) 13 Garry Jennings/TBA (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6) 14 Aaron McHale/Gerard McMonagle (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 8.5) 15 Gareth Jones/TBA (Subaru Impreza WRC) 16 Sean Devine/TBA (Subaru Impreza WRC) 17 Willie Fannin/Mick Courtney (Subaru Impreza N9) 18 Alan Nesbitt/Enda Sherry (Subaru Impreza N11) 19 Frank O'Mahony/Michael Lyster (Subaru Impreza WRC) 20 Paddy White/Graeme Stewart (Subaru Impreza WRC) 21 Donagh Kelly/Adrian Deasy (Mitsubishi Lancer EVO 6
Comp No Driver/Co Driver (Car) 101 Paul/Karl Reid (Toyota Corolla 2.0) 102 Seamus/Sean Magee (Ford Escort MK II) 103 Raymond/Barry McParland (Ford Escort) 104 Brian/Martin McGarrity (Ford Escort RS) 105 Harold/Mark Scollan (Vauxhall Astra GSi) 106 Neil/Pamela McCoubrey (Honda Civic) 107 Andrew/Andrew Russell (Toyota Corolla) 108 Paul/Dermot Colgan (Ford Escort) 109 David/Janet Craine (Ford Escort Cosworth) 110 John/David McElroy (Mitsubishi Lancer EVO 7) 111 Paul/ TBA (Mitsubishi Lancer EVO 6) 112 Seamus/Cathal Lagan (Mitsubishi Lancer EVO) 113 William/Tom Vance (Subaru Impreza) 114 Jonathan/Sarah Forde (Peugeot 106 Super Cup) 115 Ian/Ian Hull (Proton Satria) 116 Declan/Barry McCarte (Ford Escort MK II) 117 Clive/Raymond Moore (Citroen Saxo VTR) 118 Paddy/Peter Howley (Ford Escort G5) 119 David/ TBA (Peugeot 106 GTI) 120 Frank/Ross Forde (Morris Mini Cooper S)
08/03/05 Circuit of Ireland Programme: Circuit of Ireland Official Programme £7/€9.99, Complete Stage Maps & Entry Lists for all events will be available from the following local outlets from 19th March: Dolans Filling Station, Enniskillen Bush Filling Station, Colraine Eslers, Queen St, Ballymoney Buds, The Diamond, Portstewart Spar, Bushmills Milltown Spar, Ballymoney Greenmount Spar, Coleraine V2, The Diamond, Magherafelt Hamilton Spar, Tamlaght Road, Omagh Hamiltons Spar, Strabane Rd, Newtownstewart Hamiltons Spar, Lower Strabane Rd, Castlederg Lochside Vivo, Tempo Rd, Enniskillen P&M Stores / Ballyward Post Office, Ballyward, Cookstown Service Station, Chapel Street, Cookstown all good newsagents throughout North & South Ireland Also available during the event at: Rally HQ, Killyhevlin Hotel, Enniskillen & the spectator stage at St Angelo. (£1 from each programme sold at St Angelo will go to Marie Curie Cancer Care) More info 08/02/05 This Easter Weekend will once again see the running of the 2005 Circuit of Ireland International Rally, which will be the second round of the Pirelli Irish Tarmac Rally Championship. This year’s event, sponsored by Meteor Electrical – Ireland’s premier electrical wholesale suppliers, will take place from 25th to 28th March and once again be based in Enniskillen using the Killyhevlin Hotel as its Headquarters. The Ulster Automobile Club stated that it was very pleased that the Killyhevlin had agreed to act again as Rally Headquarters and is certain that this will help enhance this year’s event. The Rally’s Clerk of the Course, Neil Malcolm, who has been involved with the Circuit since 1976, is in charge of the event for the third year and intends to build on the success of last year’s Rally. Neil expects an even bigger entry this year and believes that thousands of rally fans will flock to Enniskillen to watch the 2005 event. Neil has retained some of the changes that he introduced last year, such as the Easter Stages Rally taking place on Easter Saturday, rather than the Monday as had been the case previously, with the crews leading the International competitors onto the stages and having them to themselves in the afternoon. The big change for 2005 is that the spectator stage at St Angelo will be a Super Special featuring a bridge and a tunnel with two cars going head to head at the same time. Neil said: “Such a stage is normally associated with the World Rally Championship but, it is entirely appropriate that the Circuit, the Premier Motorsport Event in Ireland, the country which has the most WRC cars in the world, is the Rally which features such a stage. This will be the first time that World Rally Cars will be seen going head to head on a proper Super Special in Ireland. For this reason we expect large crowds and lots of great rally action so make sure and get down to St Angelo nice and early.” Day one of the Meteor Electrical Circuit of Ireland International Rally will consist of the Spectator Super Special at St Angelo and four closed road stages in the Derrygonnelly / Rossinver / Ballyshannon area, which will be run once before the crews tackle the Super Special again. On Easter Sunday, there will be four stages run twice in the Rosslea / Cootehill / Monaghan area and then the cars will return to the St Angelo Super Special. On Monday, 28th March there will be three stages, which will be run twice – these are located between Ballygawley and Cookstown. The cars will then complete the Super Special and proceed straight to the Finish Arch. The Meteor Electrical Circuit of Ireland National and Historic Rally will join the International field on Easter Sunday and Monday. Scrutineering and documentation for all three events will take place at St Angelo on Friday, 25th March. The Ulster Automobile Club is planning centralised servicing on each day of the event. These will be located at Belcoo on the Saturday, Clones on the Sunday and in Cookstown Main Street on the Monday. Neil stated, “As we are all aware, motorsport can be dangerous so I would take this opportunity to ask spectators and members of the press to pay particular attention to any advice given to them by our marshals. They are there to ensure the safe running of the event and not to spoil your enjoyment.” The Ulster Automobile Club would like to thank Meteor Electrical, Fermanagh District Council and the Northern Ireland Events Company for their continued support and welcomes on-board BT Broadband which has agreed to the sponsor the Media Centre. Speaking at the conference John Conway, Managing Director of Meteor Electrical said: "Meteor Electrical is proud, once again, to be here today as title sponsor of the 2005 Circuit of Ireland International rally. With time drawing nearer to Easter weekend both the Meteor Staff and myself are becoming increasingly excited about this years event. With new and exciting developments coming to light surrounding the 2005 rally I hope that Meteor can continue to add significantly to the positive profile that the circuit has enjoyed for so many years. I would also like to take this opportunity to wish everyone attending this years event a safe and enjoyable Easter Weekend.” Councillor Gerry McHugh, Chairman of Fermanagh District Council, commented: “Fermanagh District Council is delighted to be associated with such a household name as the Circuit of Ireland and we look forward to a mutually beneficial partnership with the Ulster Automobile Club and the new Sponsors, Meteor Electrical. I have no doubt that both visitors to the county and residents alike will be looking forward to Easter 2005 and will thoroughly enjoy a true sporting spectacle” Entry forms and regulations for all three events have been published and are available from the Club Office in Holywood or can be downloaded from the Club’s website www.ulsterautomobileclub.co.uk . A number of entries have already been received. Given the time restrictions imposed by the Road Closing Order, the Club expects that it will not be able to facilitate all the entries it receives. Neil Malcolm’s advice therefore is “if you want to take part in any of the three rallies being held at Easter, get your entry in early as 25th February is the closing date.” Rally Programmes containing the Entry Lists and maps of the stages will be available from businesses in Enniskillen and further a field during the week leading up to the Rally. Programmes can also be ordered on the Internet from www.justrally.co.uk 28/01/05 Now available for download from the Ulster Automobile Club web site the Regulations & Entry Forms for all three Easter events:
Meteor Electrical Circuit of Ireland National & Historic Rally - 27th / 28th March (National B) Meteor Electrical Circuit of Ireland Easter Stages Rally - 26th March (National B) Scrutineering for all three events is on Friday 25th March www.ulsterautomobileclub.co.uk 5/10/04 - Circuit of Ireland Announce Brand New Sponsor. The new sponsor of the prestigious Circuit of Ireland International Rally was unveiled today at a lavish press launch in Belfast’s Waterfront Hall. Meteor Electrical – Ireland’s premier electrical wholesale suppliers were announced as title sponsor of next year’s event set to take place in Enniskillen over Easter Weekend Saturday 26, Sunday 27 and Monday 28 March 2005. The involvement of a growing vibrant company like Meteor provides a strong impetus for the Rally in preparation for it’s 2005 event – a Rally that certainly promises to be the biggest and best ever. Speaking at today's launch, John Conway, Managing Director of Meteor Electrical said: "Meteor Electrical is proud to be title sponsor of the 2005 Circuit of Ireland and to offer the rally a substantial sponsorship package. The Circuit is not only prominent in Ireland but in the wider international fraternity also and this is a great opportunity for us as a company to increase our profile to a wider marketplace. Although Meteor is a veritable baby compared to the genealogy of the rally, we believe we can assist in increasing interest in the event's new profile and format” Terry Harryman, UAC Chairman, speaking about the announcement and about interest in this year's Circuit said: "Everyone in the UAC is delighted that such a major name as Meteor has joined forces with us to significantly add to the positive profile already established for next year's Circuit. The Club welcomes Meteor’s new arrival and looks forward to working with them over the next few months and building a much longer lasting relationship”. Councillor Gerry McHugh, Chairman of Fermanagh District Council, commented: ”This year’s Rally was again a tremendous success, and I understand that with the assistance of Meteor Electrical and the Northern Ireland Events Company, the Ulster Automobile Club propose to make the Circuit of Ireland 2005 even bigger and better. For the past three years, tens of thousands have watched the Rally and enjoyed the Easter Weekend in Fermanagh. The step up to International Status in 2004 was another vote of confidence in the Circuit and I am sure that next year this premier Motor Sport event will attract even more enthusiasts from across Ireland, the UK and even further a field.” “With such a strong tradition in rallying in our county, Fermanagh District Council is delighted to be associated with such a household name as the Circuit of Ireland. We look forward to continuing our mutually beneficial partnership with the Ulster Automobile Club and our very good friends in the Enniskillen Motor Club. I know that they will bring their usual energy, drive and determination to making this event a big success. Without such commitment, meticulous planning and of course patience, the people of Fermanagh and beyond would not be able to experience and enjoy such an “electrifying” motor sport spectacle. I have no doubt that, working together we will promote an event which we will all be proud of.” Commenting at the Press Launch, Victor Haslett, of the Northern Ireland Events Company said: 'Over the years the Circuit of Ireland has played an essential role in the promotion of Northern Ireland throughout the world as a centre for motor sport. Our countryside lends itself to the sport of rallying and the event provides a tremendous boost to both tourism and business here.' It was also announced that The Meteor Electrical Circuit 2005 will consist of three events:
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