Bushwhacker Rally - (Sat) 21 Sep 19

Northern Ireland Rally Championship - Title Battle Heats Up at Omagh Based Bushwhacker Rally!

Posted: September 18, 2019 12:55 PM

The battle for the McGrady Insurance Motorsport UK Northern Ireland Rally Championship crown resumes this Saturday (21 September) in the forests surrounding Omagh with the McKelvey Asbestos Bushwhacker Rally and a thrilling event is on the cards!

All of the main championship contenders have placed their entries for what is round six of the series. We're at the business end of the season where every single point is crucial and it's still impossible to predict the outcome of the intense title battle.

A handful of competitors are in the running and they will all lock horns over 10 forestry stages. Derek McGeehan (MINI WRC), Stephen Wright (Fiesta R5), Derek McGarrity (Fiesta WRC) and Desi Henry (Fiesta WRC) are all in with a shout of the title while top two-wheel-drive exponent, James Kennedy (Escort MkII), is mixing it with the big guns too!

McGeehan has led the series since March with a string of consistent finishes but we're coming to the stage of the season where dropped scores may come into play. Championship regulations state that a competitor's best six scores will be counted towards their final points tally at the end of the year, and with eight events scheduled to run, the battle for the crown is set to get even closer!

McGeehan really needs to grab a maximum score to bolster his chances as a few big guns are breathing down his neck. Stephen Wright, who won the opening round of the year at Kirkistown but dropped back after missing an event, now has two victories to his name. He's second in the standings and if the dropped score rule was brought into play at this stage of the season, he would be narrowly in front of McGeehan.

Meanwhile, reigning champion Derek McGarrity has had a difficult year by his standards. The normally consistent finisher - and winner - has faced an uphill struggle from the start when he retired from the lead of round one with mechanical problems. Another retirement at the Lakeland Stages dented his chances further and he lies fifth in the standings but is still very much in the hunt.

As for Desi Henry, they say it's better late than never and that seems to be the motto that the Portglenone driver is using. He has only entered two events so far this year and has won both of them. Now he intends to continue his challenge at the Bushwhacker and might well be able to propel himself into the title fight.

Others in the mix for the Bushwhacker Rally victory will include former champion Connor McCloskey (Impreza WRC), former Scottish champion Jock Armstrong (Impreza) and a host of others including the 2000 N.I. Champion Robin Phillips (Impreza WRC) and maybe even Lithuania's Martynas Samsonas in his usual but potent four-wheel-drive BMW E46.

Saturday's event is based from Omagh's Silverbirch Hotel with scrutiny at Donnell & Ellis Ltd in Omagh. The first car will leave the start ramp on Saturday morning and competitors will tackle all 10 stages in the forests. Service will be located at Aghyaran Community Centre in Castlederg.

Seeded Entry List

Posted: September 18, 2019 5:41 AM

1 Desi Henry/Conor Mohan (Ford Fiesta WRC) [9]
2 Vivian Hamill/Andrew Grennan (Ford Fiesta R5) [9]
3 Connor McCloskey/John Rowan (Subaru Impreza WRC S14) [9]
4 Niall McCullagh/Ryan McCloskey (Ford Fiesta R5) [9]
5 Conor McCourt/Caolan McKenna (Ford Fiesta R5) [9]
6 Derek McGarrity/Paddy Robinson (Ford Fiesta WRC) [9]
7 Jock Armstrong/Graham Henderson (Subaru Impreza N11) [9]
8 Derek McGeehan/Mark McGeehan (Mini WRC) [9]
9 Stephen Wright/Liam Moynihan (Ford Fiesta R5) [9]
10 Patrick O'Brien/Stephen O'Hanlon (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9) [9]
11 Martin Cairns/Peter Ward (Ford Fiesta WRC) [9]
12 Martynas Samsonas/Mindaugas Varza (BMW E46 4WD) [9]
14 Donall Sweeney/Dean O'Sullivan (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6) [9]
15 Niall Henry/Damien Duffin (Citroen DS3 R5) [8]
16 Marty McKenna/Martin Brady (Ford Fiesta WRC) [9]
17 Sean Devine/Niall Burns (Ford Fiesta R5) [9]
18 Shane McGirr/Denver Rafferty (Toyota Starlet) [6]
19 Adrian Hetherington/Gary Nolan (Ford Escort RS1800) [10]
20 Austin Snow/John Henderson (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9) [2]
21 Stephen Dickson/Dermot McCafferty (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9) [2]
22 Ian Dickson/John McCafferty (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9) [2]
23 Frank Wray/Joe McNulty (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9) [9]
24 Paul Britton/Liam McEtryre (Subaru Impreza N16) [2]
25 Robin Phillips/Laura Phillips (Subaru Impreza WRC S10) [9]
26 James Kennedy/Heather Kennedy (Ford Escort Mk2) [6]
27 Owen McMackin/Barry Ferris (Ford Escort) [6]
28 Drew Stewart/David White (Ford Escort Mk2) [6]
29 Robert McKelvey/Declan Campbell (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 8) [2]
30 Andrew Bustard/Mo Downey (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo) [9]
31 Mark Preston/Anthony Cairns (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo) [9]
32 Gary Cairns/TBA (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo) [2]
33 Pauric Sheridan/Sean Brunton (Ford Fiesta) [9]
34 Gareth Mimnagh/J Barry McCarney (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo) [9]
35 David Dennison/Gareth Lewthwaite (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 4) [2]
36 Ruairi Maguire/Grace O'Brien (Vauxhall Corsa) [4]
37 Kyle White/Sean Topping (Peugoet 208) [4]
38 Stewart McClean/TBA (Vauxhall Nova) [4]
39 Daryl McCanny/Cathain Colton (Vauxhall Corsa) [4]
40 Davy Kerr/Mathew Kerr (Peugeot 205) [5]
41 Hugh McQuaid/Enda Gerety (Ford Escort Mk2) [5]
42 Marc Johnston/Colin Irvine (Ford Escort) [5]
43 Bryan Jardine/Declan McKenna (Ford Escort) [5]
44 Paul McCann/Dylan Reilly (Ford Fiesta S2000) [8]
45 Ed Colton/TBA (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6 GpA) [9]
46 Alan Atcheson/Keith McCarthy (Ford Fiesta) [9]
47 Packie McCarney/Corey Eves (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6) [9]
48 Ciaran McCullagh/Conor Callanan (Honda Civic) [4]
49 Dean Humphrey/Nigel Brennan (Vauxhall Corsa) [3]
50 Damien Conlin/Paul Mimnagh (Vauxhall Nova) [3]
51 Mark Faulkner/Ashley Boulton (Nissan Micra) [3]
52 Aaron Cunningham/Paul McGahon (Ford Escort) [6]
53 Jamie Grant/Chris Johnston (Toyota Starlet) [6]
54 Damien McAleer/Fabian McAleer (Ford Escort) [5]
55 Adrian Grant/Olivia Coulter (Ford Escort MK2) [5]
56 Liam McQuaid/Mervyn Gailbraith (Ford Escort Mk2) [5]
57 Martin Collins/Mikaela Woods (Peugeot 106) [1]
58 Adam Vance/David Vance (Honda Civic Type R) [1]
59 Joel Eakin/Sean Doherty (Peugeot 106 GTI) [1]
60 Drew Chambers/Wendy Blackledge (Peugeot 206 GTI) [1]
61 Darragh Cairns/Andrew Gillespie (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6) [9]
62 Damien Hynds/John Magilton (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9) [2]
63 Darren Connelly/TBA (Vauxhall Nova) [3]
64 Cecil Minford/Damian McCann (Subaru Impreza) [2]
65 Shane McCanney/Diarmaid Campbell (Toyota Twincam) [1]
66 Ryan McCanney/Conor McGurren (Vauxhall Nova) [3]
67 William Graham/Tony McGovern (Vauxhall Corsa) [3]
68 Danny Meenagh/John Meenagh (Subaru) [9]

Time and Distance Schedule

Posted: September 17, 2019 5:31 PM

Entries Received / On Line Entry / Details

Posted: August 29, 2019 6:58 AM

rallyscore.net/#/entry-list/1286?McKelvey-Asbestos-Bushwhacker-Rally

On Line Entry System by RallyScore

Club Website

Posted: August 26, 2019 7:03 AM

Omagh Motor Club
Association of Northern Ireland Car Clubs - www.motorsportni.org