Josh Moffett & Andy Hayes in their Ford Fiesta R5 took an excellent victory in the UAC Easter Stages Rally with a hard fought 4.6 second victory over Sam Moffett & Karl Atkinson in a similar car. The result gives Josh two maximum scores to date in the Irish Tarmac Rally Championship and extends his lead over his brother to six points. Like the previous round in West Cork, Josh withstood a late charge from his older brother to give him his first overall win on a Tarmac Championship round since the Cork 20 Rally in 2016. Marty McCormack took third place in his Skoda but is not championship registered so Robert Barrable in fourth place maintains third overall in the series to date.
Derek McGarrity had led the event after the first day in his Subaru Impreza WRC, but gearbox problems leaving Parc Ferme on the second morning made it a straight fight between the R5 contenders. Josh had been third overnight but a quick opening stage moved him into a lead he never relinquished. Sam moved from fourth to second after that opening stage and McCormack had to settle for third. Barrable in fourth place finished 54 seconds off the lead by the end of the event and was never quite close enough to match the pace of the front two. Jonny Greer edged Daniel Cronin for fifth place on the penultimate stage but it was still a very impressive showing from the Cork driver with some excellent stage times.
Stephen Wright and Eugene Donnelly were next of the Tarmac championship contenders with Donnelly still on a steep learning curve with the new car. However the times on the second day were more competitive and Eugene feels more time in the car will bring him closer to the pack. There was major disappointment for Desi Henry who gave his new Skoda Fabia its debut and was setting some very impressive stage times until he slid off the road on the fifth stage to go OTL and out of the rally.
Provisional Championship Placings after Round 2
1 – Josh Moffett 34
2 – Sam Moffett 28
3 – Robert Barrable 24
4 – Daniel Cronin 16
5 – Jonny Greer 15
In the other categories, Kevin Eves continued his impressive run with tenth overall and top Modified championship contender to make it two maximum scores from two events to date. Jason Roche was next up of the registered contenders to take his first points of the season and move in to joint third place while J.R. McDaid was next up and now lies second overall in the championship. Wesley Patterson had mechanical problems and was forced into Rally 2 but picked up some valuable championship points ahead of Joe McQuillan who also finished the event in Rally 2.
Stanley Orr was an impressive 18th overall and took top points in the Historic Category while Martin Freestone also scored points following his retirement on the previous round at West Cork. The Junior Championship leader Gary McNamee took full points again ahead of Gareth Deazley who moves into joint second overall in the series. The crews now head to the third round of the championship in Killarney on May Bank holiday weekend where some of Irelands classic stages will be tackled.
In Car
Posted: September 4, 2018 6:39 AM
Alan Carmichael & Ivor Lamont (MINI WRC) SS11
John Devlin & John McCarthy (Ford Escort 2.0 16V) SS7
Class Winners
Class A2: Kyle White/Sean Topping (Peugeot 208)
Class A3: Michael McGarrity/Damien Garvey (Citroën DS3 R3)
Class A4: William Mavitty/Brian Daniels (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX)
Class A5: Josh Moffett/Andy Hayes (Ford Fiesta R5)
Class A7: Alan Carmichael/Ivor Lamont (Mini WRC)
Class M1: Eamon McLaughlin/Hannah Johnston (Vauxhall Nova GTE)
Class M2: John Devlin/John McCarthy (Ford Escort)
Class M3: Kevin Eves/Chris Melly (Toyota Corolla)
Class M4: Alan Smyth/Mac Kierans (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X)
Class H2: Stanley Orr/Graham Henderson (Ford Escort)
Class H3: Richard Hall/Ray Fitzpatrick (Porsche 911 RSR)
Class H5: Ernie Graham/Damian Shields (Ford Escort RS)
Leaders After
SS1-6 Derek McGarrity/Paddy Robinson (Subaru Impreza WRC S14)
SS7-12 Josh Moffett/Andy Hayes (Ford Fiesta R5)
Round 2 of the 2018 Irish Tarmac Rally Championship, the UAC Easter Stages Rally takes place this coming weekend in Antrim and with the top eight drivers in the series all competing it promises to be an intriguing event. Championship leader Josh Moffett leads the way after an excellent result in West Cork and is the top seed in his Fiesta R5. Josh & co-driver Andy Hayes will be looking for a start similar in fashion to the opening round when they pulled out a big advantage over the first four stages. It can be a risky decision, but it paid off in Clonakilty and helped ward off a late challenge from his brother Sam to take top points. 2017 champion Sam Moffett with Karl Atkinson co-driving took some time to settle in Clonakilty, but once he got happier with tyre choice in his Fiesta R5, he closed the gap down to less than ten seconds by the end. Seeded at number 2, they will be one of the favourites to take top points by Saturday evening.
Robert Barrable & Desi Henry are next up and there was very little to separate the pair on the opening round, with only a late spin dropping Henry behind his Dublin rival. Barrable will again appear in a Fiesta R5, but Henry after a strong showing in Fiesta on round one, has decided to switch back to Skoda for this weekend. Despite limited time to test, Desi will be familiar with the Skoda and will prove a real threat to his rivals once he gets settled into the new car. Jonny Greer & Kirsty Riddick saw a solid run in Clonakilty ruined by a late puncture in their Fiesta. For the Easter stages Jonny will be using the car Desi Henry drove in West Cork as he awaits the arrival of a new Citroen C3. With the stages in more familiar territory in round 2, he could throw a cat amongst the pigeons in the final shakeup.
Daniel Cronin, Stephen Wright and Eugene Donnelly are also in the line-up and Cronin was impressive in Clonakilty, edging ahead of Wright over the final stages as he gets more familiar with his Fiesta R5. Donnelly made his first appearance in a Hyundai R5 on the opening round and took some time to get used the characteristics of an R5 car, but with more seat time behind him, he will look to up the pace even more in Antrim. William Mavitty who leads Group N will be looking to strengthen his defence of the title won in 2017 with another maximum score in his Mitsubishi Lancer.
Wesley Patterson (Escort), Kevin Eves (Corolla), Eugene Meegan (BMW 1M) & Joe McQuillan (Lancer) are just some of the drivers lined up for Modified championship points with all three having scored on the opening round. Eves took top points on the opening round as he got the defence of his 2017 title off to a good start and will be looking to maintain momentum in Antrim. With the Historic Championship leader Owen Murphy not on the entry list the opportunity arises for several drivers to move back into contention. Andy Johnson can move into second place in his Chevette HSR with top points over the weekend while Ernie Graham will be looking to get some points on the board after missing the previous round. Others to watch out for will be Stanley Orr and Martin Freestone both in a Mk1 Escort. The Junior category has only two drivers entered, with wildly different fortunes for both on the opening round. Gary McNamee took an impressive win, while Gareth Deazley was unfortunate to go off the road close to the finish and will be hoping for better luck this time.
The twelve stage event begins in Ballyclare on Friday 6th with the first stage at Lady Hill starting at 13:41. Service on both days takes place at Six Mile Leisure Centre. The opening days action ends with Lyles Hill at 18:23 and the first car is due into Parc Ferme at 19:13. On Saturday a further six stages take place with the first car due at the finish ramp at the ECOS Centre in Ballymena at 15:00.
Rally Programmes
Posted: March 29, 2018 3:35 PM
Seeded Entry List
Posted: March 29, 2018 3:22 PM
1 Josh Moffett/Andy Hayes (Ford Fiesta R5) [A5]
2 Sam Moffett/Karl Atkinson (Ford Fiesta R5) [A5]
3 Derek McGarrity/Paddy Robinson (Subaru Impreza WRC S14) [A7]
4 Robert Barrable/Damien Connolly (Ford Fiesta R5) [A5]
5 Desi Henry/Liam Moynihan (Ford Fiesta R5) [A5]
6 Jonathan Greer/Kirsty Riddick (Citroen DS3 R5) [A5]
7 Martin McCormack/David Moynihan (Skoda Fabia R5) [A5]
8 Daniel Cronin/Shane Buckley (Ford Fiesta R5) [A5]
9 Stephen Wright/Arthur Kierans (Ford Fiesta R5) [A5]
10 Eugene Donnelly/Mark Kane (Hyundai i20 R5) [A5]
11 Alan Carmichael/Ivor Lamont (MINI WRC) [A7]
12 Frank Kelly/Tba Tba (Ford Escort Mk2) [M3]
14 Wesley Patterson/Johnny Baird (Ford Escort Mk2) [M3]
15 William Mavitty/Brian Daniels (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9) [A4]
16 Camillus Bradley/Crawford Henderson (Ford Escort Mk2) [M3]
17 Alan Atcheson/Thomas Wedlock (Ford Fiesta R5) [M4]
18 Denis Biggerstaff/Tba Tba (Subaru Impreza WRC S9) [A7]
19 Liam McFall/Matthew McKenna (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9) [A4]
21 John Devlin/John McCarthy (Ford Escort) [M2]
22 Alan Smyth/MacKierans (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X) [M4]
23 James Kennedy/Heather Kennedy (Ford Escort Mk2) [M2]
24 Stanley Orr/Graham Henderson (Ford Escort) [H2]
25 Christian Cochrane/Martin Lynch (Ford Escort) [M2]
26 Niall Henry/Damien Duffin (Citroen DS3 R5) [M4]
28 Kevin Eves/Chris Melly (Toyota Corolla) [M3]
29 Keith White/Paul Mulholland (Ford Escort MK1) [M3]
30 Rodney White/Sam McMullan (Talbot Sunbeam) [M2]
31 Shane Cullen/Connor O'Loan (Ford Escort) [M2]
32 Conor McCrossan/Connor Murphy (Skoda Fabia S2000) [M4]
34 Kyle White/Sean Topping (Peugeot 208 R2) [A2]
35 Joe Gallagher/Kevin Bradley (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9) [A4]
36 Neil Kirkpatrick/Richard Livingston (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9) [A4]
37 Joe McQuillan/Ashley Boulton (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9) [M4]
38 Allan Mackay/Mo Downey (Ford Anglia) [M2]
40 Liam Egan/Raymond Coppinger (subaru sti) [A4]
41 John Bradley/Cathal Mulgrew (Ford Escort Mk2) [M2]
42 Andy Johnson/Tba Tba (Vauxhall HSR) [H5]
43 Richard Hall/Ray Fitzpatrick (Porsche RSR 911) [H3]
44 Stanley McKeown/Nigel Gourley (Ford Escort Mk2) [M2]
45 Alastair Cochrane/Tba Tba (Ford Escort Mk2) [M2]
46 William Morgan/John Henderson (Ford Escort) [M3]
47 Richard Somerville/John Nicholl (Ford Escort) [M2]
48 Nick Barnett/Martin Brady (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9) [A4]
49 Eamon McLaughlin/Hannah Johnston (Vauxhall Nova GTE) [M1]
51 Jason Roche/Noel Coogan (Ford Escort Mk2) [M2]
52 Josh McErlean/Aaron Johnston (Ford Fiesta R2) [A2]
53 Will Graham/Steve Davey (Ford Fiesta R2) [A2]
54 Michael McGarrity/Damien Garvey (Citroen DS3 R3) [A3]
55 Alexander Cochrane/Chris Johnston (Ford Escort) [M1]
56 Jr McDaid/Tba Tba (Ford Escort) [M2]
57 Martin Freestone/Misha Freestone (Ford Escort Mk1) [H2]
58 Lee Morelli/Robert Harold (Ford Escort) [M2]
59 Johnnie Mulholland/Jeff Case (Ford Fiesta R2) [A2]
60 Alex McNaughton/Jimmy Graham (Ford Escort mk2) [M2]
61 John Mulholland/Aidan O'CONNOR (Ford Escort) [M1]
62 Colin Price/Tba Tba (Vauxhall Corsa) [M1]
65 Gareth Deazley/Eathan McColgan (Honda Civic) [J2]
66 Gary McNamee/Brian Brady (Honda Civic) [J2]
67 John McCullough/Ian Kidd (Ford Escort) [H3]
68 Thomas Lowry/Phil Gault (Vauxhall Nova GSI) [M1]
69 Ernie Graham/Damian Shields (Ford Escort RS) [H5]
70 Malcolm Pedlow/Billy Regan (BMW 2002tii) [H2]
Ulster Automobile Club announce Easter Stages Friday 6 – Saturday 7 April 2018
Posted: October 17, 2017 11:37 AM
The Ulster Automobile Club are delighted to announce preliminary plans for an Easter Stages Rally to be held on Friday 6 and Saturday 7 April 2018. This event will replace the traditional Circuit of Ireland, which will not take place in 2018.
The Easter Stages Rally will consist of two events, with some entrants competing over two days and others on the Saturday only. The UAC are keen to encourage entries for both events, which will be of a national status. The proposed event will be a closed road rally and will cover some of the classic stages in County Antrim; it will also be a round of the 2018 Irish Tarmac Rally Championship.
The Easter Stages Rally 2018 will be organised and promoted by the Ulster Automobile Club.
Applications and further details will be released once available.
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