Battle royal likely for Tarmac supremacy
Five times Irish Tarmac champion, Austin MacHale, heads the entry in his Sanyo/Maxol backed Ford Focus that has been converted to right hand drive. Last year in Galway, MacHale set the fastest time on the opening stage and eventually finished third. He reckons the change could benefit him by as much as a second a mile. If so, there is no doubt he will be a serious contender.
Joint Tarmac champions, Eugene Donnelly and Derek McGarrity line up behind MacHale. Donnelly's Kingspan backed Toyota Corolla WRC has been re-fettled since the Cork '20' Rally and improvements have also been made to the suspension system. Having lost out by an agonising seven-tenths of a second to Tapio Laukkanen last season, the Derry driver has unfinished business in Galway.
"I would expect most of the drivers to go hard, there are a number of them in new cars and everyone has something to prove," said Donnelly.
Meanwhile, McGarrity is upbeat about debuting his Skoda Fabia WRC. "The car is brilliant, it is very nimble and very powerful. It requires a different style of driving as opposed to the Subaru. Our test went really well and I can't wait for the season to begin," he said.
Jonny Milner was added to the entry last week and will drive a Skoda Octavia WRC. The double British champion has a challenging assignment in trying to outwit his Irish rivals.
Meanwhile, five Subaru WRC's in the hands of Eamonn Boland, Tim McNulty, Kevin Lynch, Patrick Elliott and Peadar Hurson and the Ford Focus WRC's of JJ Fleming and Ray Breen round off the ten seeds.
Boland already has one event under his belt, the Monte Carlo Rally, but has yet to rediscover the form that gave him his maiden tarmac win in Cork in 2003. McNulty will debut an S10 and his form in the 2004 Cork '20' suggests he is close to breaking his International duck.
Lynch and Elliott were two of last season's most improved drivers while the return of Peadar Hurson is encouraging. Ford Focus WRC debutants Fleming and Breen should be able to stay the pace, the latter in his Dunlop backed car.
Cork driver, Denis Cronin, has his first international outing in the ex-Ray Breen Subaru WRC and will be looking to improve on last year's ninth place in Galway.
Maurice Gass (Subaru WRC) is also on the entry along with Gareth MacHale, who will drive a Toyota Corolla WRC.
British driver, Tony Davies (Subaru WRC) precedes the top contenders in the Group N category.
It is a formidable entry in the showroom category led by Clonmel's, Roy White who is expected to debut a Mitsubishi Evo8. Willie Fannin is the first of the Subaru challengers that also features Alan Nesbitt in a Bernard Smith prepared Subaru N11 and Limerick's, Colm Murphy in a similar car prepared by Kenny McKinstry.
They will be trying to break the Mitsubishi dominance that includes Seamus Leonard, who should be a strong contender in his Evo8, James Foley, Garry Jennings and Aaron MacHale. Other entries are Kerry's Kevin O'Donoghue and Fisher Foundation award winner, Cork driver, Emily O'Mahony, in a McKinstry prepared Mitsubishi.
Tomorrow's first stage begins at 9.20am. with servicing on the Oranmore coast road. Sunday's stages, which incorporate a Junior Rally, are in east of the county with a service halt in Ballinasloe Mart.
Meanwhile, Ford has nominated Norwegian Henning Solberg to score points in next week's Swedish Rally. He joins Toni Gardemeister as the team's points scorers. Meanwhile, Roman Kresta will still be eligible for drivers' points.
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
