Barrable hangs on in tough Sligo battle
The duo battled hard and although Barrable had a significant lead entering the final stage, O’Riordan’s dominance through the final stage of the loop of three stages ensured the contest went down to the wire. Maynooth’s, Kevin Barrett (Subaru) was third.
On the opening 17km stage Barrable was two seconds quicker than O’Riordan, who was suffering from flu, both commenting on the slippery nature of the test around Geevagh.
Colm Murphy (Subaru) set a good pace to hold third followed by Garry Jennings (Mitsubishi) and Kevin Barrett, who was fortunate not to have lost any major time when his Subaru drifted wide as he exited a junction approximately a third of the way through the stage.
John Cairns (Subaru) was sixth followed by late entry, Shane Maguire (Subaru) while another late entry, Liam McCarthy, lost time when he spun his Toyota Corolla WRC. Former triple national champion, Niall Maguire dropped time when his Subaru punctured.
Barrable showed a fine turn of speed through the second stage as he moved 16 seconds in front of O’Riordan. However, on the third stage, Blast Hill, O’Riordan was the pacesetter albeit three seconds faster than both Barrable and Maguire.
At the Collooney service halt, Barrable enjoyed a 13 second lead with O’Riordan continuing in second place. Barrett moved into third with Niall Maguire fourth. Although Colm Murphy occupied fifth place, he withdrew as his Subaru lost fifth gear and the Limerick ace had no replacement unit. Roy White (MG S2000) also retired.
Meanwhile, Jennings occupied sixth followed by Shane Maguire as Wesley Paterson (Escort) led the Modified category. The Mitsubishis of Sam Moffett and Trevor Bustard completed the top ten.
Barrable was quick through stages four and five and opened up a 23 seconds lead over O’Riordan to tighten his grip on the rally. However, O’Riordan had other ideas. He blitzed the opposition on S.S.6 and more importantly, cut Barrable’s advantage to eight seconds. Barrett remained in third – a minute behind O’Riordan but just two seconds in front of Jennings whose Mitsubishi had exhaust manifold troubles.
Fifth placed Niall Maguire lost a few seconds when he hit a chicane and stalled his Subaru. Sam Moffett was untroubled in sixth as Wesley Patterson (Escort) and Shane Maguire shared seventh.
The remainder of the top ten was occupied by Trevor Bustard (Mitsubishi) and Frank Kelly (Escort). Liam McCarthy, who was eleventh, was stymied by injection troubles and eventually finished eleventh.
Aware of the pressure from O’Riordan, Barrable pushed hard through S.S. 7 and was rewarded with a 16 second gain. Gleaning five seconds from the penultimate test, he entered the final stage with a 29 second lead. Although O’Riordan made a valiant effort and clawed back 18 seconds, Barrable’s form over the first two stages of the loop was the key to clinch his first victory in a round of the Dunlop series.
Barrett was third and Jennings took victory in the showroom category. Lisburn’s Wesley Patterson (Escort), who won the rally.ie Modified category found it difficult to cope with melting tar on the closing stages, finishing 17 seconds ahead of Tyrone’s, Frank Kelly, who was co-driven by Cork’s Liam Brennan. Four times Circuit of Ireland winner, Derek McGarrity (Subaru WRC) was the principal non-starter.
Meanwhile, Cork driver, Matt Griffin and his team mate, Duncan Cameron (Ferrari 458 Italia), gave their MTech team its first victory of the season in the second race of the British GT Championship at Spa-Francorchamps.
They finished 0.9 seconds ahead of Gregor Fisken/Tim Bridgman (Trackspeed Porsche). Griffin moved into the lead when fifth round race winner, Richard Westbrook (Porsche) retired to the pits with tyre damage. Griffin then handed over to Cameron, who took the chequered flag. In the fifth round, Griffin/Cameron took second place with the Cork ace breaking the track record.
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