Devine plans on racing 'clever' in return to Galway International Rally

Devine had little trouble identifying his main rivals ahead of the weekend.

Fri, 03 Feb, 2023 - 07:09

Martin Walsh

Ahead of this weekend’s Corrib Oil Galway International Rally, Irish Tarmac Rally Championship contender Derry’s Callum Devine (VW Polo GTi R5) chuckled at the suggestion that he may be a little ring rusty given that his previous outing was on the Cork ‘20’ International Rally last August.

The twenty-eight-year-old from Claudy said, “We’ll see after the first stage (laugh). It will take us (along with his Killarney co-driver Noel O’Sullivan) a while to get into it. The engine has been rebuilt and we got a quick test last week. The car will be sharper.”

Devine had little trouble identifying his main rivals. “Josh (Moffett), Meirion (Evans) and Sam (Moffett) won’t be hanging about that’s for sure. However, he was quick to add a fellow Ulsterman, “Desi Henry will go well too, he wasn’t hanging about last year and always seems to go well in the Galway conditions.”

He concluded, “The first stage is short but is enough to bed us in. But there are places that can catch you out as well with the changing grip. I think the best way to do this rally is to feel your way through it, you need to be clever.”

Irish Tarmac champion Josh Moffett needs little, indeed, if any motivation for this ITRC opener. The thirty-year-old wheels out his trusty Hyundai i20 R5 for the defence of his crown of the seven-round series where the Ulster Rally (final round) remains the only event he has still to conquer.

Fifteen stages around tricky and possibly mucky roads around Athenry and Loughrea will, along with several title rivals snapping at his heels, provide the ultimate test and one that he will revel in the heat of battle. He likes nothing better than a challenge as opposed to playing the percentage game - like he did on the Ulster last year.

These are also good times for the organising Galway Motor Club, it’s not that long ago when they had to scale back to a one-day event to guarantee survival, but just like a rising tide lifts all boats, the numbers competing in rounds of the ITRC are on an upward curve.

As he lines up at the start of Saturday’s opening stage outside Athenry, a flick in his mirror reveal a quick snapshot of the opposition. Welsh ace and last year’s Galway and indeed ITRC runner-up Meirion Evans (VW Polo GTi R5) will be the first to give chase.

He will benefit from his outing in the west of Ireland last February but it’s more likely that Devine will pose the biggest threat to Moffett gaining back-to-back wins. Sam Moffett’s return to the top tier is another mouth-watering prospect and how he performs in his new Hyundai i20 R5 will be watched with interest.

But Galway is never predictable, Derry’s Desi Henry (Ford Fiesta Rally2) has shown he has the ability to mix it with the best and others like Citroen C3 Rally2 trio of Cathan McCourt, Jonny Greer and Robert Barrable won’t be that far away with Garry Jennings (Ford Fiesta R5), Declan Boyle and Gareth MacHale, both in VW Polo GTi R5’s, hoping to regain much of their former pace.