Irish rally ranks grow as Craig Rahill steps up to Junior WRC

Cavan's Craig Rahill is the latest driver to benefit within the MI Academy structure, a former Billy Coleman Award winner (2024) he will compete in next season's Junior WRC where he will be co-driven by Bailieboro's Conor Smith (27), who has been calling the notes for almost all of Rahill's fledgling career.

Cavan's Craig Rahill (right) and Conor Smith, who will compete in next season's Junior World Rally Championship in an M-Sport Poland Ford Fiesta Rally3. Picture: Martin Walsh.

The Irish contingent across the various categories of the World Rally Championship categories continues to swell principally due to former Irish rally champion John Coyne, patron and founder of the Motorsport Ireland Academy, who was inducted into the Motorsport Ireland Hall of Fame at the recent annual Champions of Irish Motorsport Awards.

Indeed, were it not for Coyne's exceptional financial support, the degree of Irish participation in the WRC would be considerably less.