Tipperary Stonethrowers Rally in Clonmel postponed due to scorching weather
MOTORSPORT: Josh McErlean/Eoin Treacy (Ford Puma Rally1) will tackle this weeked's Delfi Rally Estonia in confident mood. Picture: Jaanus Ree/Red Bull Content Pool.
Buoyed by their performances on the previous round, the Irish WRC crews of Josh McErlean/Eoin Treacy and Jon Armstrong/Shane Byrne will tackle this weekend's Delfi Rally Estonia, round nine of the World Rally Championship with confidence.
As in the Acropolis Rally, they will again be hoping to maximise their road position that will be an important factor throughout the three-day 18-stage event.
On the Friday of their Greek adventure both crews were in the top five with Armstrong/Byrne holding third overall having secured their first WR stage win. McErlean/Treacy were in line to take a season-best fourth overall until they were handed a one-minute penalty for not having a safety harness fully fastened that demoted them to sixth - still a season best.
Commitment and trust are two of the essential qualities required for Estonia's flowing gravel roads where the average speed is often in excess of 120kph. Like Finland, it's often described as a true driver's rally.
M-Sport Ford World Rally Team Principal, Richard Millener, said: "The rally brings incredible speed and imagery to highlight the skill of these WRC drivers. After a tough Rally Greece and the conditions we saw there, Estonia will be a different challenge, and I'm looking forward to seeing how our drivers can continue to build on the performances they showed last month."
How much confidence McErlean has gleamed from his Acropolis outing should become evident very quickly on Friday afternoon.
"Greece gave us a solid platform to build from and the aim now is to carry that momentum into Estonia. I really enjoy these types of events, so hopefully we can keep improving and come away with another strong result.”
With that first WRC stage win under his belt, Armstrong commented: “I'm looking forward to going back to Estonia, I’ve been there twice in JWRC and once in the ERC with the Fiesta Rally2. The stages are completely flat out and the style of the surface is generally nicer for me as it’s a bit more sandy. It’s a good way to kick off the summer of speed in a Rally1 car!”
Yet again, championship leader Welsh ace Elfyn Evans (Toyota GR Yaris Rally1) is first on the road and has the task of sweeping away the loose gravel. How much time he will lose to his rivals that include his teammate Takamoto Katsuta (who is co-driven by Fintona's Aaron Johnston) will be key - the popular Japanese driver is enjoying one of his best seasons to date and is only eleven points shy of Evans in the Drivers' championship. Another teammate Sebastien Ogier is third - thirty-seven points off the summit and should take advantage of running fifth on the road.
All five Toyota drivers that also feature Oliver Solberg (who took his maiden WRC win on this event last year) and Sami Pajari hold the top five places in the drivers' series and Toyota are a whopping 146 points ahead of nearest rivals Hyundai in the manufacturers' championship. Thierry Neuville's (Hyundai) podium finish in Greece augurs well for a good performance in Estonia where teammate Adrien Fourmaux should also be amongst the cutting edge.
Meanwhile, the current hot weather has led to the postponement of Sunday's Clonmel-based Tipperary Stonethrowers Rally, round five of the Triton Showers National Rally Championship.
A statement from the organising club highlighted: "Any damage that could be caused to the roads by running the event on Sunday, would be borne by us, the organising club. As such, the club have taken the decision to postpone to protect the public road infrastructure and continue our good working relationship with Tipperary Co Council."
It's not the first time that weather conditions have posed issues for rally organisers. While Storm Éowyn led to the eventual cancellation of the Galway International Rally last year, searing hot weather in 2013 and again in 2018 led to the respective curtailment and cancellation of the Sligo Rally.
With the Monaghan Rally (postponed due to the fuel blockade) rescheduled for August there are limited options for the Tipperary club to reschedule with the Sunday of the October bank-holiday weekend the most likely date without impinging on other rally events.
Delfi Rally Estonia (Round 9, World Rally Championship) Tartu. 7.56am.
Delfi Rally Estonia (Round 9, World Rally Championship) Tartu. 9.05am.
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