Jonny’s Late Late Show @ Bishopscourt

Jonny Greer was the red-hot-favourite to win the Race & Rally Stages at Bishopscourt last month. Indeed the current NI Champion eventually won the rally, but it wasn’t easy. Donegal men Aaron McLaughlin and Darren Curran in their VW Polo GTI R5 led from the first stage and stayed there until a slight mistake on the penultimate test allowed second placed Greer and his co-driver Niall Burns to get ahead by 1.9 seconds. Jonny kept his Citroen C3 Rally2 in front and was 3.7 seconds ahead of Aaron at the end of the eighth and final stage. This was Greer’s fourth straight win at Bishopscourt, all of those victories in Citroen C3’s.

It was a long, cold and very busy day for us marshals. Having arrived at the Co.Down race circuit for 07.30, Goff, Nigel and myself covered all eight stage starts. We started the first car at 09.03 and the last one at 17.09. As well as timekeeping, there were BMMC/BRMC members covering stage marshalling. The only breaks in the action were when the stages were changed round allowing us to catch a short lunch break. Although it was dry for most of the event, we did have a rain shower midway through.

The single-venue, sealed-surface, Bishopscourt event, was organised as usual by Ballynahinch and District Motor Club. This year, subtle changes at the race circuit meant there were no stage “merges”, meaning that competitors were not impeded or “held up” by other cars as they tackled the eight single-lap-four-and-a-half-mile tests. Due to these changes there were no complaints nor indeed any major incidents. The total stage mileage was 35.84 miles, almost exactly the same as in 2023 when there were six two-lap stages totalling 35.80 miles.

There were 84 starters (19 Rally2/R5 cars) and 65 finishers on this the second round of the 2024 McGrady Insurance Motorsport UK Northern Ireland Rally Championship. Derek McGarrity, third on round one, was a non-starter and Kirkistown runner-up Stuart Biggerstaff’s Fiesta R5 ground to a halt on SS3. All this left Kyle White/Sean Topping third in their Hyundai i20 R5, 36.8 seconds behind McLaughlin. Philip Allen/Dale Furniss finished fourth in their VW Polo GTI R5 and Jason Dickson/Martin Brady fifth in a Ford Fiesta Rally2. Best 2-wheel-drive car was the Darrian T90 GTR+ of Barry Morris and Martin Harte who were 6th overall. In the Nissan Micra Challenge there were 8 starters and they all finished, with Steve Whitford and Jonny Hart taking the win and finishing 28th overall in the process.

Going into the next round of the NI Championship, the Claudy-based Maiden City Stage Rally on April 27th, Jonny Greer leads with a maximum of 60 points while Aaron McLaughlin is next on 54 and Jason Dixon third with 51 points.

Don’t forget; highlights of the Race & Rally Bishopscourt Stages can be found on the dedicated McGrady Insurance Motorsport UK 2024 Northern Ireland Rally Championship channel on YouTube. There is excellent separate coverage of each round of the Northern Ireland Nissan Micra Challenge, also on YouTube.

Edwards Wins Compact Circuit

Round 3 of the 2024 Irish Tarmac Championship, the Circuit of Ireland Rally took place on Easter Saturday 30th March. Just eight stages (4 repeated) totalling 67 miles in and around a service park in Dungannon, Co.Tyrone were on offer. In fact the event was almost identical in competitive miles to last year’s rally, based not far away in Cookstown. The stages this year hadn’t been used for a number of years.

Running without a title sponsor, the organising Ulster Automobile Club decided to stick with the compact format for 2024 and as a direct result they had attracted a large entry of 102 competitors. Looking forward, the UAC hope to join forces with a Southern Irish club and bring the “Circuit of Ireland” element back into what was an iconic event in the past.

The rally was a great success, with a huge battle for the win between Welshman Matt Edwards and Keith Cronin from Ballylickey in Co.Cork in a pair of Ford Fiesta Rally2’s. At one time there was only a tenth of a second between them as they shared fastest times with 4-apiece on the eight tests. In the end Edwards and his Irish co-driver David Moynihan came through to take the victory by 14.4 seconds from Cronin and Mikie Galvin after an inspired tyre choice for the second loop of stages. Josh Moffett/Andy Hayes finished third in a Citroen C3 Rally2. Cathan McCourt/Brian Hoy were fourth and Garry Jennings/Rory Kennedy fifth, both of them also in Fiesta Rally2 machines. Top 2WD finishers were Jason Black/Karl Egan in sixth position with their Toyota Starlet. There were 91 starters and only 56 made it to the Dungannon finish after a challenging day’s rallying in the narrow and twisty lanes of South County Tyrone. Leading retirements included Callum Devine, Jonny Greer and Desi Henry who all succumbed to the tricky and slippery conditions.

BMMC/BRMC members were out in force on the Circuit of Ireland. We covered rescue, timekeeping, radio points, stage marshalling plus other official duties on the event. I was acting as finish radio on SS4/8 Ivy Hill, the final 7.32 mile stage in each loop. The weather was typical for an early Easter, we had sunshine, hail, thunder and rain but both runs ran without any problems. Despite stage four starting some twenty minutes late, by the time the cars returned for the final stage eight the rally was back on schedule.

British Rally Championship

Former ERC champion, Chris Ingram won round one of the 2024 Probite Motorsport UK British Rally Championship. The VW Polo GTI R5 driver and co-driver Alex Kihurani  finished the closed-road North West Stages In Lancashire ahead of Ulster crew and JWRC champions William Creighton and Liam Regan in their Ford Fiesta Rally2. Meirion Evans was third in the first British Isles appearance of the new Toyota Yaris GR Rally2. The revitalised 2024 BRC had a massive 130 starters on the North West Stages, no less than 44 crews in top class Rally2/R5 cars! Amazingly 102 finished the 8-stage (57.5 miles) event. Of course the British Rally Championship will NOT be visiting Ireland this year, unfortunately.

Looking Back

40 YEARS AGO

The five-day 1984 Rothmans Circuit of Ireland Rally (19-24 April) was supposed to be a benefit for the Rothmans Porsche 911 SC RS driven by Henri Toivonen. It didn’t turn out that way. The rally started in Belfast on Good Friday with around 80 cars. After a two-night halt in Waterford and 54 stages later, 36 cars finished back in Belfast on Easter Tuesday. Billy Coleman and Ronan Morgan eventually won the rally in their Dealer Opel Team Ireland Manta 400, but only after nine of the top-ten cars retired. It was one of the toughest Circuit of Ireland’s ever!

Jimmy McRae set the early pace, but crashed on the second run over Hamiltons Folly on day one (I was spectating close by). He consequently retired his AC Delco Manta with a blown head gasket. Bertie Fisher’s Manta then led for nine stages as the rally headed south before he too retired with a broken half-shaft.

Henri Toivonen took over in front for 15 stages, but an accident while taking part in a charity kart race on Sunday evening in Waterford left the Finnish superstar with leg injuries. Henri continued, but dropped to third place and then eventually retired his Porsche after SS44 in Co. Sligo when the gearbox completely failed after he “crashed” the gears due to his injuries. I remember timekeeping on the finish of SS40 in the Partry Mountains on the Galway/Mayo border late on Monday night. When Toivonen arrived I asked him how things were going, his response was quote “I have only one gear left and it is fifth!” The extraordinary driver was still ninth fastest on that classic 11 mile stage.

After that it was an almighty battle for the lead between Austin McHale and DOTI Manta team-mate Billy Coleman through Mayo, Sligo and Donegal which was only resolved when the leading McHale car suffered a blown engine with just three stages left to run! Coleman was then able to cruise to the win in Belfast on the Tuesday afternoon. Ernest Kidney was second in his Sunbeam Lotus and former World Hot Rod Champion Davy Evans (on his first ever rally) third in a Nissan 240RS.

Rothmans sponsored the Circuit of Ireland for six years (1983-88) but failed to win the classic event with any of their cars.

Rally Diary

Sat. 27th April.
Eakin Bros. BJT Stage Rally

Round 3 of the 2024 McGrady Insurance NI Rally Championship. The first of three closed-road events, this one is organised by Maiden City Motor Club. The action takes place over three stages in the Dunamanagh and Claudy areas. Sponsored once again by Eakin Bros. Brian James Trailers. There are six stages totalling 41 miles, SS1/4 Lisbunny SS2/5 Altishane SS3/6 Calhoun's Dip. Rally HQ and the service park will be at Robinsons Concrete in Claudy. Of course BMMC/BRMC will be providing rescue, radio cover and other marshals on the day.

Sat. 18th May.
GO! Tour of the Sperrins

Round 4 of the 2024 McGrady Insurance NI Rally Championship. Based in Magherafelt and organised by Magherafelt & District MC. There are due to be three repeated closed-road stages. Once again BMMC/BRMC will provide rescue, radio cover and other marshals on the event. More details next month.