Armstrong and Byrne seal maiden gravel rally victory at the Grampian
Jon Armstrong and Shane Byrne made a winning return to Rally2 machinery at the Grampian Forest Rally. Their first ever gravel rally victory came against strong British Rally Championship and international Rally2 opposition.
After winning the final two rounds of last year's European Rally Championship, their Grampian success means it is three Rally2 wins in a row for the Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy duo.
A steady opening stage eased them back into Rally2 completion, after switching from their usual Ford Puma Rally1 for the weekend. Fastest times on three consecutive stages brought them within 0.1 seconds of M-Sport team-mate Romet Jürgenson.
Armstrong made his move on stage five, taking the lead for the first time and never relinquishing it. Seven stage wins from ten tests sealed a 9.3-second victory over Jürgenson, with Nikolay Gryazin a further 39.6 seconds adrift in third.
“It was great to get my first win on gravel,” reflected Armstrong. “There was such a strong entry with the Lancia drivers and Romet, as well as the regular BRC competitors. Coming straight from the Rally1 car was quite an interesting comparison - honestly, it felt like everything was moving in slow motion. It was nice to come back to reality and realise that you're maybe at a higher level than you think you are.”
“To get my first gravel win is really special and I'm already looking forward to coming back for Rally Scotland next year.”
Back in Ireland, Jack Harris and Aaron O'Regan claimed a hard-fought Class 2 victory on the Jim Walsh Cork Forest Rally after an eventful day on the Cork gravel stages.
Harris was fourth after stage one but flew into the lead with two fastest times, going 6.8 seconds faster than his rivals on stage three. After dropping to third on stage five, he flew back into the lead on the penultimate test and held on to claim the win.
The impressive drive puts Harris into the top of the MIJRS and Irish Forest Championship, Class 2 standings.
“We had a fantastic day at the Jim Walsh, winning two of the first three stages and heading into service with the Rally4 lead,” said Harris. “We got our time amended after losing time in dust on stage six and headed out for the final two stages.
“After stage seven we had a great run and were ten seconds faster than our rivals to go into the lead of the two-wheel-drive battle. Unfortunately we got red-flagged on stage eight and lost the two-wheel-drive win but that's the way it works sometimes.”
Academy co-driver Dylan Harrington finished behind Harris, claiming the runner-up spot in Class 2 alongside Jack Byrne.
“We had a good run in Cork on some very fast and lovely flowing stages,” said Harrington. “We were happy with our pace, it was fairly consistent except for one stage where we caught a car and got caught in dust and dropped some time.
“Thanks to the Academy for all their help and all the lads in service.”
Rounding out the Class 2 podium was the all-Academy crew of Ross Ryan and James Deane after a steady drive throughout the day put them 9.6 seconds behind Byrne.
“It was nice to come away with the podium after a steady drive all day,” said Ryan. “Just lacking that little bit of confidence in the fast stuff but overall we are very happy.”
Academy co-driver Darragh Mullen had a busy double-header weekend, competing with Richard O'Lone on the Ulster Rally before joining Oran England for the Jim Walsh Cork Forest Rally.
England and Mullen started Cork strongly, setting the second-fastest two-wheel-drive time and mixing it with the leading Rally4 crews despite carrying a broken rear spring.
After moving into the top two-wheel-drive position, Mullen and England were setting a strong pace on stage seven before encountering a gearbox issue with two kilometres remaining. They nursed the car to the end of the stage before being forced to pull in on the road section.
“Although it wasn't the finish we wanted, it was another good step forward for us as a crew,” said Mullen.
“There was massive pace shown from Oran on a surface where he has limited mileage, and there are plenty of positives to take away from the weekend.”