Armstrong and Byrne seal sensational maiden ERC win on Rali Ceredigion

Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy crews delivered outstanding performances this weekend, highlighted by Jon Armstrong and Shane Byrne’s maiden European Rally Championship victory on Rali Ceredigion.

The ERC contenders produced a masterful drive on the penultimate round of the European and British Rally Championship to claim a dominant 29.2-second victory over M-Sport team-mate Romet Jurgenson.

The Ford Fiesta Rally2 crew moved into the rally lead after setting the fastest time on Saturday morning's opening stage before building their advantage with consistent top times throughout the weekend. Armstrong's second stage win came on the demanding 34-kilometre Y Diafol test, giving him a 7.3-second overnight lead that he never looked like losing.

Indeed, Armstrong extended his lead to 33.4 seconds with a hat-trick of stage wins ahead of Rali Ceredigion's Power Stage. The MI Rally Academy crew was able to control their emotions through the final stage to secure a memorable first international rally victory.

Armstrong highlighted his unique abilities on Ceredigion's penultimate test by not only surviving wickedly wet conditions towards the end of the event but embracing the challenge to set the fastest time by over 14 seconds on the 14-kilometre stage, demonstrating his mastery of the challenging Welsh roads.

The victory was Ford’s first in ERC since 2020 and propels Armstrong to within 20 points of the ERC lead with one round remaining at Croatia Rally, while M-Sport's 1-2 finish boosted their team championship hopes in the BRC.

“I am over the moon to get my first international victory in the ERC and my first in BRC as well,” said the Fermanagh native. “What a weekend, with everything the event threw at us.

“Deep down I knew it was going to be our week and nothing was going to stop us.

“We just had to keep a good rhythm, pick the right stages to push on, and try to build a margin on the others without doing anything risky.

“Big thanks to the MI Rally Academy, Shane on the pacenotes, and all the guys and girls at M-Sport. To get a 1-2 in ERC and BRC is massive and shows that they have always known how to make a fast rally car. Thankfully we were able to get them the win this weekend.

“I have been working towards getting a result like this my whole life so to do it is the ultimate feeling.”

William Creighton and Liam Regan maintained their British Rally Championship lead with an assured fourth-place finish. The BRC leaders didn't take major risks with the title on the line, consistently setting top-five times while finishing ahead of Castrol MEM Rally Team team-mate and title rival Meirion Evans to extend their championship advantage with one round to go.

“Overall, it was a consistent weekend for us,” said Creighton. “We have come away with good points in the British Championship which extends our lead.

“We can now figure out what exactly we need on the Cambrian Rally.

“From that point of view, it was good, and perhaps we were lacking that last bit of feeling and rhythm in the car over the fast, bumpy sections over the weekend.

“I was happy that we didn’t try to force anything because a mistake would have upset our British Championship.”

Junior WRC hopeful Eamonn Kelly entered Rali Ceredigion off the back of his Rally3 victory on Rally Finland. Kelly was using the Aberyswyth-based event as a warm-up for Junior WRC’s final round, the Central European Rally, and had called in Lorcan Moore as a last-minute substitute in the co-driver’s seat.

Kelly and Moore, who were testing different compounds of Hankook tyres, wasted no time getting up to speed on the challenging asphalt stages, claiming ERC3 victory after a strong drive in their Ford Fiesta Rally3. The Donegal driver overcame a puncture with 10 kilometres remaining on stage six to move into the top ten overall before finishing the three-day event in ninth.

In Rally4, Kyle McBride and Darragh Mullen delivered a thrilling finale to claim Junior BRC victory by just 4.1 seconds after an intense rally-long battle with Joseph Kelly and MI Rally Academy co-driver Killian McArdle. With Kelly and McArdle holding a 0.6-second lead heading into the final stage, McBride claimed victory with a rapid time on the Power Stage.

McBride had to overcome small issues with his Peugeot 208 Rally4 during the rally, including completing Rali Ceredigion's longest stage in road mode, but never gave up the fight for crucial championship points.

McBride and Mullen extend their lead in the Junior BRC standings while Kelly and McArdle still lead the Stellantis Motorsport Rally Cup, setting up fascinating championship battles for the final rounds.

"We had a really good weekend at Rali Ceredigion," reflected McBride. "I am really happy to claim full points in the Junior BRC and Stellantis Cup.

“It was a really tricky weekend with some small issues costing us a lot of time. We had to complete the long stage in road mode but we kept our heads down and never gave up.

“I was delighted to get to the finish. A massive thanks to all my team and all my sponsors and the MI Rally Academy for all their support and Darragh on the notes.

“There were tricky conditions on the last loop but overall I am very happy to get the win here in Wales."

“I am absolutely delighted to come away from Rali Ceredigion with victory in both Junior BRC and the Stellantis Cup,” said academy co-driver Mullen.

“It wasn’t without its dramas, as we had a few mechanical issues to overcome and faced the challenge of a big fightback on Sunday. The competition was quite close right down to the final stage, but we dug deep when it mattered most and managed to come out on top.

“A huge thanks goes to Kyle for a fantastic drive, the entire team for all their hard work across the weekend, and to the MI Rally Academy for their continued guidance and support.”

"We had a great weekend of rallying in Aberystwyth," said McArdle. "With some unreal stages, it was great to come away with second after such a close battle all weekend. For the margin to be 0.6 seconds going into the last stage, it says a lot about the pace of the class.

"It leaves us in a good position and a lead in the Stellantis Cup so all eyes are now on Cork 20.

"First we will look forward to the Wexford Stages Rally this weekend for an outing in a Toyota Yaris Rally2."

Meanwhile, MI Rally Academy co-drivers delivered strong performances on domestic events. Academy co-driver Conor Smith had a successful day on the Clare Stages Rally alongside Ford Fiesta Rally2 ace Gary Kiernan. The Cavan crew ended the opening stage in seventh position before upping their pace to finish the nine-stage event fourth overall. The result was Kiernan's best finish in the National Rally Championship since switching to Rally2 machinery.

On the Lakeland Stages Rally, Aaron O'Regan completed the fast gravel event alongside Ford Fiesta R5 driver Conor Kelly. They finished 17th overall on what was only Kelly's second event in an R5, showing steady improvement throughout the weekend.

"The rally went very well," said O'Regan. "Conor was getting used to the car and its set-up over the first loop of stages. We came into service 19th overall, made a few set-up changes, and went with a different tyre strategy.

“That definitely improved the car, which helped us to climb up to 17th. There are a lot of positives to be taken from Conor's second time out in the car. The times were improving all the time.”