McBride edges victory in Ceredigion Cup contest

Kyle McBride and co-driver Darragh Mullen sealed the last Stellantis Motorsport Rally Cup IRE & UK victory on UK Tarmac - with Rali Ceredigion victory last weekend (5-7 September). Nudging title rivals Joe Kelly and Kilian McArdle by just 4.1 seconds after 185 competitive kilometres - the Aberystwyth visit sets up a tense final two rounds of the Cup competition.

The Stellantis Cup is one of the biggest prizes in British and Irish rallying, with a collective prize pool of €40,000 built up by Race & Rally, Michelin Motorsport, Protyre Motorsport Ireland and LP Tents. The end game prize will help the winner make the step to the FIA European Rally Championship in 2026 with a support package consisting of championship registration, entries and tyres for five rounds.

The Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy pairing of McBride and Mullen desperately needed a win to stop the runaway train of Joe Kelly. McBride had won two rounds in Cork and Donegal, but had not enjoyed the taste of success in the UK. For McBride, more suited to Tarmac - this was his last opportunity.

The Peugeot 208 Rally4 driver was quickest out the blocks on the Friday night street stage, and pulled out an advantage of 24 seconds by stage five. However their hearts skipped a beat on SS6 as that advantage eroded, with their 208 getting stuck in road mode. Kelly snatched the initiative and pushed himself to a 5.8 second lead heading into the final day. McBride woke up ahead of the final four stages and snatched it back with just two to go. Kelly wasn’t done yet, and wrestled the top spot back into his hands by just 0.6 going into the final stage. It was all or nothing!

McBride threw caution to the wind and went 4.7 seconds quicker to leapfrog Kelly to his third win of the year - equalling his championship rival on the win count. McBride as well as the win lifted the €3,000 parts voucher cheque, while Kelly can be pleased with his step-up in sealed surface performances this year, with second on the road and €1,500 voucher keeping his championship lead with two rounds remaining.

Rali Ceredigion winner Kyle McBride said: “It was good to get that final stage complete - we actually overshot on a square right at the start of the stage, we were on the back foot, but after that we gave it everything. It’s been a tough weekend as we had to balance car issues - but we are just happy to be here and thanks to Darragh and all the sponsors and supporters for getting us here. It really puts us in a good position for the Cup and the Junior BRC.”

Kalum Graffin needed a big result this weekend to keep in touch with his two rivals ahead. Nestled in between McBride and Kelly by SS2 - Graffin with co-driver James McBrearty were eager to mix it on the timesheets on the longest UK rally of the year. Sadly Y Diafol - the longest stage of the rally was to claim the Irish teenager - bringing a halt to his impressive run. Recovering the Peugeot 208 Rally4, the team managed to get the crew back on the stages under Super Rally regulations for the final day for vital experience and the final spot on the podium and the final parts voucher to the sum of €1,000.

Heartbreak bestowed Sam Mason and co-driver James Seymour. The British crew inherited third from Graffin who retired on Saturday morning and the Peugeot 208 Rally4 pairing were on track for their best result on Tarmac and second podium in the Cup. Sadly on SS10 with two timed tests to go, Mason hit an immovable strawbale head-on. Limping it out of the stage, the crew assessed the damage but had to end their Ceredigion journey on the road side with their heads in their hands and hearts sadly broken.

The Stellantis Motorsport Rally Cup IRE & UK returns to action in October, as the teams return for the final Irish round, with Cork 20 the potential championship shake-up on the 4-5 October.

Backed by Race & Rally with support from Michelin Motorsport, Protyre Motorsport Ireland and LP Tents, the championship fires back into life on the 5-7 September for Rali Ceredigion. For more information on the Stellantis Motorsport Rally Cup IRE & UK visit: https://stellantismotorsportcup.com/