McErlean completes Rally del Paraguay after heavy compression denies a strong result

Josh McErlean and Eoin Treacy embarked on their South American double-header, showing promising pace on Rally del Paraguay before a heavy compression put them out of contention.

The Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy crew had been building confidence steadily through the opening stages, setting solid times that elevated them to seventh overall. The Rally1 rookies demonstrated their growing maturity by finding a rhythm on the unfamiliar South American roads.

Unfortunately, the unforgiving nature of Rally del Paraguay forced their Ford Puma Rally1 into retirement on Saturday morning when a heavy compression resulted in an unrepairable oil leak.

McErlean and Treacy returned under super-rally regulations for Sunday's stages, gaining valuable seat time in South American conditions ahead of WRC’s next round in Chile.

"Friday was a good start for us,” reflected McErlean, “and I felt like we were building confidence with the stages and the conditions and to be seventh at the end of the day was encouraging.

“Saturday was frustrating because the pace was there - we were right with the cars around us - but unfortunately our day ended early.

“The grip was very inconsistent throughout Sunday, but we still managed to get some positive mileage and good feedback from the car.

“For sure, the end result isn’t what we wanted, but it’s all useful experience and I think we showed some potential.”

County Tyrone co-driver Aaron Johnston faced similar frustrations alongside Japan's Takamoto Katsuta in their Toyota Yaris Rally1. The experienced pairing had been building momentum through Friday's stages, upping their pace to set impressive top-three stage times as they found their rhythm on Paraguay's technical roads.

Their promising run came to an abrupt halt on stage seven when contact with a bank stopped their charge up the leaderboard. Katsuta and Johnston returned to complete the rally under super-rally regulations, securing a top-five time on Paraguay's Power Stage.

MI Rally Academy co-driver Darragh Mullen was also in action over the weekend, taking on Saturday's Woodpecker Rally alongside Vivian Hamill.

The Ford Fiesta Rally2 duo improved their speed through the day, setting the fourth-fastest time on its Tarenig decider to move into the top five.

"It was a tricky weekend at the Woodpecker Rally," Mullen reflected. "The morning stages were challenging, and we found ourselves struggling a little with grip and rhythm on the opening loop.

"The team made a few tweaks in service that helped things, allowing us to enjoy a clean run through the second loop, and we were pleased to bring the car home in 5th overall.

"As always, Wales delivered tricky and technical stages, but they were made even more challenging by the typical Welsh weather.

"It certainly kept us on our toes, but we’re happy with the end result.

"Big thanks to Vivian for the call-up to sit alongside him for the event.

"Now the focus quickly moves to Rali Ceredigion next weekend, where I’ll be back alongside Kyle McBride for the next round of Junior BRC.”