Devine dazzles in dark to take early West Cork lead
Callum Devine has shown real intent on the opening day of the West Cork Rally, charging to a 6.3-second overnight lead.
The Volkswagen Polo R5 pilot made a strong start to the rally, setting his first of three fastest times on the opening Ballinascarty test.
Devine, and co-driver Noel O’Sullivan, were visibly the most aggressive on the 11.85-kilometre stage which was dry with sections of standing water and mucky corners. Keith Cronin and Mikie Galvin were the only ones to stay within touching distance of Devine.
The Galway International Rally winners were 5.5 seconds off Devine’s benchmark but responded with the fastest time on West Cork’s second test.
A brace of stage wins in darkness eked out Devine’s advantage to 6.3 seconds over Cronin. With 14 stages still to go over Saturday and Sunday, the West Cork Rally is shaping up to be a fantastic Irish Tarmac face-off.
Matt Edwards finished Friday’s four stages in third, 36.9 seconds off Devine’s pace. William Creighton survived his first Irish Tarmac action in a Rally2 car to finish day one in fourth, 9.6 seconds ahead of Jonny Greer who settled himself after a few moments on West Cork’s opening stages.
Josh Moffett fell away in the darkness of Clonakilty’s countryside, dropping from third to sixth position in his Citroen C3 Rally2 on stage three and four.
Frank and Lauren Kelly set the benchmark time in modifieds on West Cork’s opener, leaving Kelly bemused as he didn’t feel comfortable in the mixed conditions.
Their lead didn’t last long though as Jonathan Pringle jumped ahead with the fastest time on stage two before making it a hat-trick of stage wins over the two night-time tests.
The Ford Escort Mk2 man was happy with how his day panned out as he took a 10.6-second lead into Saturday’s eight stages.
Conor Murphy finished Friday in second place after overcoming a misfire on stage two.
Kevin Eves is third but 26.8 seconds off the pace as he made some set-up adjustments to find some sort of sweet spot aboard his Toyota Corolla.
Kelly’s positive start to the West Cork Rally ended when he slid Baby Blue off the road on a mucky stage three corner.
Ryan MacHugh has taken a remarkable 41.5-second lead in West Cork’s Rally4 category. The young Donegal driver caught the car ahead of him on Friday’s first stage and continued his impressive speed in the dark with a brace of fastest times.
Kyle McBride and Cian Caldwell scored a stage win apiece in their Peugeot 208s but finished day one in sixth and fourth respectively after dropping time in the dark.
Keelan Grogan and Craig Rahill complete the top three Rally4 positions in a category battle that is bound to experience some twists and turns this weekend.
Photos by D Harrigan Images
