AFTER a two-year lapse Ballyvourney’s Gerard Lucey returns to championship action in the Sligo Pallets Irish Forest Rally series on Sunday’s Killarney Forest Rally that is based in Castleisland.
He has switched from the Mitsubishi Lancer E8 that gave him top-three finishes in consecutive seasons from 2015 to 2017 to a Ford Fiesta R5.
Since then, the pace within the championship has cranked up a few gears and hopes of repeating his best ever and second overall championship finish in 2016 have diminished hence the decision to switch to the R5.
‘I’m looking forward to getting back to the championship but it will be a learning curve with the new car; we will have a shot at it anyway. The entry is very competitive but that is nice to see. It will take me a few rallies to get into the swing of it. I was happy with the car on my first outing in the Cork Rallysprint at the end of December,’ said Lucey.
‘I would be happy with a top-six finish, but as I said, it’s important to get the driving side of it right first and then we can push on.’
Lucey will be co-driven by Kerry’s Donagh Crowley and they are seeded at number eight. Inchigeelagh’s Eamonn Creedon partners Monaghan’s Derek Mackarel (Ford Fiesta R5) from the number five berth behind the top four of Derry’s Jordan Hone (Ford Fiesta R5), Waterford’s Andrew Purcell (VW Polo GTi R5) and the Ulster duo of Vivian Hamill (VW Polo GTi R5) and Stephen McCann, who campaigns the ex-Owen Murphy Ford Fiesta R5. Macroom’s Padraig McCarthy and Clondrohid’s Eoghan McCarthy (Peugeot 206 Cup Car) are seeded at 237.
The No. 239 is not being used in honour of Dunmanway’s Eoin McCarthy, who was tragically killed during the 2022 event. In the J1000 category, Youghal’s Ross Ryan (Peugeot 107) and Clonakilty’s Peter Keohane are the top seeds. Cloyne’s Tommy Cronin (Toyota Aygo) and Mallow’s Derek Butler are amongst their opposition.
The Castleisland-based event is the first of the six rounds in the Irish Forest Rally Championship. Unfortunately, the Munster Car Club’s Moonraker Forest Rally (Ballyvourney) is not going ahead this year. The only Cork round is the Jim Walsh Cork Forest Rally on August 11th.
