Breen's WRC Academy hopes are hit

Irish rally driver Craig Breen's bid to win the inaugural FIA WRC Academy Cup has suffered a severe blow, writes John Kenny.

Breen held a 24-second lead after Friday’s day one stages but his Fiesta R2 hit trouble on Saturday morning on stage 10 when the drive shaft broke putting the Waterford driver out of the event.

This is a huge blow to Breen’s hopes of claiming the WRC Academy title. Before the French event he trailed Estonian driver Egon Kaur by 26 points.

Breen will pick up six championship points for his six fastest stage times from Friday’s action but with only one round remaining the championship now looks to be out of his grasp.

The final round of the season takes place on the 10-13 of November on World Rally GB.

Meanwhile on Saturday evening, Tim McNulty will begin his bid to secure an historic Irish rallying double as he looks to secure the Irish Tarmac Rally Championship at the Cork 20 International Rally which runs six night stages tonight.

McNulty has already won the Dunlop National Rally title and will become the first driver to win the double in the same year if he wins in Cork.

McNulty leads the Championship by seven points following three wins in the three rounds he has competed in this season in the Galway, Donegal and Ulster rallies.

A win for McNulty will see him win the title but anything else would leave the door open to title rivals Kevin Barrett and Cork native Daragh O’Riordan, who will also compete in Subaru WRC cars.

The Cork 20 International Rally begins this evening in Cork City with six night stages taking place finishing before midnight on Saturday.

The remaining cars take to the road early on Sunday morning for the final eight stages with a finish scheduled for 4pm on Sunday afternoon as the event returns to its original 20 hour endurance format.