Punchestown Racecourse will play host to horse power of a different sort when the top names of Irish rallying descend on Naas for the first ever Punchestown Rally Masters, this Sunday. Heading the high quality field will be current Tarmac Rally Champion Andrew Nesbitt who will get things underway in his mighty Cuisine De France Subaru Impreza WRC.
One of the first to commit to this exciting new event of which six of the top 10 entries are world rally cars, this will be the first opportunity for fans to see the Armagh ace in action in the Prodrive run car this year. Chasing him will be five times Tarmac Champion Austin McHale. With his Toyota Corolla WRC currently in Europe, the Rathcoole driver will be re-united with his Toyota Celica 185 for the event. Third to start is Irish rallying legend Billy Coleman. Another to be re-united with a car from the past, he will drive a Metro 6R4 similar to that which he last drove in 1986 when he was co-driven by the Punchestown Rally Masters Event Director Ronan Morgan.
Taking on the current masters of the sport, spectators will get this rare opportunity to see why the Mallow legend is still regarded as Ireland's greatest rally driver. The Ford Focus WRC of Frank Meagher is next up and the Tipperary man is sure to be very fast over the interesting 2.4 mile asphalt stage. He will be followed by the Subaru World Rally Cars of Wexford's Eamonn Boland, Northern Ireland's Kenny McKinstry and Donegal's Daniel Doherty.
Dunlop National Rally Champion Paul Harris carries number nine ahead of series runner-up Niall Maguire, with Derek McGarrity and Ray Breen rounding off the top 12. As a result of the recent Foot & Mouth precautions the Punchestown Rally Masters will be the first gathering of Ireland's top crews, and in a fitting tribute to one of the sport's greatest ambassadors, the No 1 slot will be left free in honour of Bertie, Mark and Emma Fisher, who tragically lost their lives in a helicopter accident earlier this year.
An interesting addition to the Punchestown Rally Masters will be two of the most powerful competition cars in the country. The spectacular Ford Focus of British Rallycross Champion Dermot Carnegie will be joined by the JMC Peugeot 306 of fellow Dubliner John McCluskey. Each producing over 600 BHP, these two Super Cars are sure to be crowd pleasers as they display their amazing acceleration and traction. Making use of the excellent facilities at Punchestown Racecourse, which includes a full crèche, the event is aimed at bringing the best of Irish rallying to a new audience and highlighting the high standard of the sport in Ireland.
The splendid court yard of the county Kildare race course will be transformed into a service park filled with some of the best rally cars in the country giving spectators the opportunity to get a close up view of the work involved in running a top rally team. The event will also see 15 identical Ford Ka's from the Ford of Ireland KA Rally Championship compete, one of which will be driven by the 2FM pairing of DJs John Kenny and Ruth Scott.
Set to be an action packed day with entertainment for all the family, the Punchestown Rally Masters will get underway at 10:30am with the first of four runs. Admission is £10 or £15 for a family (children under 12).
Filed by Shane Murray
