“This is our Sam Maguire” – O’Sullivan’s fourth Rally of the Lakes win

“This is our Sam Maguire” – O’Sullivan’s fourth Rally of the Lakes win

Killarney co-driver Noel O’Sullivan has described winning the Rally of the Lakes as the rallying equivalent of lifting the Sam Maguire Cup, after he and driver Callum Devine claimed a stunning fourth consecutive victory in the event on Sunday.

The pair took the lead early on Sunday morning’s Moll’s Gap stage and never looked back, sealing a hard-fought win in their Skoda Fabia RS Rally2 – a result that means even more to O’Sullivan, who grew up watching the rally on his home roads.

“This rally is our All-Ireland. It’s our Sam Maguire,”  O’Sullivan said at the finish ramp at the Gleneagle Hotel on Sunday evening.

“To win it once is special, but to win it four years in a row – I honestly think it will never happen again. Irish rallying is so competitive now, there are five or six crews capable of winning every round.”

The Rally of the Lakes was round three of the NAPA Auto Parts Irish Tarmac Rally Championship and was sponsored by Tralee company Assess Ireland.

 Devine and O’Sullivan finished 14 seconds ahead of Meirion Evans and Killarney’s own Ger Conway in their Toyota GR Yaris Rally2. Third place went to Matt Edwards and David Moynihan in the Hyundai i20 Rally2.

O’Sullivan added.

“We knew Sunday morning, we would have to completely nail every corner. The team gave us a perfect car and even though it was our first time doing the Lakes in the Skoda.”

Rob Duggan and John McCarthy stormed to victory in the Modified category in their Ford Escort, finishing seventh overall.

Colin O’Donoghue and Kieran O’Donoghue were second in the modified category, also in a Ford Escort.

In the Historic section, Alan Ring and Adrian Deasy came out on top in their BMW M3 after a weekend-long battle with another Meirion Evans in a Ford Escort.

While Saturday’s early leaders, Keith Cronin and Mikie Galvin, crashed out on stage four, the drama opened the door for a fierce three-way fight between Devine, Evans, and Edwards. But once Devine and O’Sullivan hit their stride on Sunday’s iconic stages, there was no stopping them.

“Killarney means everything to me. I grew up here, I watched the rally as a kid, and now to have my name on the winner’s trophy four times – it’s just unbelievable,” said O’Sullivan.

Local class winners included:

Noel O’Sullivan  Sr (father of the event’s winning co-driver) and Nicholas Burke won Class 9 in a Ford Escort Mk2.

Tralee’s Darren Young and Pa Lawlor topped Class 11F in a Honda Civic.

Donagh Crowley and Denis Nagle won Class 11R, also in a Ford Escort Mk2.

Father and daughter John and Michelle Hickey took honours in Class 20 driving a Mitsubishi Evo 9.

In Class 14, Vincent O’Shea and Eoin O’Donoghue finished second in their Darrian T90 GTR.

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