National Rally Championship ready to ‘Rock’ in Waterford
The Triton Showers Motorsport Ireland National Rally Championship roars back into action this Sunday, with the highly anticipated Waterford Volkswagen Raven’s Rock Rally.
The nine-stage event, based in Waterford city, marks the fourth round of the championship.
Leading the championship into Waterford is Kilkenny’s Eddie Doherty, co-driven by Tom Murphy.
The Skoda Fabia R5 crew currently sit at the top the championship standings, following a maiden National victory at the Rose Hotel Circuit of Kerry in March.
Doherty will be looking to extend his lead but faces fierce competition not least from Josh Moffett.
Defending National Champion and reigning Raven’s Rock Rally winner, Moffett, with co-driver Keith Moriarty, are the top seeds.
Driving his Hyundai i20 R5, Moffett got his title defence off to a strong start with maximum championship points at the Longford Arms Hotel Rally and bounced back from a DNF in Kerry to master the Cavan Stages Rally.
The Monaghan driver is chasing an unprecedented fifth national title and currently sits in third in the title race.
Joining Doherty and Moffett at the sharp end are Desi Henry (Ford Fiesta Rally2), who has shown strong pace this season, and Sam Moffett (Hyundai i20 Rally2), co-driven by Kerry’s Shane Buckley, who rounded out the podium in Tralee and secured second in Cavan.
The elder Moffet and Buckley are second the championship standings ahead of the Raven’s Rock Rally.
Former champion Declan Boyle and Patrick Walsh (Skoda Fabia RS Rally2) will also be in the mix, alongside his son Michael Boyle and Dermot McCafferty (Skoda Fabia RS Rally2), and Jason Dickson (Ford Fiesta).
Daniel Cronin (Citroen C3 Rally2), David Guest (Ford), and Triton Showers boss Paul Barrett, with Darragh Kelly on the notes (Citroen C3 Rally2), complete the top ten seeds, and are all capable of pushing for top honours.
The championship has seen its share of drama and close finishes so far. The season opener in Longford saw guest drivers Josh McErlean and Matt Edwards engage in a nail-biting battle, with McErlean ultimately winning by just half a second. However, it was Josh Moffett who took maximum championship points in third.
Round two in Kerry belonged to Doherty, who led from start to finish. The most recent round, the Cavan Stages Rally, saw Josh Moffett claim a dominant start-to-finish victory, with brother Sam Moffett in second after a day-long battle with Kevin Eves.
Beyond the Rally2 machines, the modified category promises its usual spectacular action.
The seeded entry for the modified runners is led by James Stafford (Darrian T90 GTR), Johnno Doogan (Ford Escort), Barry Morris (Darrian), Chris Armstrong (Ford Escort Mark II), and Vincent O’Shea (Darrian).
Morris, co-driven by Dylan Doonan, took top modified honours at the Cavan Stages Rally in their Darrian GTR, while Armstrong leads the Ford Escort Mk2 championship after three rounds.
Cian Caldwell and local ace Jack Brennan are top seeds in the competitive Rally4 class in their Peugeot 208 Rally4s while Tommy Moffet , in his Ford Fiesta Rally4 is the current championship leader and third seed.
Ronan Dorrian is the leading Junior in his class 16 Honda Civic.
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