Callum Devine chasing historic fifth consecutive Assess Ireland Rally of the Lakes win – read his pre-event thoughts here

Callum Devine chasing historic fifth consecutive Rally of the Lakes win
Defending champion Callum Devine arrives in Killarney this weekend aiming to equal a 32-year-old record by securing his fifth consecutive victory at the Assess Ireland Rally of the Lakes.
Not since the late Bertie Fisher’s dominant run between 1990 and 1994 has a driver managed five wins in a row on the Killarney stages. For Devine’s co-driver, Muckross man Noel O’Sullivan, the stakes are equally high as he looks to extend his own unprecedented run of success on his home event.

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Speaking ahead of the rally, Devine admitted that the “five in a row” is a major talking point, but he remains focused on the difficult task ahead.
“We’re making the trip down now and it’s the event I look forward to every year,” Devine said. “It has been good to me over the last few years, and we’re definitely going to give it our best effort to make it five. It’s a long time since Bertie did it—actually before I was born—so that shows how difficult an achievement it is.”
The Derry driver currently sits second in the Irish Tarmac Rally Championship. After a slow start to the season, which included a win in Galway followed by a challenging run at the Circuit of Ireland, Devine sees Killarney as the place to reclaim the championship lead.
“Our track record in the past has often been as slow starters, but we usually come good around this time of year. A win this weekend would help the championship points and our confidence moving forward.”
The partnership with local man Noel O’Sullivan remains a key factor in Devine’s Killarney success. The pair first teamed up for this specific rally four years ago and have remained unbeaten in the Kingdom since.
“We have worked well since our first rally together here four years ago. It’s his home event and he has great support. We’ll just keep the head down and see where we are on Sunday evening.”
Devine enters the event following a “warm weather” testing session at a rally in Spain last week, where he finished 15th overall while experimenting with car setup. He believes the seat time and adjustments made during that event will prove valuable on the Killarney stages this weekend.

Thanks to Radio Kerry’s Ivan Hurley for his help on this article

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