NAPA Auto Parts Irish Tarmac Rally Championship
Words: Adam Hall Photo: D Harrigan Images
Josh Moffett and Andy Hayes claimed a dramatic victory at the 50th Modern Tyres Ulster Rally after a thrilling two-day battle with Eddie Doherty and Tom Murphy, winning by just three seconds in one of the most compelling contests of the season.
The Toyota Yaris Rally2 crew’s late-rally surge across wet Saturday afternoon stages proved decisive as Moffett erased Doherty’s 6.8-second overnight lead to snatch his first Ulster Rally victory on the world-class County Antrim roads.
Doherty dominated Friday’s action with a hat-trick of fastest times on the first three stages. The Kilkenny crew’s rapid early pace had them strongly positioned to claim their first victory of 2026, but Moffett’s Saturday fightback proved insurmountable.
Moffett initially struggled with his Yaris over Friday’s bumpy Knockboy stage, helping Doherty gain an early advantage. Five perfectly driven stage wins on Friday put Doherty into the Ulster Rally’s halfway point lead.
A 4.7-second stage win for Moffett over Tardree on Saturday morning stripped away most of Doherty’s hard-earned advantage. Then a Moffett masterclass on the Ulster’s penultimate Cairncastle test took 5.7 seconds out of Doherty to seize the lead for the first time with a single stage remaining.
/
Despite Doherty’s final stage win on the Slemish decider, Moffett held his nerve to secure a three-second victory that extends his championship advantage heading into September’s Cork 20 Rally finale.
“In fairness to Eddie, he pushed hard all weekend, and so did we,” Moffett reflected after the finish. “Thankfully the wet end to the rally helped us, it was really tricky under a few braking spots at the end. It is unbelievable and we are over the moon.”
Cathan McCourt and Barry McNulty claimed third place after surviving a stage-one heartstopper. The County Tyrone pilot bent his Skoda Fabia’s rear right steering arm on the opening test but his quick reactions kept him in the rally.
From there it was an epic duel with fellow Ulster ace Jonny Greer. Greer and his Donegal-based co-driver Niall Burns closed in on McCourt on Saturday morning, eventually snatching third on stage eight. McCourt wasn’t giving in, though, and fought back with the rivals tied on time with one stage to go.
In the end, the recently crowned Northern Ireland Rally Champions had to settle for fourth, five seconds behind McCourt.
Rounding out the top five was Sam Touzel, who enjoyed a close battle with Mark Kelly to claim third-place Irish Tarmac points – a huge feather in his cap after what has been a fantastic debut season in ITRC.
Modern Tyres Ulster National Rally top five:
1 Moffett/Hayes (Toyota Yaris Rally2) 1:20:09.3s
2 Doherty/Murphy (Skoda Fabia Rally2) +3.0s
3 McCourt/McNulty (Fabia) +1:35.1
4 Greer/Burns (Yaris) +1:40.1
5 Touzel/Freeman (Fabia) +2:57.4
McEvoy Motorsport & Flat 2 The Hat Modified ITRC
Jason Black and Karl Egan delivered a stunning drive to claim two-wheel-drive victory and an incredible seventh overall finish in their Toyota Starlet. Black’s opening-stage fastest time set the tone for a weekend where the rear-wheel-drive specialists proved they could mix it with the leading Rally2 crews on some of Ireland’s most demanding stages.
Paddy McToal and Connor O’Loan claimed second in their Ford Escort Mk2, finishing over a minute and a half behind the dominant Black. Liam McFall and Ivor Lamont were third in their Ford Fiesta, finishing 14 seconds ahead of local crew Alexander Cochrane and Chris Johnston who claimed the Class 6 honours.
Modified ITRC points went to Tomas O’Rourke and Tomas Scallan after a perfect return to the series after missing the Donegal International Rally. The Mitsubishi Evo crew’s 37.9-second margin over Darrel Quinn and Sean Devlin increases their commanding championship lead heading into Cork 20, where they will be bidding to seal the Modified ITRC title.
Ulster Rally Modified top five:
1 Black/Egan (Toyota Starlet) 1:25:09.7
2 McToal/O’Loan (Ford Escort Mk2) +1:46.3s
3 McFall/Lamont (Ford Fiesta Proto) +3:18.5
4 Cochrane/Johnston (Escort) +3:32.5
5 McNaughton/Maguire (Escort) +3:59.5
Wales Motorsport Historic ITRC
Eamonn Kelly and Rory Kennedy claimed the FIA European Historic Rally Championship honours at the 50th Ulster Rally, winning the international section by over a minute and a half ahead of 2024 Irish Historic Rally Champion Tomas Davies. Alan Ring completed the EHRC podium in his Subaru Impreza.
In the ITRC-registered Historic battle, Ray Breen and Damien Morrissey claimed top points ahead of Andy Johnston, whose impressive performance on his home round earned him second-placed championship points. Ronan Campbell’s third-place ITRC finish moves him to the top of the Historic ITRC standings by five points entering Cork 20.
Jason McSweeney had hoped to strengthen his title hopes but his Ford Escort WRC hit mechanical difficulties early on and ended up on the retirement list.
Ulster International Rally top five:
1 Kelly/Kennedy (BMW M3) 1:29:40.0s
2 Davies/Davies (M3) +1:46.4s
3 Ring/Deasy (Subaru Impreza) +3:02.6
4 Breen/Morrissey (Subaru Legacy) +3:18.9
5 Graham/Graham (M3) +4:30.4
Paul Browne Plant Hire & Civil Engineering Junior ITRC
Aaron and Caolan Reid claimed the Ulster Junior Rally win and top Junior ITRC points after Darragh Walsh and Gary Lombard suffered a retirement on Saturday. Reid’s victory came after taking an early 6.9-second lead over their title rivals before Walsh dropped out of contention.
Reid now holds a 17-point lead in the Junior series with one round remaining.
Ulster Junior Rally top five:
1 Reid/Reid (Honda Civic) 44:57.5s
2 McLaughlin/McAleer (Nissan Micra) +2:47.4s
3 Corry/Kelly (Micra) +4:31.8
Just as newspapers and magazines are paid for, digital editorial content will also have to be paid for.
Please subscribe and help us keep this machine running!
It’s only €50 per year – subscribe now
Subscribe to get access
Read more of this content when you subscribe today.
Kerry Motorsport News 