Irish Crews ready for South American WRC double-header

Irish Crews ready for South American WRC double-header

Irish rally drivers and co-drivers head to South America this week as the FIA World Rally Championship prepares for back-to-back gravel events across the Atlantic. Starting with Rally del Paraguay (August 27–30) before moving west to Rally Chile, the upcoming double-header presents a demanding test of speed and adaptability on foreign soil.

From the high-speed red clay roads of Encarnación to the technical mountain stages of the Paraná basin, crews face changing surfaces, heavy dust, and the threat of sudden rain that can quickly turn roads into a skid-pan.

Leading the way for M-Sport Ford World Rally Team, Derry driver Josh McErlean and Cork navigator Eoin Treacy return to Paraguay in their Ford Puma Rally1. The Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy duo ran as high as seventh overall on these stages last year before sump damage forced an early exit, and they arrive in South America off the back of strong top-seven finishes in Greece and Finland.

“Heading back to Paraguay gives us a good opportunity to build on everything we learned there last year,” McErlean said. “Having that experience and a better understanding of the stages and conditions should put us in a stronger position from the start. Finland was a positive weekend for us, and we want to carry that momentum into South America. We’re into the final part of the season now, so the focus is on continuing our progress and finishing the year strongly.”

Joining them at M-Sport, Fermanagh’s Jon Armstrong and Donegal co-driver Shane Byrne make their competitive debut on South American soil in a Puma Rally1, following up on their recent gravel victory at the Grampian Rally.

“I’m looking forward to the challenge of rallying in a new continent once again,” Armstrong noted. “Having never been to South America, it will be amazing to sample the roads for the first time. We’re looking to take a more steady approach with the upcoming events, whilst using our road position to our advantage.”

M-Sport Ford Team Principal Richard Millener highlighted the challenge ahead for the team across both events.

“We have an exciting few weeks ahead of us, starting with Rally del Paraguay next week,” Millener said. “This event impressed us all last year on its debut, and I’m sure it won’t fail to impress us again with another stunning opening ceremony and some really interesting competitive stages. Josh has some solid experience from last year which will bring him a lot of benefit, and Jon and Romet have studied the stages a lot to prepare. As a team, I think we can bring together a lot of knowledge to deliver some strong performances in Paraguay and Chile.”

In the Toyota Gazoo Racing squad, Fermanagh co-driver Aaron Johnston partners Takamoto Katsuta in their GR Yaris as Toyota aims to extend its lead in the manufacturers’ championship.

“I have very good memories from Paraguay and can’t wait to go back,” Katsuta said. “There were so many fans supporting us and it was a really impressive event. The roads themselves are nice and enjoyable, but we discovered last year that the surface is very unique; very compacted and very polished, and there was very little grip when it rained.”

Meanwhile, Cavan co-driver James Fulton navigates for Yuki Yamamoto in the TGR WRC Challenge Program, embarking on his first WRC2 appearance in South America.

“These next two rallies will be a completely new adventure for me and I’m firstly looking forward to visiting South America for the first time,” Yamamoto said. “The roads look fast but if it’s wet the conditions can be tricky with very slippery surfaces. It will be a big challenge but after the last few rallies I’m hoping that we can change the momentum towards a nice result.”

Competitive action begins on Thursday evening in Encarnación with 22 stages scheduled across the weekend before the championship moves directly on to Chile.

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