Meeke and O’Sullivan Lead Rali Ceredigion
Killarney co-driver Noel O’Sullivan and driver Kris Meeke hold a 20.5-second lead at JDS Machinery Rali Ceredigion following a strong Saturday performance across the Welsh tarmac stages. The crew head into Sunday’s final four stages in prime position aboard their Toyota GR Yaris Rally2.
The pair entered Saturday’s loop trailing Teemu Suninen by 0.9 seconds following Friday’s opening night stages. On SS5 Aberffrwd 1 (12.02 km), Meeke and O’Sullivan set the fastest time at 6:19.8, taking over the rally lead as Suninen lost time with a spin. Reflection on that opening morning test noted: “There were different surface changes that I didn’t pick up on the recce.”
Following the cancellation of SS6 for safety reasons, Suninen fought back on SS7 Cwm Elan 1 (20.71 km) with a time of 9:57.3. Acknowledging the pace set by their rival on the stage, the feedback was clear: “Honestly l’m surprised by Suninen’s time that is incredible. Fair play to him good time.”
Meeke and O’Sullivan responded immediately on SS8 Aberffrwd 2 (12.02 km), reclaiming momentum with a winning stage time of 6:12.9: “I had a proper push. Nothing less from myself. The car was incredible. We had one lock up and handbraked and went round. It was on the limit. Teemu showed me the limit on the stage before so I had to respond.”
The push continued through SS9 Soar Y Mynydd 2 (20.8 km), where another strong performance cemented their advantage at the head of the field: “It was a very big push. Teemu woke me up on the last stage of the loop so I had to get my act together. That was a big attack. I saw his lines and he was attacking like hell so it was pin out. I was enjoying it.”
A fastest time on the second pass of the Aberystwyth street stage brought their total time to 56m 10.0s, leaving the Irish-led entry 20.5 seconds clear of Suninen and Antti Haapala heading into the final leg.
The event concludes on Sunday with four remaining stages covering 63.80 competitive kilometres. Action starts with the 20.64-kilometre Gorsgoch test at 08:15 AM, before the ceremonial finish in Aberystwyth at 3:05 PM.
Standings After Saturday (Top 3)
- K Meeke / N O’Sullivan (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2) — 56m 10.0s
- T Suninen / A Haapala (Škoda Fabia RS Rally2) — +20.5s
- M Marczyk / S Gospodarczyk (Škoda Fabia RS Rally2) — +41.5
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