Momentum builds for Moffett…
Sam Moffett and Pierce O’Callaghan scored a top Brown & Brown points position at the McKinney Competitions Circuit of Ireland to now sit two points shy of series leader Jonathan Greer, writes William Neill.
Moffett, taking part on both days, finished fourth in the overall rally but importantly was fastest of the registered drivers on day two where the clocks were reset in order to score points on a level playing field. The Hyundai i20 Rally2 was almost two and a half minutes ahead of Greer and Niall Burns, who suffered from an early puncture.
On his home round in Dungannon Barry Morris was in tremendous form to not only win two-wheel-drive but finish third out of the Brown & Brown drivers, 12 seconds from Greer with the use of his light-weight Darrian T90 GTR+ and under the guidance of co-driver, Dylan Doonan.
As 2025 two-wheel-drive champion Joe Hegarty and David Turkington provided the competition for Morris up until the last stage when a broken propshaft, on their Ford Escort Mk2, sidelined the pair.
Omagh’s Alan Smyth and Emmet Sherry were fastest of the Saturday only contenders despite a spin in their Volkswagen Polo R5 to finish 52.1 seconds ahead of Darragh Cairns’ similar IN-Sport car.
Smyth is now fourth in the standings behind last year’s champion Aaron McLaughlin, who very much remains a contender again this season. McLaughlin is four points behind Moffett but three points ahead of Smyth. Stuart Biggerstaff is just another single point behind to round out the top five.
Jamie Grant is ahead of dad Adrian in the two-wheel-drive race with the Toyota Starlet in front of the Ford Escort Mk2 by ten points. Historic runner Jimmy Mills is joint third with Owen Mallon.
Looking at the overall rally, Circuit of Ireland history was made with its closest finish of all time. After almost two hours of total stage times, David Kelly, with Shane Buckley alongside, clinched a first Irish win by a mere 0.5 seconds following a crash by early leader Callum Devine, who later continued to finish eighth.
Round three will be on Saturday July 4 in Loughgall, County Armagh with road closed stages featuring a section through the park and a central service area. Entries for the North Armagh Motor Club event will be available via www.rallyscore.net.
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Results - overall rally (full results via rallyscore.net)
1 David Kelly/Shane Buckley (Skoda Fabia Rally2)
2 Josh Moffett/Andy Hayes (Toyota Yaris Rally2)
3 Eddie Doherty/Tom Murphy (Skoda Fabia Rally2)
4 Sam Moffett/Pierce O’Callaghan (Hyundai i20 Rally2)
5 Aidan Wray/Paddy McCrudden (Skoda Fabia Rally2)
6 Sam Touzel/Max Freeman (Ford Fiesta Rally2)
7 Jonathan Greer/Niall Burns (Toyota Yaris Rally2)
8 Callum Devine/Noel O’Sullivan (Skoda Fabia Rally2)
9 Barry Morris/Dylan Doogan (Darrian T90 GTR)
10 Aaron McLaughlin/Darren Curran (Volkswagen Polo R5)
Brown & Brown Motorsport UK Northern Ireland Rally Championship 2026
07 Mar Bishopscourt Stages
04 Apr Circuit of Ireland (Saturday only)
04 Jul Loughgall Rally
25 Jul Rallye Lecale
22 Aug Down Rally
Brown & Brown Motorsport UK Northern Ireland Forest Rally Challenge 2026
28 Feb Fivemiletown Rally
05 Sep Lakeland Stages
19 Sep Bushwhacker Rally
17 Oct Dogleap Rally