Ireland's biggest rally, the Donegal International, takes place this weekend as three days and 20 magnificent stages await the title contenders.
A maximum entry will tackle some of the most renowned stages in the country such as Malin Head, Knockalla and Atlantic Drive across the three days of jam-packed action in Donegal in what is the fifth round of the Irish Tarmac Rally Championship.
The Donegal international has, for decades, been the only three-day rally in Ireland, but they have now been joined by the West Cork, which this year became a three-day event for the first time.
Derry's Callum Devine is the top seed and will be defend his maiden Donegal victory from 12 months ago in his VW Polo.
However, Devine is playing catch-up as the reigning champion’s campaign suffered blows in West Cork and on the Circuit of Ireland but a much-needed win in Killarney has put him back in the mix.
Seeded second, Keith Cronin has been the driver on form so far and the 2016 Irish Tarmac champion is looking for his third win in this year’s series.
Success in Donegal would go a long way in his bid for a second Irish Tarmac title, but he also faces stiff competition from a string of ex-Donegal winners.
Cronin won the first two rounds in Galway and West Cork, but then lost out to Welshman Matt Edwards (Fiesta) on the Circuit of Ireland when the latter outfoxed him on tyre choice late in the event
A near-certain victory on the Killarney Rally of the Lakes was foiled by a puncture to Conin’s Fiesta Rally 2 and the Cork ace has a 13.5-point advantage at the head of the Tarmac leaderboard, from Edwards while Devine is third, a further 17.5 points back.
"We've finished every round so far, which is always a plus," said Cronin, as he made final preparations for the long trek from his Ballylickey base to the North-West.
"We're leading the championship at the moment, although we could have been in a much stronger position points-wise if the Circuit and Killarney had gone our way, but you're never going to get a year where every rally goes perfectly, it just won't happen."
Cronin returned to winning ways on the British Rally Championship (BRC) round, the Jim Clark Rally at the end of last month in Scotland, and will hope to continue that good form into this weekend.
"It was great to get our BRC season back on track, we had had a bad start on the first two rounds there, so the win was badly needed," noted Cronin.
His most recent outing in Donegal was in 2016, the year of his and co-driver Mikie Galvin's previous Tarmac Championship victory as on that occasion, he lost out to the late Manus Kelly by just 0.5 of a second for the rally win, following a final stage showdown,
With just the Ulster Rally and Cork '20' International rounds remaining after Donegal, Cronin will be mindful that dropped scores will start to come into play, as the best five from seven results count towards a competitor's final Tarmac points tally.
Matt Edwards will be hoping it will be third time lucky after an accident and mechanical issues scuppered their previous two Donegal assaults.
Edwards, the three-time BRC winner has shown pace in both years in Donegal and victory on the Circuit of Ireland proved Edwards’ speed has carried through to 2024.
Outside the top three and sure to be in the mix will include the Monaghan brothers Josh and Sam Moffett who are both seeded within the top five and Declan Boyle and Garry Jennings who are running either side of tenth seed Cathan McCourt.
The Donegal International Rally gets underway on Thursday evening, with the Ceremonial Start taking place in Letterkenny Town Centre. The crews will tackle six stages during Friday, followed by eight on Saturday and six on Sunday.
The 2024 Donegal winners will spray the victory champagne at the Mount Errigal Hotel in Letterkenny at 6.35pm on Sunday evening.
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