TASTING VICTORY: Monaghan' Josh Moffett (right) and his Wexford co-driver Andy Hayes (Hyundai i20 R5) celebrate their victory in the O'Connell Group Cork 20 International Rally, the penultimate round of the Acesigns Irish Tarmac Rally Championship. Picture: Martin Walsh.

Monaghan’s Josh Moffett and his Wexford co-driver Andy Hayes (Hyundai i20 R5) took a hard earned victory in the O’Connell Group Cork ‘20’ International Rally, the penultimate round of the Acesigns Irish Tarmac Rally Championship.

They finished 8.4 seconds ahead of the VW Polo GTi R5 of Derry’s Callum Devine and his Killarney co-driver Noel O’Sullivan with the all-Welsh crew of Meirion Evans/Jonathan Jackson, also in a VW Polo, 40.6 seconds further behind in third.

Moffett and Fisher traded stage times on the opening loop at the end of which Fisher led his rival by 1.3 seconds with Devine another 4.2 seconds behind in third followed by Evans, who was 14.3 seconds off top spot to complete the championship chasing quartet.

Cork driver Daniel Cronin had a brief rally - retiring at the stage finish with two punctured tyres sustained after he clipped a left hand corner. To add to his woes, his VW Polo GTi R5 was hit by another competitor near the finish line. Wexford’s James Stafford (Darian T90 GTR) slotted into fifth to lead the two-wheel drive category.

The intensity of the contest went up a notch on the repeat loop as Moffett regained the lead, however, it was only by two tenths of a second from Fisher. For good measure and even though the front right brake caliper broke, Devine set a cracking pace on S.S. 6 to move to within two seconds of the lead. Fifth placed Enda O’Brien (VW Polo GTi R5) felt unwell but was reluctant to use it as an excuse.

Rain on the final loop saw all four championship contenders spin on S.S. 7, Moffett endured a small spin on S.S. 9 as Fisher took control and led his rival by 16.9 seconds with Derry’s Callum Devine in a VW Polo GTi R5 11.6 seconds further behind in third. Meirion Evans was fourth and O’Brien inherited fifth when Stafford retired with a broken rear right hub. David Guest (Ford Fiesta Rally2), punctured on the second loop and spun on S.S. 9, occupied sixth.

On Sunday's opening stage Fisher crashed his VW Polo GTi R5 on a tightening left hand over a crest and retired instantly. Moffett and Devine were credited with the same time with the latter fractionally quicker through S.S. 11 to cut the deficit to 11.5 seconds.

On the repeat of both stages, Devine pushed the limits and brought the margin down to 3.1 seconds as Moffett admitted he couldn’t go any faster. Meanwhile, Evans, happy to have found a set up that gave him total confidence, was third – 26.3 seconds further behind.

Andrew Purcell (Skoda Fabia R5) was fourth with Guest and O’Brien continuing to chase.

Moffett was best on the final two stages to annex his fourth win of the ITRC season and even though Devine and Evans are still in the title battle, Moffett remains in the driving seat. Meanwhile, Guest netted fourth from Purcell, who spun on the final stage.

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