NAPA Auto Parts Irish Tarmac Rally Championship

Callum Devine and Noel O’Sullivan finally conquered the Ulster Rally, claiming their first victory on the challenging County Down and Armagh stages to secure Devine’s second Irish Tarmac Rally Championship Drivers’ title.

The 2023 champion’s path to glory was far from conventional after missing the opening round in West Cork for his wedding, but his remarkable comeback featured victories in the next four consecutive events, culminating in this long-awaited Ulster Rally triumph.

Devine’s start-to-finish victory over Welsh visitor Osian Pryce and Wexford co-driver Andy Hayes capped off a dominant championship campaign and ended his Ulster Rally heartbreak after runner-up finishes in the previous two years.

The Claudy driver stamped his authority on the event from the very first test, posting the fastest time on Friday’s opening Slieve Roe rollercoaster. The 19-kilometre opener lived up to its reputation as one of Ulster Rally’s most demanding challenges, with its high-speed commitment over crests catching out several competitors.
Michael Boyle and Kevin Eves both had moments after crests, landing their cars into verges, while Declan Boyle’s decision to increase his Skoda’s ride height before the stage backfired as the car became too floaty.
Pryce showed his class immediately on stage two’s challenging Camlough test, taking the stage win as Devine endured what he described as his worst stage of the year. Devine had a small scare that took a chunk out of his rear wheel rim but survived without time loss, though he had to tackle the final stage of the loop without a spare wheel.
The stage proved costly for others, with Michael Boyle spinning into a hedge near the stage end to retire, while James Ford also failed to reach the finish. Darren Gass suffered a broken windscreen from the stage’s notorious bumpy sections.
Declan Boyle and Patrick Walsh became the third different stage winners in three tests on Slieve Gullion. Matthew Boyle moved ahead of Kevin Eves, who was struggling with understeer.
Devine reasserted his dominance on stage four, extending his lead as low sun caused difficulties for several competitors, including Declan Boyle. The stage marked the end of Darren Gass’s rally after the 2012 champion retired with injured ribs, compounded by a work injury earlier in the week.
Friday evening’s Camlough test saw Devine adopt a cautious approach over jumps, fearing driveshaft damage, which allowed Pryce to claim the stage five win and edge closer to leader Devine and second-placed Boyle. However, Devine bounced back on the final stage of day one, relishing the challenge of rallying in darkness to extend his overnight lead to 12.9 seconds.
Saturday brought fresh challenges as crews tackled the different characteristics of Kernan Lough and the demanding Banbridge North and Bronte Homeland stages. Devine found more gravel than expected on the opening Saturday test, while both Declan Boyle and Matthew Boyle suffered overshoots as they struggled to find their rhythm.
Pryce’s weekend was increasingly optimistic as set-up changes to his Hyundai i20 Rally2 made significant improvements that allowed him to post a series of fastest times. His confidence grew throughout Saturday as the car’s handling improved, and he completed day two with multiple stage wins to secure second place after moving ahead of Boyle on stage nine.
The battle between Kevin Eves and Matthew Boyle provided compelling midfield action throughout the weekend. Eves, in his first season with the Ford Fiesta Rally2, showed steady improvement but struggled with understeer on Friday before finding better balance. Matthew Boyle’s challenge was hampered by fading brakes on Saturday morning before power steering failure on stage ten ended his rally.
Mark Kelly and Neil Roskell engaged in their own fierce contest, though both drivers struggled to find their rhythm on Saturday’s opening stages. Kelly’s rally came to a premature end when an oil leak on stage twelve forced his retirement, while Roskell had earlier spun and stalled at a hairpin junction.
Declan Boyle enjoyed a strong drive throughout the rally, tweaking his set-up along the way. He battled understeer through Saturday before finding improvements in service that allowed him to post stronger times in the latter stages.
Boyle secured the Ulster Rally’s final podium position, finishing 54.6 seconds behind Devine while Eves claimed a solid fourth-place finish. Neil Roskell completed the top five alongside Dan Barritt, their best result of the season.
In Rally4, Ben McFall and Damian McAuley impressed in their Ford Fiesta Rally4, running ninth overall and holding over a minute lead in the Rally4 class overnight. Unfortunately, McFall would retire on Saturday’s tricky Kernan Lough opener.
Kyle McBride and Liam McIntyre had been McFall’s nearest challengers on Friday’s opening loop despite battling with boost issues in the Peugeot 208 Rally4. The Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy driver’s rally would also end early, retiring on stage five.
That left ITRC 4 leader Kalum Graffin to pick up the class lead which he would maintain for the rest of the weekend alongside Mark McGeehan.
Ulster Rally top five:
1 Devine/O’Sullivan (Skoda Fabia Rally2) 1:29:28.1s
2 Pryce/Hayes (Hyundai i20 Rally2) +21.4s
3 Boyle/Walsh (Fabia Rally2) +54.6
4 Eves/Melly (Ford Fiesta Rally2) +2:25.1
5 Roskell/Barritt (Fiesta Rally2) +6:26.3

McEvoy Motorsport & Flat 2 The Hat Modified ITRC

Damian Toner and Aodhan Gallagher’s remarkable recovery from track rod end problems aboard his Ford Escort Mk2 on Friday resulted in a fantastic sixth overall finish on the Ulster Rally and victory in the two-wheel-drive category.
Toner started the rally by setting the exact same time on Slieve Roe as his brother Marty Toner. Marty’s Proton Satria was left stricken on stage three with a broken wishbone, however, as Damian completed the stage with a ratchet strap repair holding his Mk2 Escort together on the Slieve Gullion test.
The Armagh driver’s mechanical trouble dropped him well down the modified leaderboard, over a minute behind the top Mk2 Escort crew of Aidan Bourke and Pierce Doheny Jr.
Toner stormed back to third in the rear-wheel-drive category after acing the night-time running of Slieve Gullion. He finished Friday in third, just under ten seconds behind Stewart Morrison.
Saturday morning retirements for Morrison and Bourke meant Toner was now the man in charge, eventually finishing over a minute clear of Gareth Black and Connor Dunlop’s Toyota Starlet. Toner’s fantastic fightback maintained his perfect score of McEvoy Motorsport & Flat 2 The Hat Modified ITRC points, ensuring the drivers’ title was his for 2025.
John Gordon and Garth Neill completed the National Rally’s podium positions, a further 43.5 seconds behind class six rival Black.
Ulster Rally Modified top five:
1 Toner/Gallagher (Ford Escort Mk2) 1:39:08.0s
2 Black/Dunlop (Toyota Starlet) +1:11.6s
3 Gordon/Neill (Escort) +1:55.1
4 O’Brien/Laverty (Toyota Corolla) +5:04.6
5 Walsh/Benton (Escort) +5:05.1
Wales Motorsport Fabrication Historic ITRC
John O’Donnell and Paddy Robinson produced another storming performance aboard their BMW M3 to secure a start-to-finish victory on the Ulster Historic Rally. The Donegal man’s second victory in a row extends his lead at the top of the Wales Motorsport Fabrication Historic ITRC standings.
Welsh pilot Meirion Evans was hoping to challenge his championship rival on the tricky Ulster stages but was unable to put up a fight after breaking a suspension arm on his Ford Escort RS1800 on stage two, Camlough. Still, Evans bounced back on Saturday with impressive times, including three stage wins to show he has the pace to rival the current points leader.
David Armstrong and Ivor Ferguson completed the Ulster Rally second in the historic category, over a minute ahead of the Vauxhall Chevette of Andy Johnson and Jim McSherry.
Ulster Historic Rally top five:
1 O’Donnell/Robinson (BMW M3) 1:43:31.0s
2 Armstrong/Ferguson (Ford Escort RS1800) +3:14.9s
3 Johnson/McSherry (Vauxhall Chevette) +4:39.5
4 McCrossan/Burns (M3) +4:44.0
5 Adams/Kidd (Escort) +5:08.6
Paul Browne Plant Hire & Civil Engineering Junior ITRC
Andrew Bushe and Geraldine McBride secured a one-minute, 11.2-second victory in the Ulster Junior Rally over the Paul Browne Plant Hire & Civil Engineering Junior ITRC crew of Ronan Dorrian and Mickey Joe Browne.
Dorrian’s runner-up finish was his third top points score of the season as he remains at the top of the championship leaderboard.
Fellow Honda Civic crew, Graham and Trevor Roche’s fourth-place finish behind Ben Fallis and Louise McBarron was enough for second-place Paul Browne Plant Hire & Civil Engineering Junior ITRC points – a tally that will help Roche climb up from fourth in the standings.
Ulster Junior Rally top five:
1 Bushe/McBride (Nissan Micra) 59:49.0s
2 Dorrian/Browne (Honda Civic) +1:11.2s
3 Fallis/McBarron (Micra) +1:27.6
4 Roche/Roche (Civic) +4:26.3
5 McLaughlin/Wilson (Micra) +4:47.0

Next up – Cork 20 International Rally (4-5 October 2025)

October’s Cork 20 International Rally will conclude this year’s NAPA Auto Parts Irish Tarmac Rally Championship. With many category and class titles yet to be decided, it is sure to be an enthralling weekend on some of Ireland’s best asphalt stages.

NAPA Auto Parts ITRC Drivers’ Top Five
1 Callum Devine – 88 points
2 Declan Boyle – 57 pts
3 David Kelly – 46 pts
4 Michael Boyle – 38 pts
5 Kevin Eves – 36 pts

NAPA Auto Parts ITRC Co-Drivers’ Top Five
1 Patrick Walsh – 75 points
2 Andy Hayes – 68 pts
3 Chris Melly – 44 pts
4 Darragh Mullen – 43 pts
5 Mikie Galvin – 36 pts