Latest news with #JonArmstrong
Irish Examiner
12 hours ago
- Automotive
- Irish Examiner
Motorsport: Paddon targets Donegal success on first competitive Irish outing
Reigning and double European Rally Champion, New Zealander Hayden Paddon (Hyundai i20 N Rally2) gets his first competitive taste of Irish rallying shortly after eleven o'clock on Friday on the 14.3km Malin Head stage, the first of the weekend's twenty stages of the Wilton Recycling Donegal International Rally. Although the three-day Letterkenny-based event is the fourth round of the NAPA Auto Parts Irish Tarmac Rally Championship, the fact that both Keith Cronin and Matt Edwards, have for different reasons, paused their rallying, some of the usual shine has been taken from the series. However, the presence of Paddon along with Kesh driver Jon Armstrong and Moira's William Creighton has cranked up the competition level in the north-west. Paddon has faced both and indeed top seed Callum Devine in last year's Rali Ceredigion in Wales, where the New Zealander took a comfortable victory. However, Donegal will be very different as Paddon told the Irish Examiner yesterday morning. "We (with his Cork born co-driver David Moynihan) have just completed all our recce (reconnaissance), the stages are very fast and technical at the same time. It's going to be very difficult to be at the same speed as the locals when you don't have the knowledge of the roads. We're going to do the best job we can but its difficult when you don't have the experience. Ceredigion was even, we had the same amount of experience but coming here is different as they (local drivers) know the roads so well and we have respect for that. "First and foremost we've come here to enjoy ourselves. The second pass through the stages will be quicker, but until you actually drive them for the first time and have a feel of all the bumps and how the car reacts you don't know. For sure on the second pass you would be more confident." He concluded: "It's a big challenge for us both, obviously Dave (co-driver) has got to learn my pacenote system and for me it's a different voice that you hear in the intercom and how I interpret the words. A challenge is good, it makes it more exciting." Paddon will try and add his name to other luminaries that have triumphed in Donegal like Achim Armbold (1975), Ari Vatanen (1978) and Sebastien Loeb (2007) all of whom have added to the event's legendary status. Top seed Devine will be followed off the start line by Jon Armstrong - fresh from a fine third place on last weekend's Rally Poland and without the shackles of a championship bid, he's unlikely to hold back. In any case, such is the pace, there's no time to adopt a wait and see process when seconds or even parts of, are crucial. Creighton missed the last round of the BRC but arrives in Donegal as leader of the BRC courtesy of his victory in the East Riding Stages and second on the Carlisle Stages. At the wheel of the MEM Castrol-backed Toyota GR Yaris Rally2, he is fulfilling a personal desire. "Donegal is a rally that I've always wanted to contest in a Rally2 car. It's such a special event for Irish rallying and the atmosphere is second to none. The pace at the front of the ITRC is very strong. There's no room for error. It's important to find a good rhythm from the beginning of the rally. But that's what makes it such a brilliant challenge." Others in the top ten are Monaghan's Josh Moffett (Citroen C3 Rally2) and Welsh ace Meirion Evans in the second of the MEM Castrol Toyota GR Yaris Rally2 cars, who will be aiming to go one better than last year when he finished 17.4s behind Devine. "I'm happy with where I am with the Yaris Rally2 at the moment and I hope I can translate that into a really strong performance again. Our speed on the Rally of the Lakes in Killarney was really good and we managed to move our pace forward a bit more on the Jim Clark Rally. It would be great to go one better this time." Today's first leg is a loop of three stages repeated twice with servicing in Carndonagh.
BBC News
5 days ago
- Automotive
- BBC News
European podium for Armstrong at Rally Poland
Motorsport Ireland driver Jon Armstrong picked up his best result of the European Rally Championship season by finishing third at Rally Rally Championship driver Martins Sesks won the rally by one minute and six seconds ahead of Polish driver Mikolaj Marczyk, with Armstrong and co-driver Shane Byrne 9.5 seconds further back in M-Sport driver ended the opening day of running in fourth place, and picked up a position when Roone Korhonen rolled out of second place on the 10th from Northern Ireland, started to challenge local hero Marczyk for second but picked up a 10-second penalty for clipping a bale at a chicane on the 12th proved to be costly as he finished 0.5 seconds in front, but the penalty kept him in third place. "What a weekend in Poland," said Armstrong. "I'm so pleased to have claimed my career-first gravel podium here, put down some good pace and come away with this great result for the team."The result, along with four additional bonus points for being second quickest on the final stage moves Armstrong up to sixth in the championship after four of the eight rounds. The next event takes place in Rome at the start of July.
Belfast Telegraph
08-06-2025
- Sport
- Belfast Telegraph
I'll need to be quick learner for Donegal International Rally bid: Jon Armstrong
Jon Armstrong says he is going to have to learn the ropes quickly on this month's Donegal International Rally if he hopes to be in the mix come the final leg of the three-day event.
Irish Examiner
31-05-2025
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Motorsport: Struggle for Armstrong and Byrne at Royal Rally of Scandinavia
Luck continues to desert the Irish crew of Jon Armstrong and Shane Byrne, who ended the first leg of BAUHAUS Royal Rally of Scandinavia, the third round of the European Rally Championship, in 12th place. Scandinavian aces, Norway's Eyvind Brynildsen (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2) and Sweden's Isak Riersen (Skoda Fabia RS Rally2) are locked in a tense tussle with the former holding a 5.1s advantage. However, three others - Roope Kornhonen (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2), Frank Larsen (VW Polo GTi R5) and Andrea Mabellini (Skoda Fabia RS Rally2) are all within 22s of the lead heading into Saturday's final leg of eight stages. For Armstrong it was another day of highs and lows, from an impressive stage win on the SS4 to come within 9.5s of rally leader Brynildsen, further progress was halted just 3.2km into SS5 when he was forced to stop and change a punctured front wheel. 'We just went a bit too early in a corner over a crest and hit a bit of rock on the inside that was sticking out and I didn't spot it on the recce.' He added, 'These stages, you start going (cutting) more early everywhere because everyone is doing it and just end up seeing lines that weren't there when you started so we got a puncture and stopped to change it. It's frustrating." Fellow Irish driver Philip Allen (who won the qualifying stage) was only 6.1s off top spot before his Skoda Fabia RS Rally2 went off on a slippery tarmac section some 8.2km into the same stage. To his credit, Armstrong made a good recovery on the afternoon's three stages and clawed back six places. Rain on the day's final stage made for a tricky situation. "It was hard to keep a rhythm, a bit too much sliding with the rain, let's see what tomorrow brings." Brynildsen moved into the lead after SS4 and while Mads Ostberg (Citroen C3 Rally2) occupied second from SS5, a puncture on the penultimate stage saw him slip to eighth - 40.1s off the lead. In a post on Instagram, Kris Meeke (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2) has postponed his entry for the Donegal International Rally out of respect for his co-driver Brian Hoy and the tragic events on last week's Jim Clark Rally. Hoy was co-driver for Garry Jennings during last Sunday's Cavan Rally when the pair were injured in a crash. Eslewhere, the entry list for the Donegal International Rally (June 20/22) was announced on Friday evening. The top 10 is: 1. Callum Devine (Skoda Fabia RS Rally2); 3. Jon Armstrong (Ford Fiesta Rally2); 4. William Creighton (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2); 5. Matt Edwards (Hyundai i20 Rally2); 6. Josh Moffett (Citroen C3 Rally2); 7. Eddie Doherty (Skoda Fabia R5); 8. Meirion Evans (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2), 9. Sam Moffett (Hyundai i20 Rally2); 10. Declan Boyle (Skoda Fabia RS Rally2). BAUHAUS Royal Rally of Scandinavia (Round 3: European Rally Championship) Positions after Leg 1: E. Brynildsen/J. Listerud (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2) 47m. 59.1s; 2. I. Reiersen/S. Gustavsson (Skoda Fabia RS Rally2)+5.1s; 3. R. Korhonen/A. Viinikka (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2)+6.8s; 4. F. Larsen/L. Lundgreen (VW Polo GTi R5)+48m. 07.7s; 5. A. Mabellini/V. Lenzi (Skoda Fabia RS Rally2)+22.0s; 6. M. Marczyk/S. Gospodarczyk (Skoda Fabia RS Rally2)+32.4s; 7. M. Johansson/J. Gronvall (Skoda Fabia RS Rally2)+34.2s; 8. M. Ostberg/L. Karlsson (Citroen C3 Rally2)+40.1s; 9. S. Tempestini/S. Itu (Skoda Fabia RS Rally2)+50.4s; 10. S. Lefebvre/A. Malfoy (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2)+1m. 01.8s; 11. J. Matulka/D. Syty (Skoda Fabia RS Rally2)+1m. 32.6s; 12. J. Armstrong/S. Byrne (Ford Fiesta Rally2)+2m. 18.5s.
Irish Examiner
29-05-2025
- Automotive
- Irish Examiner
Motorsport: Crunch time for Armstrong and Byrne in Scandinavia
Regarded as one of the fastest events, the BAUHAUS Royal Rally of Scandinavia is the latest setting for Irish pair Jon Armstrong/Shane Byrne, who need to garner some top points for their European Rally Championship bid. The 17-stage Karlstad-based rally is a familiar location for the 30-year-old Kesh driver, who made his Rally2 debut at this level two years ago. 'It's primarily on roads used every day, so they're very wide and compact. But you've got quite a lot of loose gravel on top, so you want a lower road position to avoid road sweeping. It's all about carrying your speed, getting your lines right and keeping your right foot down as much as possible," said Armstrong. The former ERC3 champion will take encouragement from his pace in Rally Hungary, where he was only some 10 seconds off the lead after five stages before two punctures dropped him well down the order. "When you've lost that much time, you just have to try to reset and get back to the front again, just try to keep your pace up.' Points on the board for Armstrong/Byrne will be important, especially after their non-finish in the first round in Spain. While they recovered to finish 10th in Hungary, the M-Sport Ford World Rally Team crew will push the Pirelli-shod Ford Fiesta Rally2 to the maximum. Armstrong continued: 'Sweden's a different character rally (in comparison to the rough stages in Hungary) there will be lots of locals, but we have to give it a good go, it's my third year here, so I need to keep the right foot down. "It's not been a good start to the season but at least we have some pace. We just need some luck and a result and hopefully that will come.' Those locals include Isak Reiersen (Skoda Fabia RS Rally2) and reigning ERC Junior champion Mille Johansson (20), who has upgraded to a Skoda Fabia RS Rally2 for his home event. Fresh from his ERC winning debut outing in Hungary, much is expected of Finland's Roope Korhonen in his MRF Tyres Toyota GR Yaris Rally2 and his battle with championship leader Miko Marczyk (Skoda Fabia RS Rally2) and the similar car of Andrea Mabellini, Citroen C3 Rally 2 duo Mads Ostberg and Max McRae, Jos Verstappen and Simone Tempestini - both in Skoda Fabia RS Rally2 cars and inaugural Junior ERC champion Stéphane Lefebvre (Toyota GR Yaris Rally2) should be interesting. Armstrong, seeded at nine, should be very much in the mix. Meanwhile, and in the absence of championship leader Cashel's Pat O'Connell, who is on a family vacation, there's a strong possibility that the Sligo Pallets Irish Forest Rally series will have a new leader at the end of Saturday's Mayo Forest Rally, the fourth round of the championship. Tyrone's Jason Mitchell (Skoda Fabia Rs Rally2) is best placed to take advantage as he seeks to continue his good form having won on his two outings to date. He won last time out in Mitchelstown to close to within five points of O'Connell, however, given the shorter nature of tomorrow's event - just 45.16km - there will be room for error. Having made a good start, reigning champion Monaghan's Derek Mackarel (Ford Fiesta R5) has struggled with problems on his last two outings while Waterford's Andrew Purcell (Ford Fiesta Rally2) will be determined to turn the tables on Mitchell on this occasion. Others like the Tyrone trio of Gareth Mimnagh, Niall McGonigle and Stephen Dickson, all in Ford Fiesta Rally2 cars, provide the top opposition. The Mk.2 Escorts of Tyrone's Hugh McQuaid and Donegal's Damien Tourish are the top seeds in the two-wheel drive category where the Peugeot 208 Rally4 pair Cian Caldwell and Keelan Grogan and Jack Harris (Ford Fiesta) should make an impression. There are some twenty-six entries in the J1000 category led by the VW UP of Kilkenny's David Travers with a debut for former karter Meath's Holly Dunnion (Peugeot 107). The first of the six stages begins at 9.31am. Elsewhere, the Skibbereen Endurance Trial that has twenty selectives over the day has a 10.00am start on Sunday from the Carbery Rangers GAA complex in Rosscarbery.
