Latest news with #Meeke
Belfast Telegraph
12-06-2025
- Automotive
- Belfast Telegraph
Dungannon driver Kris Meeke reveals the big challenge he faces in latest Portuguese test
He is returning to a rally he won back in 2023 — and came close to conquering last year only for a throttle issue and a late puncture to deny him — in a car he has never driven in anger on Tarmac before. To complicate matters further, the competitive route for the two-day, closed-road fixture has undergone a number of tweaks as organisers attempt to increase the challenge for competitors. A shakedown test has been planned by the Sports & You team for the Dungannon man and team-mate Stuart Loudon to help the 45-year-old dial in the new Toyota Gazoo Racing Yaris Rally2 on asphalt. 'It will undoubtedly be an interesting challenge,' admitted Meeke, who had been due to travel from Portugal to Letterkenny for next weekend's Donegal International Rally before having a change of heart following the death of Dai Roberts while competing on the Jim Clark Rally in Scotland, and his co-driver for Donegal — Brian Hoy — suffering injuries in a crash on the Cavan Stages Rally. 'It will be my first time with the new Yaris on asphalt, so there is going to be a lot to learn. In addition, we have not driven competitively on asphalt since last October's Vidreiro Rally, so the test is going to be essential to gain confidence — and help us prepare ourselves as best possible.' Meeke's winning start to the defence of his Portuguese crown came to an end on May's Rally de Portugal when late suspension failure on the final stage meant he was unable to make it back to parc ferme and collect another maximum points haul for topping the timesheets. He added: 'Rally de Portugal was obviously very disappointing, but that is behind us now. There are many new aspects to the Castelo Branco Rally and looking at the route, there are new special stages, and that means prior knowledge will not carry as much weight. 'It makes everything even more competitive, it will certainly be a close fight, especially with people like Dani (Sordo, Team Hyundai Portugal), but I am excited about the challenge.' Rali de Castelo Branco begins on Friday with four short stages and continues on Saturday when crews will tackle a further eight speed tests, the last of which is scheduled to get underway at 9.30pm UK time. Meanwhile, Kesh driver Jon Armstrong is also in action this weekend as he resumes his FIA European Rally Championship campaign at Rally Poland with Shane Byrne and M-Sport Ford.
Belfast Telegraph
31-05-2025
- Automotive
- Belfast Telegraph
I can't compete at Donegal while pal Brian Hoy recovers after horror crash, says Kris Meeke
Meeke was due to compete at June's event with the Fermanagh navigator in a Toyota GR Yaris Rally2 – the same car he has so far dominated the 2025 Portuguese Rally Championship in, winning three of the opening four rounds. Hoy is currently recovering from an accident that happened on the Cavan Stages Rally; he was sitting alongside Garry Jennings when their Ford Fiesta Rally2 went off the road and hit a tree. Jennings said the cause of the crash was due to the supermini getting out of shape over a small jump. Thanks to the quick thinking of fellow competitors Cathan McCourt and Barry McNulty and Declan Boyle and Patrick McCrudden, he said they both owed their lives to them. Jennings sustained a broken leg, sternum, ribs, shoulder and wrist in the incident, while Hoy has been receiving treatment for a broken leg and arm. As such, former World Rally Championship event winner Meeke has decided to pull his Donegal Rally entry, with the 45-year-old also citing the tragic death of Dai Roberts on the second day of the Duns-based Jim Clark Rally as another reason. Roberts' driving mate James Williams was conveyed to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh where he has since undergone surgery, with his condition said to be stable and the prognosis 'positive'. Posting on social media, Meeke wrote: 'I had hoped to be out on Donegal International Rally this year, and Brian Hoy was due to co-drive. 'Unfortunately, Brian was badly injured last weekend in a rally with Garry Jennings. 'Out of respect to Brian and the tragic events on the Jim Clark Rally, I felt uneasy to search around for a co-driver who I'd no experience with. So, finally we decided to postpone our entry until the future. 'Huge thanks to all who put in the effort to put everything together. Wishing Brian Hoy and Garry Jennings all the strength in their recovery,' added Meeke, whose previous outing on Irish soil came in 2009 at the Midland Stages Rally. Meanwhile, a JustGiving page set up to support the wife and two children of Dai Roberts has so far raised over £126,900. Those behind the idea have said the money will go to cover funeral costs and provide ongoing support.
Belfast Telegraph
19-05-2025
- Automotive
- Belfast Telegraph
Josh McErlean hails job well done at Rally de Portugal: ‘It's been a really nice weekend and we have loved every moment of it'
On his favourite round of the FIA World Rally Championship, McErlean comfortably came out on the right side of a weekend-long battle with team-mate Gregoire Munster in the British squad's second Puma. Remarkably, despite the notoriously rough nature of the competitive route, the 25-year-old reported no major problems with his car, with this boding well for the next round in Sardinia from June 5 to 8. 'Honestly, it has been a really nice weekend and we have loved every moment of it,' reflected McErlean, whose resilience was rewarded with four morale-boosting World Rally Championship points. 'It has been a crazy rally as always; it is so nice to come to the finish clean and with some good times as well. 'It has been a very long and demanding weekend for car and crew, and to finish as the first Puma home is really nice. 'We learned a lot with the car and the tyres, and we will look to bring that forward into the Sardinia test this Wednesday, so we are straight back into it – there is not time for much rest, really. 'We took an approach this weekend that we wouldn't do so much on changing the car set-up. 'The other two guys, Gregoire and Martins Sesks, did a lot, but we largely stayed as we were and it worked out.' Co-driven by Vincent Landais, Ogier completed the four-day gravel classic 8.7 seconds up on Hyundai's Ott Tänak, with double World Rally champion Kalle Rovanpera a further 3.5 seconds back in third. Meanwhile, Kris Meeke's hard luck story at Rally de Portugal continued into a third successive year as suspension failure brought his 100 per cent win record in the Portuguese Championship to an end. Despite an incorrect tyre choice for the opening loop of four stages and picking up a puncture on stage six, Meeke and Stuart Loudon in their Sports & You Toyota GR Yaris Rally2 looked nailed on for victory. However, the harsh nature of the Iberian gravel roads eventually told when the left-rear corner on the Japanese supermini collapsed a few kilometres from the end of Friday's final stage. Although they crawled through 'Sever-Albergaria', they were unable to complete the 62-mile road section back to the city of Porto, meaning they relinquished top spot to Skoda Fabia RS Rally2 driver Pedro Almeida. 'The Yaris was perfect again, and the proof of that was the lead we managed to create throughout the day, but this wasn't the finish we wanted,' said Meeke, who is back in action at Rali de Castelo Branco on the weekend of June 13 and 14. 'Rallies are just like that, unfortunately. We know that we have an excellent car and an excellent team – and we are going to come back strong in the next round.'
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Rally Portugal set to feature record-equaling WRC Rally1 line-up
Rally Portugal will welcome the strongest Rally1 line-up since 2022 when it hosts the next round of the World Rally Championship later this month. Twelve Rally1 cars are set to tackle Portugal's 24 gravel stages for round five of the season from 15-18 May. Advertisement Toyota will once again field five GR Yaris Rally1 cars with the most successful driver in Rally Portugal history, six-time winner Sebastien Ogier, set to make his third start of a partial campaign. The eight-time world champion, who won last year's round in Portugal, will join full-time Toyota drivers, including championship leader Elfyn Evans, Kalle Rovanpera, Takamoto Katsuta and Sami Pajari. The round will also feature the debut of Toyota's recently revealed silver paint scheme that will replace the black livery for the summer events. Hyundai will field its trio of i20 N Rally cars for Thierry Neuville, Ott Tanak and Adrien Fourmaux, while M-Sport-Ford will be represented by four Pumas. Martins Sesks rejoins the squad for the second of six scheduled starts for the British team, alongside Gregoire Munster and Josh McErlean. The fourth Puma will be driven by experienced 55-year-old local privateer Diogo Salvi. The entry marks the largest line-up of Rally1 cars since Rally Spain in 2022. Toyota and M-Sport have already begun preparations for the round, conducting pre-event tests this week. Last time there were 12 Rally1 cars on the entry was Rally Spain in 2022 Last time there were 12 Rally1 cars on the entry was Rally Spain in 2022 Red Bull Content Pool Red Bull Content Pool Advertisement Meanwhile, a record 45 cars have been entered into the WRC2 class, which includes WRC rally winners Kris Meeke and Dani Sordo. Meeke and Sordo are both contesting the Portuguese national championship, which is hosting its fourth round of the season at the WRC event. Former factory Mini, Citroen and Toyota driver Meeke will pilot a Toyota GR Yaris Rally2, that has so far edged works Hyundai WRC driver Sordo (i20 N Rally2) to victory in the previous two rounds of the championship. The entry list features several WRC2 title protagonists including Oliver Solberg, current points leader Yohan Rossel, Nikolay Gryazin, Gus Greensmith and Fabrizio Zaldivar. The round will also mark the return of WRC Rally1 driver Pierre-Louis Loubet, having agreed a deal to drive a Ford Fiesta Rally2 for M-Sport, rejoining the team he competed with in Rally1 in 2023. To read more articles visit our website.
Belfast Telegraph
05-05-2025
- Automotive
- Belfast Telegraph
‘It was a crazy rally' – Kris Meeke overcomes conditions for third straight win in Portugal
Meeke was caught out by the muddy road conditions three miles into the last stage of the event to see his nine-second lead over Team Hyundai Portugal's Dani Sordo evaporate. Incredibly, moments after Sordo had inherited top spot, he gave the position back again when he punctured the left-rear wheel on his Team Hyundai Portugal-run i20 N Rally2. It meant Meeke's 13th career victory on Portuguese soil was achieved by a margin of 27.6 seconds over Sordo, with Armindo Araujo rounding out the podium spots in third. Prior to the mistake on 'Aboboreira 2', Meeke had worked hard to keep a determined Sordo at arm's length, with scratch times on six of the 10 gravel speed tests helping his cause. Once again, fellow former World Rally Championship driver Sordo was the main thorn in the Dungannon man's side, as the challenge of WRC2 frontrunner Yohan Rossel (Citroen C3 Rally2) failed to materialise, while Martins Sesks — who entered the gravel meeting as a warm-up for Rally de Portugal next weekend — retired his Ford Fiesta Rally2 on stage five. 'Three out of three in the Portuguese Championship is special and three-times a winner in d'Aboboreira is also pretty nice, but the circumstances here this weekend — especially the weather just before the final stage — was crazy with torrential rain leaving the stage full mud,' said Meeke. 'I made a mistake, I spun, and I had to reverse 150 metres up the road. 'When I got going again I knew that my overall advantage was gone. I tried to push as hard as I could, but in those conditions, it was so slippery — you just can't imagine how slippery it was. I was aquaplaning quite a lot and I would even say it was scary at times. 'I really tried and unfortunately for Dani he picked up a puncture halfway through, so we took the win after what I can only describe as a crazy rally. As a team we have a lot of work to do between now and Rally de Portugal, especially the Hankook tyre we will be using.' Despite the last-minute drama taking a little of the shine off Meeke's achievement, he still spoke highly of the professionalism of the organising Club Automovel de Amarante and the areas the route passed through, including Amarante, Marco de Canaveses, and Baião. 'I enjoyed the event a lot, honestly,' said Meeke. 'This region, I have always said it and I will say it again: this is one of my favourite places in the world to come and drive a rally car.'
