Rahill & Grogan tussle on Clare Forest Rally

Denied a true final day shoot out for the title, last weekends Clare Forest rally produced one of the most remarkable battles seen right across the 2024 MIJRS calendar, culminating in two of our brightest driving stars finishing the season finale separated by just 1.8 seconds after a breathtaking day of action.

The chase for the 2024 Class 2 title was over really before it began, with Tommy Moffett having to pull his entry before the start meaning Craig Rahill secured the series victory, and with it a nomination for a second year in a row for the Billy Coleman Award and a support package worth €10,000 from the Motorsport Ireland Academy.

Contested across the Sligo Pallets Forest Rally Championship & Triton Showers National Rally Championship, the MIJRS pits the finest young rally stars against each other on both gravel and tarmac events, the sole national series to offer such a challenge.

With the title pressure released, Rahill could have settled into a conservative pace in his Ford Fiesta Rally4 with an eye to getting the car home, but as the Cavan star has proven time and time again in a season that’s included three Class victories along the way, he’s not one for taking it easy and he duly arrived at the first service halt with a 6.2 second lead!

Keeping Rahill on his toes though was the Peugeot 208 Rally4 of Keelan Grogan, aiming to avenge his two retirements on Gravel earlier in the year while also using the event as a warmup before the Stellantis Cup finale in a few weeks. Grogan would go quickest on the opening stage, and he and Rahill would swap the lead nearly stage by stage.

As the rain began to fall ever heavier, the MIJRS Class 2 battle in Clare came down to the monstrous 16.9km final stage. Rahill would enter the stage first, holding a slender advantage on the times, with Grogan entering two minutes later. Rahill threw everything he had at it, but it wouldn’t be enough as Grogan went even wilder. He would finish 7.5 seconds faster than his rival, and with it claimed victory by just 1.8 seconds over 57km of high-speed action!

Elsewhere in the class battle, Cian Caldwell had a frustrating time of things as a puncture caused him to slip into a drain on Stage 3 and drop a significant amount of time that saw him slip away from the leading crews, while Jack Brennan & Mossie Costello used the event to gain huge learnings on what was a challenging day of heavy rain and slippery stages.

In J1000 battle, the 2024 title was also wrapped up in Clare, with Oisin McShane rounding off a remarkable debut season in the sport as he clinched the MIJRS crown with a round to spare. The Donegal native was in dominant form as he charged to a 33 second victory ahead of Danny Brady & David Travers who joined the podium celebrations at the Scariff GAA complex.

The J1000 battle finishes on the upcoming Laois Gravel Sprint on October 19th, and while McShane has won the class, there is still a battle raging for second and third places. As it stands, Danny Brady is assured of one of these spots regardless of whether he competes in Laois, but for Tommy Cronin & David Travers its more complex. After a disappointing final stage retirement in Clare, a victory in Laois is his only shot at claiming 3rd in the MIJRS. For Travers, a win gets him second place, or a victory by anyone except Cronin gets him third.

One of the most remarkable drives in Clare though must surely have been that of Jack Harris, rounding off a season that saw him claim the inaugural Class 2A title in his Ford Fiesta R2T on Round 6 in Cork. In a really impressive drive, Harris at times set stage times quicker than those in Class 2, and took his own class victory on route to finishing 19th overall on the event.

Jack Kennedy had issues with his Fiesta but finished second, while Ciara Duggan sadly slid off the road and ended her season on a disappointing note but will be buoyed to still be claiming 3rd place in Class 2A.

The 2024 MIJRS Prize Winners (so far);

Class 2 (Rally4) 1st Overall Driver: Craig Rahill - who will receive a" 2024 Billy Coleman Award" Nomination, Winners Trophy, Training, coaching & support to the value of €10,000 as part of the Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy the following year.

Class 2 (Rally4) 2nd Overall Driver: Tommy Moffett - who will receive a Trophy & support to the value of €7,000.

Class 2 (Rally4) 3rd Overall Driver: Dylan Eves-  who will receive a Trophy & support to the value of €5,000.

Class 2A (R2 & R2T) :1st Overall Driver: Jack Harris who will receive a" 2024 Billy Coleman Award" Nomination, Winners Trophy, Training, coaching & support to the value of €10,000. as part of the Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy the following year.

Class 2A ( R2 & R2T) 2nd Overall Driver: Jack Kennedy - who will receive a Trophy & support to the value of €7,000.

Class 2A ( R2 & R2T) 3rd Overall Driver: Ciara Duggan -  who will receive a Trophy & support to the value of €5,000.