Donnelly leads Manx International Rally
A massive battle for supremacy during the second leg of the Manx International Rally saw Eugene Donnelly (Toyota Corolla) move 20 seconds ahead of rival and fellow Northern ace Kenny McKinstry (Subaru) tonight.
Derek McGarrity in his Subaru has to content himself with third overnight.
Meanwhile, Mark Higgins and Donegal co-driver Rory Kennedy (Subaru) are now the leading contenders in the race for the top place in the British Rally Championship.
Although McKinstry extended his lead to nine seconds after today’s opening stage, it wasn’t long before Donnelly was the driving force.
A number of fastest times eventually propelled him into the lead, albeit by a mere second. McGarrity was still very much in the hunt – just some five seconds off the lead.
Donnelly punched in the best times over the final three stages and enters tomorrow’s third and final leg with a 20 second advantage.
McKinstry, who damaged the gearbox after a heavy landing, is 15 seconds ahead of McGarrity. Eamonn Boland continues to hold fourth.
Mark Higgins was a class apart in Group N where Irish driver Rory Galligan rolled his Mitsubishi out of the rally. Mel Evans (Subaru) and Andreas Mikkelsen (Ford Focus) were the day’s other principal retirements.
Clonmel’s Roy White (Mitsubishi) is the leading Irish Group N Championship driver - he has an advantage of 20 seconds over Limerick’s Colm Murphy in his Subaru.
Guy Wilks (Suzuki Ignis) leads the S1600 class where Cork driver Brian O'Mahony is fourth in class.
His plight not helped from this morning’s start position – after he lost more than a minute on the last stage on Thursday night.
1. E. Donnelly/P. Kiely (Toyota Corolla WRC) 1h 44m 37.6s.
2. K. McKinstry/N. Orr (Subaru WRC) 1h 45m 06.6s.
3. D. McGarrity/D. Falvey (Subaru WRC) 1h 45m 21.8s.
4. E. Boland/F. Regan (Ford Focus WRC) 1h 46m 27.7s.
5. M. Higgins/R. Kennedy (Subaru) 1h 48m 08.6s.
6. G. Wilks/P. Pugh (Suzuki) 1h 50m 55.2s.
7. J. Milner/N. Beech (Mitsubishi) 1h 51m 46.9s.
8. R. White/S. McCauley (Mitsubishi) 1h 52m 32.6s.
9. C. Murphy/G. Loughrey (Subaru) 1h 52m 52.7s.
10. P. Morrow/D. Barritt (Mitsubishi) 1h 52m 56.4s.
