Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy driver Aoife Raftery secured her first-ever Irish Tarmac Rally Championship class win on Saturday’s Modern Tyres Ulster Rally.
Piloting her Peugeot 208 Rally4, the Craughwell-based driver dominated the class battle leading from start to finish.
The Ulster Rally served as a valuable tarmac shakedown for Raftery ahead of the ERC Rali Ceredigion in Wales – the fifth round of the Hankook Tires Junior FIA European Rally Championship – at the end of August.
This was only her second Irish tarmac event of the year, as she has been focusing on gravel rallies across Europe.
The challenging wet and mucky conditions posed no obstacle for the Galway native, who consistently set the pace throughout the event.
The Rally4 class in the Irish Tarmac Rally Championship is renowned for its fierce competition, making Raftery’s achievement even more impressive.
Together with co-driver Hannah McKillop, she not only clinched the class victory but also secured an impressive 24th overall and was the first front-wheel-drive car across the finish line.
“It has been fantastic, we had a great day, really enjoyed the stages and it is great to be back home, great preparation for Wales,” she said on the finish podium of Saturday evening.
“The stages were great, thanks to everyone for running a great rally. We are really happy. We have put in a lot of hard work over the last few years. The Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy puts in a massive effort, so it’s great to come away with this win today.”
Raftery fended off a late challenge from fellow Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy driver Cian Caldwell.
He and co-driver Liam Egan were attempting to close the gap to the long-time leader when they were forced to retire their Ford Fiesta Rally4 two stages from home with mechanical issues.
“We were on the wrong tyres,” said Caldwell after the morning loop of stages. “We went for a wet and did not get the rain, I made a few silly mistakes too.”
Jack Brennan and John McGrath were forced to retire their Peugeot 208 Rally4 on the opening stage with gearbox issues.
