England and Mullen dominate

Oran England and Darragh Mullen became the first-ever winners of the revamped Stellantis Rally Cup Ireland after a dominant performance at the Abbey Court Hotel Birr Stages Rally at the weekend.

Driving a Peugeot 208 Rally4, the Cavan driver led the 11-car field from start to finish. Despite the greasy and damp conditions that caught out several experienced crews, England and Mullen reached the Nenagh finish ramp with a 43-second winning margin.

The victory was the result of a hard-fought battle with rivals across the nine-stage event. Speaking at the finish ramp, England admitted the pace at the front was relentless.

“We managed to ‘swim’ through it,” England said. “It was a brilliant but tough race. The boys kept us on our toes all day. We’d win a stage, then they’d win one. We never really had a chance to breathe and it was a fight right down to the wire.”

Tyre choice proved critical during the morning loops as the crew gambled on rubber for the drying surface. The win follows a tactical run in Mayo where the crew focused on gathering data on the Michelin tyres. That preparation paid off on a wet Nenagh Sunday morning, allowing them to find a rhythm early while others were still finding their feet.

Mullen noted the importance of the groundwork done leading up to the event: “The work Oran, myself and the team put into the pacenotes and the car in and after Mayo really paid off. It’s a full circle back to Oran’s first-ever rally, the corresponding Birr Rally two years ago, so it’s interesting to see how far he has come in such a short time behind the wheel.”

The result is a significant boost for their Motorsport Ireland National Rally Championship campaign.

With two wins from two, it is a vital step toward the Billy Coleman Young Rally Driver of the Year award nomination available to the championship winner.

The next round of the Triton Showers Motorsport Ireland National Rally Championship is the Monaghan Rally on April 12.