Nutt's sights set on a record sixth title

MOTOR SPORT:  Sunday's Killarney Historic Stages Rally has attracted the event's largest ever entry, 180 crews having registered with the organisers, the Killarney and District Motor Club, but only 151 cars - 302 competitors - will be permitted to start from Killarney Racecourse.

The Historic division is headed by Dessie Nutt, John Keatley and Steve Perez in Porsche 911s, the top three seeds followed in starting order by Drexel Gillespie in a Ford Lotus Cortina, Philip Wylie (MGB), Adrian Kermode (Porsche 911), Stephen Hall (Triumph TR4), Mervyn Johnston (Mini Cooper) and David Holroyd (Lotus Elan).

The top three in the Post Historic division are Martin Freestone and John Farrell in Ford Escorts and Ray Cunningham in a Mini Cooper.

in the Classic division the leading trio are John Moynihan and Tom Randles in Ford Escort RSs and Kieran O'Neill in an Opel Kadett GT/E.

Dessie Nutt has won this event a record five times. His biggest challenge will come from former winner Keatley and 2003 British Historic Rally Champion Perez. Freestone and Farrell are both winners of the Post Historic division, and Moynihan has twice won the Classic division. Rallying legend Jimmy McRae, driving a Porsche 911, is expected to be a strong contender for Classic honours.

The event covers such classic stages as Moll's Gap, Beallaghbeama and Caragh Lake, also Brookhill and Coolick, nine testing stages in usually very varied weather and light conditions at this time of year in the mountains of the South-West.

Yesterday at Versailles, Citroen confirmed Sebastien Loeb (France) and Carlos Sainz (Spain) as the Citroen Xsara WRC drivers in the 2004 World Rally Championship. Next year a new event - The RIAC Gordon Bennett Commemorative Run - will be held to commemorate the 1903 Gordon Bennett Cup race which was staged over closed roads in Kildare, Carlow and Laois.

SATURDAY: MEC Sporting Trial, Russeltown, Blessington,11.30 am; Midland MC, Navigation Trial, starts Clondra, Co.Longford, 6.00 pm. SUNDAY: Killarney & District MC, Killarney Historic Rally, starts Killarney Racecourse, 8.20 am.