CHAMPIONSHIPS in virtually all the racing classes will most likely be decided over the next two days at Mondello Park, at the 53rd Leinster Trophy meeting, the penultimate championship races of the year.
In addition to all the usual races, there will be the 75th anniversary race for Formula Libre cars, which will feature two Formula Atlantic Ralts, driven by Dan Daly and Tony Skinner, Laurie Scarlett in a Crossle 9S sports racer, John Keaney in the famous TMC GT, and the Formula Ford 2,000s of Ronnie Maybin and Neville Anderson.
The Leinster Trophy is for formula opel cars, and there will also be a round of the Bridgestone championship in which Derek Cunneely on 99 points leads Michael Edgar (95) and Adrian Pollock (61).
Brian Hearty, Hugh Maguire and Paul Dagg are looking good to win the three formula vee championships. Gordon Kellet on 119 points leads the touring car championship from Michael Cullen (110), Jonathan Eildes and Shaun Magill (96 each). Rounds of the Fiat Uno and Ritmo championships will also be run, as well as races for the classics, sidecars and karts.
Twenty three races (plus practise) will be packed into the two days, with most of the racing being televised by RTE.
The Hewison Trophy gets under way with weekend events at Vernon Mount, Cork, organised by the Cork MC (tomorrow) and Munster MC and CC (Sunday).
Stephen Murphy and Mickey Joe Morrissey are on a record winning streak in the national rally championship, with eight wins out of nine starts. As reported last week, Murphy competes in the Hong Kong Beijing rally in October, but before he takes off to China, the Carlow driver will contest a number of home events.
The Murphy/Morrissey combination are seeded number one in Sunday's Galway summer rally, running the Ford Escort RS Cosworth on Round 12 of the National series.
Tomorrow the motorcycling "daredevils" take to the roads of Down in the Carrowdore 100, where Joey Dunlop hopes to return to road racing after a two month enforced lay off, the result of a race crash in Latvia at the end of June.
Derek Young, Gary Dynes, Dennis McCullough, James Courtney, Alan Irwin and Robert Dunlop are listed for Carrowdore, the final road race of the MCUI Ulster Centre season. Racing will be over the 5.4 miles circuit for which Phillip McCallum holds the lap record at 113.35 mph.
