Irish teams have won the last seven out of seven team events in autotest, and aim for eight in today's TDC International Trophy Autotests at the RDS in Ballsbridge.
The Republic of Ireland is represented by two teams: an A team consisting of Eamonn Byrne, Chris Grimes, James Pringle and Ronnie Griffin and a B team of JJ Farrell, Liam Cashman, Frank Lenehan and Robert Kinsella. Northern Ireland will also field strong teams. Robert Dickson, Milton McWilliam, R Donaldson and G McMillan make up the A team, while David Jenkins, D McCord, Gerard Hughes and Gilmore Magee are the B team. England will be represented by, amongst others, David Cooke in his Ford Anglia.
The autotest experts will be at it again tomorrow, in the final round of the RIAC Hewison Trophy Championship, run by the Co Kildare MC at The Curragh. Peter Grimes, on 296 points, has won the championship, beating five-ina-row record holder Eamonn Byrne (292). Farrell is third on 280, ahead of Christopher Evans (265) and Dermot Carnegie (254). Sam Johnston, Chris Grimes, Christopher Evans and Robert Kinsella are confirmed class winners. Eddie Peterson, on 43 points, is the novice champion. The World Rally Championship moves to Portugal (March 22nd-25th), where yet another titanic battle will be fought by the top-four manufacturers' or works' teams - Carlos Sainz (Spain) and Didier Auriol (France) in the new Toyota Corolla WRC's; Tommi Makinen (Finland) and Richard Burns (England) driving for Mitsubishi; Finnish pair Juha Kankkumen and Ari Vatanen driving Ford Escort WRC's; and Subaru 555 drivers Colin McRae (Scotland) and Piero Liatti (Italy). Sainz won the Monte Carlo Rally, reigning champion Makinen won in Sweden and Burns scored his first World Rally Championship round victory on the toughest of them all, the African Safari. After three rounds, Sainz and Kankkunen lead the championship on 16 points each. Burns, on 12, leads Makinen (10), with McRae, Vatanen and Auriol on four each.
In the manufacturers' championship, Mitsubishi on 22 points lead Ford 21; Toyota 19; Subaru 10. Based in Porto the Portuguese Rally starts on Sunday and will finish next Wednesday. The motor-cycle racing season opens with a short circuit meeting at Aghadowey, Co Derry today and at Mondello Park tomorrow. Fingal MCC's Mondello programme features races for all the usual solo classes, plus two new events - the Laser Computer Sales Production Race Series (for 150 mph-plus `over-thecounter' machines) and a Veterans' Race for over 35's (riders that is, not the machines). Limerick's Barrie Gill is firm favourite for the laser series. Championship leader Andrew Perry heads a line-up of top trials riders - Gareth Andrews, Stuart Martin, Michael Burton, Eric O'Sullivan and Warren Hendy - in tomorrow's Campbell Cup Trial at Sloggers, Glenasmole in the Dublin Mountains.
Also tomorrow, the ISBMCC Stage, an adult-only motorcross at Johnstown Motorcross Park near Naas.
