MOTOR SPORT NEWS:THE PRESSURE to perform is firmly on Adam Carroll's young shoulders in the feature and sprint races of Sunday's A1 Grand Prix Gauteng. The "Powered by Ferrari" A1 GP cars race for the first time on the Kyalami circuit near Johannesburg, which hosted the South African Grand Prix up to the mid-1980s.
Ireland lead the World Cup of Motorsport on 65 points from reigning champions Switzerland on 52 points. Portugal, on 49 points, head the first A1 GP champions, France, on 41 points.
As the championship leader, the Portadown driver must keep a cool head under intense pressure from the likes of Switzerland’s Neel Jani, Portuguese driver Filipe Alburquerque and South Africa’s local ace, Adrian Zaugg.
Meanwhile, last year’s winner Gareth MacHale is the top seed of the 161 crews in Sunday’s Birr Rally, the opening round of the Dunlop National Rally Championship. MacHale drives an Opel Corsa S2000 of the type to eventually replace the powerful WRC cars in the World Championship, and he will be at a disadvantage against the Subaru WRCs of reigning champion Patrick Elliott, record triple-champion Niall Maguire, Kevin Barrett and English driver James Harrison, who returns to Irish rallying after a two-year absence. The Group N contenders are Anthony O’Halloran, Kevin Kelleher, Eamonn Daly and Seán Flanagan.
Elsewhere, Derrick Jobb can claim the Irish Rallycross Championship if he repeats last weekend’s win in this Sunday’s penultimate round at Mondello Park.
FIXTURES: Tomorrow: Cork MC, 4x4 Trial, Coachford, Co Cork, 11am. Sunday: Birr District MC, Stages Rally, Nenagh, 8.30am; Carlow CC, Rallycross, Mondello Park, 10am; MEC, Hewison Trophy Autotest, Rathnew, Co Wicklow, 11am; Cork MC, 4x4 Trial, Coachford, Co Cork, 11am.
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