Devine wins third Donegal International Rally in a row
Callum Devine came through a demanding Donegal International Rally to win the event for a third year in a row. The 2023 Irish Tarmac Rally champion won the three-day event - one of the most famous rallies in Europe - alongside co-driver Noel O'Sullivan by 20.5 seconds ahead of Wales' Meirion Evans, while local driver David Kelly was third. Skoda driver Devine, 31, led after Friday's six stages but a gruelling Saturday saw a number of big names drop out of contention. European Rally Championship driver Jon Armstrong posted a number of fastest stage times and was challenging Devine on Saturday's first loop but a differential problem on his Ford Fiesta dropped him out of contention, and a second mechanical issue halted his recovery later in the day. Two time ERC champion Hayden Paddon, a late entry for the rally from New Zealand, was in the mix for victory but rolled out on Saturday's penultimate stage. The final stage on Saturday claimed British Rally Championship title challenger William Creighton, who slid off the road with a slow puncture and decided to retire his Toyota Yaris. The various issues for front runners took away from what could have been a titanic battle for the win in the Donegal hills as just 20 seconds separated Devine, Creighton, Evans and Paddon after 12 stages.However, as his rivals faltered, Devine, who himself battled handbrake issues, kept his cool to win the rally for the third consecutive year.Evans and co-driver Ger Conway were a comfortable second and, despite his issues, Armstrong and co-driver Shane Byrne had moved back into podium contention but the Fermanagh driver retired after an off on the final stage.That promoted Kelly and navigator Arthur Kierans onto the final step of the podium for the second year in a row.
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