SS3: Devine retakes Sperrins lead; Henry overshoots and stalls!

By NI Rally Championship
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Updated: 16 October 2021

SS3: Callum Devine and Brian Hoy have retaken the lead after stage three of the Go Power Tour of the Sperrins Rally! Desi Henry and Niall Burns lost time when they overshot a hairpin and stalled during the test, handing Devine an opportunity to capitalise while Henry has dropped to third.

“We stalled at a hairpin and couldn’t get her started again,” a disappointed Henry said.

Meanwhile, Devine had another solid run through the test and now leads the event by eight seconds from Phillip Allen and Eugene Donnelly who have climbed to second.

“The stage was OK,” Devine said. “We’re starting to get into a bit of rhythm.”

Meanwhile, second placed Allen brushed against a bale and reckoned his tyres were going off. The gap between Allen in second and Henry in third stands at 3.1s.

Jonny Greer was surprised to see some fog near the top of the mountain but he continues to hold fourth overall and his bid for another N.I. Championship title is still on track. Peadar Hurson is fifth with Stephen Wright in sixth.

“I’m really struggling to push and commit,” Wright admitted. “They’re brave stages but we’re staying out of trouble.”

Garry Jennings is just a couple of seconds behind Wright despite a broken shaft. “We were running in three-wheel-drive but we’ll get it fixed in service.”

Stuart Biggerstaff is also in a bit of trouble with his Fiesta. “We’ve lost fifth gear so we’re losing a lot of time on the big straights.”

In the tussle for two-wheel-drive honours, Scottish visitor David Bogie continues to head the order, although Bogie reckons things could become more difficult if the rain arrives. A number of crews running behind him on the road subsequently reported some rain during that third test.

Marty McCormack is really enjoying is run in his Escort and commented: “That is some craic! I’m really enjoying it!” Meanwhile, Camillus Bradley is bedding himself in on what is his first rally in over three years and John Devlin reckoned the stage was “a bit tricky with the mist and the rain.”

Crews are now heading back to service in Swatragh. For the latest results, visit rallyscore.net and for live stage end interviews, visit @onthepacenote.

After SS3

1 Callum Devine/Brian Hoy (Fiesta)
2 Philip Allen/Eugene Donnelly (Fiesta R5) +8.0s
3 Desi Henry/Niall Burns (i20 R5) +11.1s
4 Jonny Greer/Kirsty Riddick (C3 R5) +20.2s
5 Peadar Hurson/Damien Connolly (Fiesta WRC) +25.6s
6 Stephen Wright/Liam Moynihan (Fiesta) +43.4s

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