Kenny McKinstry is set to make a return to the Hankook MSA Northern Ireland Stage Rally Championship at this Saturday’s WN Nutt & Son and LGC sponsored Dogleap Stages Rally.
The Banbridge driver, who is a multiple Northern Ireland rally champion, has submitted an entry to the Limavady based event, which takes place on Saturday 07 August.
Seeded first on the road, McKinstry will drive a Subaru Impreza WRC, which he also used at last Saturday’s Lurgan Park Rally, where he finished second overall.
Joining McKinstry at the Dogleap Rally will be many of the Hankook series regulars, including championship leader, Stuart Biggerstaff.
It will be a baptism of fire for young Biggerstaff as the Dogleap is the first forestry event of the season. It will also be 22-year-old Stuart’s first time driving competitively on gravel, so another huge learning curve is guaranteed for the Dromara pilot.
Derek McGarrity currently lies second in the series standings but he will miss the Dogleap Rally. Third placed George Robinson also has no plans on entering the event, so instead, Biggerstaff’s main championship opposition will come from the leading Group N crews.
Mark Donnelly is another young gun who has been impressive in this year’s Hankook series. Driving his Group N Mitsubishi Lancer, he lies fourth in the series standings and heads the Sunoco Fuels Group N category.
Enniskillen’s Raymond Johnston will also return to the fray. After missing the Mourne Rally, Johnston is determined to get his Group N title challenge back on track, and is seeded second ahead of Donagh Kelly.
A handful of non-championship registered competitors will also be vying for the leading positions. In addition to McKinstry, local driver and event sponsor Richard Hogg has entered the event, while Johnny McKenna could also throw a cat among the pigeons.
A number of entries have been received from across the water, including Durham’s Tristan Pye, London based Seamus Quinn and Hull’s Tony Dickinson.
Based at LGC, Limavady, the event will feature eight stages totalling approximately 45 stage miles. More details can be found online at www.nirally.com and www.maidencitymotorclub.com.
Dogleap Rally top 10 seeds:
1 Kenny McKinstry/Harvey Bell (Impreza WRC)
2 Raymond Johnston/Rodney Hicks (Lancer Evo 9)
3 Donagh Kelly/Kevin Flanagan (Lancer Evo 9)
4 Johnny McKenna/Noreen McShea (Lancer Evo
5 Stuart Biggerstaff/Anthony Nestor (Impreza WRC)
6 Tristan Pye/Eunan McCosuer (Impreza)
7 Richard Hogg/Mark Hanna (Lancer Evo 6)
8 Cyril Doherty/Graham Henderson (Impreza)
9 Trevor Ferguson/David McElroy (Impreza)
10 Martin Cairns/Andrew Purcell (Impreza WRC)
– Credit: www.rallybuzz.com