Moving on up! Kelly stretches lead at the summit of the Stellantis standings

The Irish pairing of Joe Kelly and co-driver Killian McArdle have moved another step closer in the fight for one of the biggest prizes in Irish and UK rallying, by taking the Stellantis Motorsport Rally Cup IRE & UK win on the Grampian Forest Rally last weekend (8-9 August).

 

The Stellantis Cup is the home to front-wheel-drive Rally4 cars from the automotive powerhouse Stellantis – and includes cars such as the Peugeot 208, Opel Corsa and Lancia Ypsilon. The prize dangling at the end of the eight round calendar is a €40,000 prize pool built up by Race & Rally, Michelin Motorsport, Protyre Motorsport Ireland and LP Tents. The substantial offering will help the winner make the step to the FIA European Rally Championship with a support package consisting of championship registration, entries and tyres for five rounds in the 2026 Junior ERC season.

 

The latest challenge for the Stellantis Cup hopefuls was the Grampian Rally – 10 stages and over 50 punishing miles, with deep ruts, rocks lining the forestry roads and lingering dust all challenging factors to contend with. Sitting alongside the Stellanits Cup was the Probite British Rally Championship – with the Cup hopefuls also looking to bag points for the Junior British Rally Championship too.

 

Joe Kelly is on a trailblazing run – with the Donegal man sealing his third rally win of the season – adding his Scotland victory to podium toppers in England and Ireland earlier in the season. The Peugeot driver charged out of the blocks on the opening evening of the rally to salvage a 7.5 second cushion overnight. On the main day on Saturday – he wasn’t to have it his own way as title sparring partner Kyle McBride had the bit between his teeth to bring the deficit down to 5.3 seconds before the first service halt. An interesting battle then enraged with McBride continuing his march to draw level with Kelly on SS6.

McBride was getting too close for comfort for Kelly, who had to dig deep and throw everything at the stages if he was to turn the tide. Kelly who won the only other loose-surface event this year in Carlisle, responded in brilliant fashion to push the margin to a comprehensive 42.7 seconds at the finish! This result has moved himself and co-driver McArdle to an 11 point lead at the summit of the points table heading to Wales.

 

“We worked for that one big time!,” claimed Kelly. “We had no issues all weekend except for one puncture which we didn’t feel or lose any time with. I am speechless and so happy, as it means so much to me. Carlisle took me by surprise with our pace on gravel – as I haven’t done much on the loose compared to Tarmac. For our Stellantis Cup – this win doesn’t do us any harm at all. The aim this year is to win the Cup and we need to keep it up going to Ceredigion.”

 

McBride, try as he may – couldn’t keep on the coattails of Kelly out front and had to think strategically about the championship long term. His second place moves him from fourth up to second in the title joust. With two Tarmac rounds to come – his preferred surface. The Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy driver will be looking to haul in Kelly on Rali Ceredigion next up.

 

British driver Sam Mason and navigator James Seymour had shown flashes of brilliance this year but mechanical heartbreak on the final stage of the Carlisle denied them a podium. Fast forward four months and the Peugeot pairing bounced back in fine style to round out the rostrum with third.

 

Another driver who can be proud of her efforts in Scotland is Natalie Robinson with Sam Collis sat alongside. Robinson has limited experience at the wheel of her Peugeot 208 Rally4 – but her fight to fourth in the Cup on the Grampian will help elevate her into the top five in the overall standings.

 

Kalum Graffin and Mark McGeehan had a disappointing rally by their incredibly high standards. The Irish crew were grappling with a new, updated version of the Peugeot 208 Rally4 and took their time to click with the new machine. Fifth – the end result is enough to move him into third in the standings.

 

Dropping down a position in the Cup table to fourth is Jack Brennan and Eoghan Doherty who until the Grampian had finished every round and were both labelled mister consistent in the service park. Sadly, that points scoring run came to an end on SS6 of the Grampian when mechanical drama hit the Irish team – forcing them out of the event.

 

The Stellantis Motorsport Rally Cup IRE & UK returns to action next month, as the teams will pitch themselves against the best in Europe as Rali Ceredigion (5-7 September) – the Welsh round of the FIA European Rally Championship is up next. Not only will the crews battle amongst themselves, they will also have to lock horns with local hero and 2024 Stellantis Cup winner Ioan Lloyd who is contesting the FIA European Rally Championship this season.