One of the Best Days Ever in Irish Motorsport

hi_sir

what a day for irish motorsport with Kris meeke and Paul Nagle wining the IRC title and Keith Cronin and Greg Shinnors wining the British rally title

hi_sir

Kris and Paul at the finish

afatbollix

biggest smile ive seen kris with...


great year for the lads.. Ive booked my flights to scotland for when ireland takes over scotland in suport of meeke...

Also great news of keith cornin winning the British rally champ.. it all went down to today and he kept the head to win the rally and the championship...

hi_sir

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TtbE4_qfYOM

hi_sir

BFassassin

Congrats to both drivers and co-drivers.
Great news for them.

aidan_dunne

Congrats to all, great year for Irish motorsport as a whole (Team Ireland winning the A1GP title, Meeke & Nagle winning IRC and Cronin & Shinnors winning the BRC). Long may the success continue!

I didn't see the news on the telly last night so I'd be interested to hear from anyone who did see it if Meeke's success in the IRC got any kind of mention at all in the sports news? I wouldn't be in the least bit surprised if it didn't! :mad:

hi_sir

not a mention keith cronin got a very small mention at six oclock but nothing at 9 of course RTE could not give a toss about irish motorsport

aidan_dunne

Absolute disgrace! :mad:

Of course, it's not just RTE who don't seem to give a toss about Irish motorsport (apart from John Kenny, the only sports reporter in the whole of RTE, it seems, who has an interest in motorsport and always makes a point of mentioning the motorsport results when he's on the radio or whatever. Oh, there's Peter Collins too but the less said about him the better! ). The print media as well has little or no interest in motorsport either unless it's F1 and even if an Irish driver is successful somewhere the most it would merit in the papers would be a passing mention in a tiny sidebar column buried away amongst the horse racing or greyhound racing results or something! You might get a half page article at the very most, if you were lucky! :mad:

hi_sir

the two print medial the will cover it will be the independent and the examiner as usual they do cover rallying but after yea you can forget it

h3000

Well done to all. Fupping delighted:D:D

Mirror Image

well done to the lads:D
rte actually reported on the wins, they don't do enough rally coverage on the news

hi_sir

dont know what rte you were on but the 6 news just about mentioned it on sat

double black

We nearly had another top-level motorsport series win the weekend after with Peter Dempsey from Ashbourne, Co. Meath, narrowly missed out winnng the Star Mazda Championship in Laguna Seca.

Peter headed the points table for most of the year and had more poles and wins than any other driver. However a DNF in the final round meant the fully funded drive in Formula Atlantic for 2010 wasn't to be his.

Race report at starmazda.com

Pete is a very skilled driver with a great attacking style. Hopefully someone has spotted his talent to help fund his next wrung on the latter in 2010.

It's a shame the Star Mazda and Formula Atlantic series aren't available on TV here.

Grim.

same old story with Ireland hundreds of milllions of euro poured into the GAA which leaves everyone else fighting over the scraps.

Tv coverage of motor sports in Ireland is a disgrace as well but somethings will never change

soon30

its great to see irish drivers getting ahead in the sport hopefully we might have a decent wrc driver in a team some time soon.Its sad to see the mchale's getting the best runs in the wrc as they really arnt the top of irish drivers austin was very good but no wrc driver and the two lads wouldnt be in rally cars only for there contacts and money
keith cronin has started at the bottom and is working his way up
and earning every brake he gets he has big shoes to fill now as he is to the best of my knowledge the only irish driver to win the brittish championship since billy coleman who was the first and only irish winner for a long time
you have to admire the likes of coleman and frank maher who made it
to the top of the sport against huge finacial odds ridiculously so in frank maher's case very few know exactly how much he put on the line to finace his private rally concern and thrilled the crowds while doing so class
act and a true gent.billy coleman was professional at the end of his career which removed the finacial presures but he earned his way there every bit of it and was one of prodrives first drivers and helped them make there mark early on as one of the top rally teams in the world followed a few years later by colin macrae who really put them at the top
I would imagine it is even harder now for drivers like keith to progress to this level but i certanly hope we get to see some new irish drivers takeing on the top of the sport

se conman

As with all high end sports , money talks.I know what you are saying about the McHales but you have to give them a lot of credit for all three of them lining up for Rally Ireland.It cost them a lot , but as they could afford it , they were there unlike others who could also afford it but did't show.

soon30

I dought there were two many irish rally drivers sitting at home that had the money to be in rally ireland id imagine that it was two expensive for them to enter even for the ones with wrc cars their budgets have to last them for the championship that they are in
indeed the mchales did spend a lot of money on the event and 3 wrc cars from a private family team in a wrc round is probably unheard of in the world let alone ireland especialy when the likes of subaru have droped out due to the expence of the sport.It must be hurting their sales do as
subaru's name and sales were grown out of their envolvement in the wrc
the new impreza has lost out on a lot of publicity
does any one know when the new rules will come in fo the newer type of wrc car that is supposed to cut back the costs of running a car i dont think there are two many changes for 2010

hi_sir

soon30 wrote: »

its great to see irish drivers getting ahead in the sport hopefully we might have a decent wrc driver in a team some time soon.Its sad to see the mchale's getting the best runs in the wrc as they really arnt the top of irish drivers austin was very good but no wrc driver and the two lads wouldnt be in rally cars only for there contacts and money
keith cronin has started at the bottom and is working his way up
and earning every brake he gets he has big shoes to fill now as he is to the best of my knowledge the only irish driver to win the brittish championship since billy coleman who was the first and only irish winner for a long time
you have to admire the likes of coleman and frank maher who made it
to the top of the sport against huge finacial odds ridiculously so in frank maher's case very few know exactly how much he put on the line to finace his private rally concern and thrilled the crowds while doing so class
act and a true gent.billy coleman was professional at the end of his career which removed the finacial presures but he earned his way there every bit of it and was one of prodrives first drivers and helped them make there mark early on as one of the top rally teams in the world followed a few years later by colin macrae who really put them at the top
I would imagine it is even harder now for drivers like keith to progress to this level but i certanly hope we get to see some new irish drivers takeing on the top of the sport

are you for real one thing for sure your a fully paid up member of the cronin fan club and that must cloud you judgment,the mchales done what they done in the wrc with their own money and i think your crap remarks towards the mchales are way off the mark and not needed.this thread was started to discuss a great day in irish motorsport.why does a tool like you come on here and rip into the mchales,now i have no ties to the mchale family,and what Austin and his sons have done for irish motorsport is major and i tell you if you didnt have them irish rallying would be alot alot poorer place.
so go and cop yourself on and dont be going around throwing rubbish comments about the place

soon30

thats my opinion austin was a great driver the lads ain t in his class and im no member of any fan club if you have the money by all means enter but people who have the skill and dont have the money should get the breaks they need i dont care if they are rich or poor skill should get ahead
dont be getting all excited just because you dont like opinion

hi_sir

well sir if you watch the trends in motorsport over the years money talks and yes it tough but skilled drivers dont often get the break.
i dont give a dam about your oppinion it just sickens me when lads slag off a fella for having money to go rallying all its is jealously,get it into your head that these people have a place in rallying.

soon30

I would need to be a rally driver or something to be jealous of them dont see much to be jealous over i have no grudge or anything you seem to be taking my comments very badly. your getting me wrong if you think ive something against the mchales every one knows money talks but if every one just agreed with that then natural talent would never show which is crap as true talent in anything(not just sports) will show as long as there is determination with it.from my point of view as a spectator(nothing more)the likes of eugene donelly is more exciting to watch and thats what i go to rallys to see.Nothing like a car being driven on the limit thats what draws the crowds to rallying isnt it?