Action-packed J1000 Development Day highlights pathway to WRC

The Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy’s J1000 Development Day at Mondello Park proved to be a resounding success as attendees savoured M-Sport’s Ford Puma Rally1 in action on Irish soil for the first time.

31 Junior 1000 competitors from the Motorsport Ireland Junior Rally Series and Forest Rally Championship took part in the academy’s latest development day with training workshops including driver, fitness, performance, and equipment coaching.

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A PCRS-prepared Hyundai i20 Rally2, usually seen in action with MI Rally Academy founder and patron John Coyne behind the wheel, was also utilised around Mondello Park.

European Rally Championship contender Jon Armstrong did demonstration runs before academy members sampled Rally2 power on the slippery circuit.

As J1000 rallying in Ireland continues to go from strength to strength with both entries and competitiveness increasing, Wednesday’s well-publicised development day was another key step in recognising its importance to and close relationship with the MI Rally Academy.

While the excitement of seeing Josh McErlean power-slide his Rally1 Puma around Mondello’s rain-soaked corners unsurprisingly stole the show, there was a host of special guests and visitors present at Ireland’s premier motorsport venue.

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Watch: Aiden Harper (Motorsport Ireland) summarises the day

The plethora of J1000 crews were joined by their families as they rubbed shoulders with a host of media representatives from national print media, podcasters, influencers, Red Bull Ireland, and national broadcaster RTE.

Watch: Redbull take a spin in the Puma

As well as showcasing J1000 and the MI Rally Academy’s World Rally Championship crew of Josh McErlean and Eoin Treacy, another highlight was the first time the FIA’s complete Rally Pyramid was on display in Ireland.

From Rally5 to Rally1, the MI Rally Academy went even further with the teenage J1000 crews bringing their rally-specification hot-hatches to Mondello.

With academy members competing in Rally4, Rally3, Rally2, and Rally1 championships this year, cars in attendance included Craig Rahill’s front-running Junior European Rally Championship Peugeot 208 Rally4 as well as Coyne’s Hyundai i20 Rally2.

Coyne, who travelled over from his home in the USA for the special occasion, had been in action on the Moonraker Forest Rally four days earlier and will rally the i20 Rally2 on the Circuit of Ireland this weekend.

The 1982 Irish Tarmac Rally Champion will have MI Rally Academy co-driver Killian McArdle calling his pacenotes this weekend as he rolls back the years on Friday and Saturday’s asphalt stages. Coyne finished fourth on the 1982 Circuit of Ireland Rally, one minute behind WRC legend Henri Toivonen, and ahead of Billy Coleman, Hannu Mikkola, and Ari Vatanen.

M-Sport World Rally Team team principal, Rich Millener, was also in attendance and left the day with much positivity surrounding the academy’s progress.

Watch: Richard Millener chats about the day and showcases the Puma

"M-Sport has been built around giving young talent opportunities,” Millener explained, “so today was a perfect chance to support that philosophy."

“M-Sport is closely aligned to the Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy this year, having both Josh McErlean and Jon Armstrong competing in top-tier championships. Being able to bring the Puma to Ireland to motivate the next academy and J1000 competitors as to what is possible through hard work and determination was a no-brainer."

“It was fantastic to get to meet some of the next crop of talent, see Aidan Harper show his support from Motorsport Ireland, and see with my own eyes how many people, and how professional the Academy setup is."

“It was a pleasure to bring the current Rally1 car for the people who cannot get to a WRC event, to experience the car on home soil. Hats off to all involved with today, and I am looking forward to building this relationship and partnership, making it stronger into the future.”

Watch: Art Mc Carrick (Motorsport Ireland)

Pics by Michael Chester