Juho Hänninen in duel against Mikkelsen

The first step of Rally of Ireland reserved a typically Irish time for the competitors who chose to compete in this inaugural event of the IRC Championship. After Jan Kopecky, it was Andreas Mikkelsen who emerged as the first real leader before being caught in the last special by his rival Juho Hänninen by only six tenths. The crews were still due to compete for the second time in the Drummons special, which was the longest route of the weekend with 25km timed, but it was canceled following the intervention of doctors for a local resident.

The pace of the leaders is difficult to follow for the other crews who struggled to keep their cars on the road made slippery by the rain. Jan Kopecky currently secures third position, almost 30 seconds behind the leaders. Alastair Fisher (Ford Fiesta S2000) follows in fourth place 20 seconds after taking the lead over the Peugeot 207 S2000 of Mathieu Arzeno in the last special. The Frenchman, who encountered gearbox problems at the start of the stage, still secures fifth place with only 14 seconds behind the Briton. Local driver Robert Barrable follows 16 seconds in sixth position ahead of his compatriot Craig Breen, who received a penalty of 1:30 after arriving late for service following a problem with the fuel pump of his 207 S2000. The French driver Robert Consani is almost ten minutes late with the Renault Megane RS after losing time following a puncture.

The second stage of the Rally Ireland will be the real justice of the peace between the crews. Ten special stages will still be on the program tomorrow offering a total of 132km timed.