MOTOR SPORT/ROUND UP: Michael Barrable could make history this year by becoming the first driver to win both the Sexton Trophy for racing and the Dunlop-sponsored National Rally Championship.
At 43 the north Dublin driver is a veteran of motor sport. He competed in Formula Ford before taking up saloon racing and in 1995 he won both the Dunlop Sexton Trophy and Fiat Uno championship. After campaigning a Toyota Celica GT4 to good effect , he will rally a Subaru Impreza WRC this year. This is an ex-works car rallied by reigning world c-hampion Richard Burns. It was rolled by Burns on the 2000 Rally Finland and has been totally rebuilt and brought up to the latest World Rally Car (WRC) specification.
Barrable's first outing in the Impreza WRC will be in Sunday's Mayo Stages Rally, the opening round of the 2002 Dunlop National Rally Championship, in which his co-driver will be the experienced Dermot O'Gorman, a Circuit of Ireland winner with Austin McHale. He plans to mix-and-match his rallying by taking in four of the Toshiba Tarmac Championship events - Circuit of Ireland, Killarney, Donegal and the Manx - in addition to the Nationals.
Irish motorcycle racing prepares for an extremely busy season running from March to October. First of the short circuit meetings is listed for tomorrow at Aghadowey, Co Derry, followed by races at Mondello Park, Kirkistown (Co Down) and Nutts Corner (Co Antrim). The Cookstown 100 on April 20th is the first of the road races.
The International North-West 200 on the super fast Portstewart-Coleraine-Portrush circuit will take place on May 18th and will carry a record prize fund of £110,000.
The famous Isle of Man TT races were lost in 2001, along with several of the Northern Ireland road races (including the North West 200), due to foot-and-mouth precautions. The TT races are back this year, from June 1st to 7th, and with a record prize fund of £433,865.
The penultimate round of the Irish Trials Championship, the Mid-Antrim MC's Shane Cup Trial takes place at Parkmore Forest near Ballymena tomorrow. Belfast's Robert Crawford has won all the first six rounds and is on course to maintain his record in the Grade A/Experts class. The first of the enduro events counting for both Irish and Southern Centre Championships will be run in the Kilcoran-Cahir area of south Tipperary on Sunday.
WEEKEND FIXTURES
Saturday - Mid-Antrim MC Shane Cup Trial, Parkmore Forest, Ballymena, Co Antrim, 11.30; Motorcycle short-circuit racing, Aghadowey, Co Derry, 12.0; Kerry MC Hewison Trophy Autotest, Tralee, 2.0; Co.Monaghan MC Navigation Trial, starts Aghabog, Co Monaghan, 8.45 pm.
Sunday - Birr & District AC, Autocross, signposted from Nenagh, Co Tipperary, 9.0 am; Mayo & District MC Mayo Stages Rally, starts Castlebar, 10.0; Kilcoran Enduro, Co Tipperary, 11.0; Killarney & District MCC Hewison Trophy Autotest, Mountleader, Millstreet, Co Cork, 11.30.
