Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy driver Eamonn Kelly Monaghan’s Conor Mohan got their second season of the Junior World Rally Championship off to a perfect start by taking third place in Rally Sweden at the weekend.
The result matched their Acropolis Rally Greece performance last September and sets them up nicely for round two in Croatia in April – an event they won in 2023.
One of a record 19 entrants, Kelly and Mohan found themselves in a battle with eventual winner, local ace, Mille Johansson and FIA Rally Star program member Romet Jürgenson as the Donegal/Monaghan pairing completed the podium in the category for identical Ford Fiesta Rally3s run equipped with Pirelli tyres.
“It was really good to be on the podium in Sweden this year. It is a fantastic start for our championship to finish third [amongst 19 drivers] is something we can be really happy with,” said Kelly
“We came here this year with a plan,” he added.
“We knew what we were up against in terms of the scale of the event. We were able to show what we had learned and then back it up and it is something that I am personally happy about.
“It was a good a good weekend in general. We showed speed in places and then we were maintaining a fairly consistent pace for the rest of the time.”
Kelly and Mohan won the junior element of Rally Croatia last season and the focus for the months ahead is preparation for the first tarmac rally of the season
“I would like to go there this year and show some speed. I want to go there and try and be much much faster and closer to the top position in the table. That is going to be the main focus over the next two months.”
County Monaghan Motor Club 