Evans and Jackson take top honours at Galway Rally

A superb display of driving in tricky Galway Rally conditions has given Meirion Evans and Jonathan Jackson their second international rally win in the opening round of the 2023 tarmac season.

The Welsh crew entered Sunday's six stages locked in a fight for Galway International Rally's final podium position, a distant 20 seconds behind overnight leaders Josh Moffett and Andy Hayes.

Sunday's opening Black Road test was cancelled as ice littered parts of the mountain stage. Stage 11, Ballydoogan, was the first to challenge Irish Tarmac's best, and it claimed one of Galway Rally's frontrunners.

Sam Moffett hadn't completed much of Ballydoogan when he met the stricken Citroen C3 Rally2 of Cathan McCourt and Liam Moynihan. McCourt, who at that time was Josh Moffett's nearest challenger, had been caught out by shiny tarmac in a right-left sequence of corners. His damaged Citroen could go no further

Sam Moffett lost crucial seconds passing McCourt's accident but hoped to receive a notional time. Moffett's time would have been that of his brothers - eight minutes and 25.6 seconds.

Even that wouldn't have been enough for Sam to stay ahead of Evans, though, who took this rally by the scruff of the neck on Sunday's opener.

Evans went fastest by 5.5 seconds through Ballydoogan. His Ballydoogan blinder brought hope of a rally challenge. He was still over 14 seconds behind Moffett and Hayes, however.

Robert Barrable was the second-fastest driver through Ballydoogan, a reminder of where he could have been in the overall standings had his C3 not suffered a small fire on Saturday afternoon.

Elsewhere, Desi Henry was left describing his Ford Fiesta Rally2 as a 300-horsepower shopping trolley after ineffective set-up changes added to his woes in