Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy driver Aoife Raftery is putting in her best performance ever at the European Championship level.
Now in her second season in the Junior ERC competition, the Galway woman holds an incredible but deserved fourth overall heading into the rally’s final day.
She is contesting this weekend’s Rally Hungary, the opening round of this year’s FIA Junior European Rally Championship.
The event got under way on Friday night but the Craughwell-based driver completed six demanding loose surface stages near the town of Veszprem on Saturday.
At the event’s midday service, the Peugeot 208 Rally4 driver promised to up her pace and improve on her earlier ninth position
She and co-driver Hannah McKillop honoured that promise, their Peugeot showing battle scars, a testament to just how hard they were trying.
Road conditions are rough and the ambient heat is not making it any easier for the crews but Raftery, so far, is exceeding self-set pre-event targets.
“We are the end of a long day here at Rally Hungary, and I am really happy with my pace,” she said at the Saturday night service halt.
“We are sitting in a good position heading into tomorrow's stages. It has been a tricky day but it's been lots of fun too."
“It's great to be here so a massive thank you to the Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy and all my sponsors back home and it is great to have the support of everyone out here.
It is an amazing championship to be competing in with the highest level of Rally4 cars and it is fantastic to see two Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy cars side-by-side here.”
Aoife Raftery Racing is supported by Des Lyons Plant | Kenny (Peugeot) Galway | O'Neill O'Malley Architects and Project Managers | Loughrea Auto Parts | Craughwell Tyre Centre | Sean Fleming Motors | Quinn Hardware | Liscon Transport | Kerry Motorsport News
