Cork 20 also known as Cork 20 International Rally is an international motorsport event held in Cork, Ireland. It is organized by the Munster Car Club and was first introduced and held in 1912. At first, it was scheduled to be held under the original name because it spanned 20 hours. The Irish Tarmac Rally Championship includes the Cork 20 Rally as well.
The competition manages to attract competitors from North and South Britain along with continental Europe. Before it became a complete International Rally in 1977, it was a part of the National Rally Championship held between 1966 and 1976. Cork 20 Rally fans have been waiting for the next show post-COVID pandemic. With so much skepticism surrounding the event, let us try to find out Is the Cork 20 Rally Still On?
History
Since the 1960s, the Cork 20 Rally has run in different parks of Cork County. In the 1970s, Kinsale was the location where most of the races took place along with Cork being used to schedule a few competitions as well. The 1980’s event final stage began from Patrick Street, passing through Grand Parade and the South Mall while spectators in thousands watched on.
Furthermore, the upcoming events were then run in the north and east regions of Cork. Some events were held in mid-Cork as well. Then in 2010, the event came back to West Cork.
At the time, the format of the Cork 20 rally was similar to the Monte Carlo Rally in several ways. To begin with, it had several starting points such as Dublin, Cork, and Galway. Secondly, the event required that the cars meet at a pre-decided designated location. Following the meet, the final leg would begin from that town and into Cork City. However, for these events that took place yearly, the roads were not closed.
The rally was started in 2007 by WRC drivers Daniel Sordo, Sebastien Loeb, and MikkoHirvonen. The winner of the event was Sebastien Loeb who ran for two days and 14 stages until he claimed victory.
2019
On 28 and 29 September, the 2019 CB Toolhire Cork 20 International Rally took place. The event was the final round of the Irish Tarmac Rally Championship. In addition to that, it was a counting round of Southern 4 Rally Championship, ERT Celtic Rally Trophy, and South East Stages Rally Championship.
In total, the event consisted of 13 special stages with a total distance of 208.35 kilometers and a liaison of 423.30 kilometers. The event managed to attract 187 entries while Marty McCormack and Barney Mitchell who were International class drivers, won the competition. On the other hand, the Junior Class Winners were Mark O’Leary and Kieran Reen.
Is the Cork 20 Rally Still On?
If the Cork 20 Rally was to be held on September 26-27, it would be the highlight of the motorsport season. Unfortunately, the event powered by CBtoolhire.com and organized by the Munster Car Club had to be canceled due to the COIVD-19 pandemic.
However, considering the relaxation interms of traveling and meetings, motivated the organizers and board of directors to consider the possibility of scheduling the event. As a result, a meeting took place in which the possibilities were discussed considering certain limitations and restrictions that were still relevant. Only the Galway International Rally has taken place until now while the Clonakilty Park West Cork Rally was canceled just a few days before it was about to be held in March.
At the moment, the directors of the Munster Car Club are in talks about what could possibly be done to balance out the scheduling of the event and not putting anyone at risk. Since these events require huge financial backing, the event must be able to run smoothly especially when it comes to the flow of funds. Meanwhile, discussions are being held and at the moment, no one can say when Cork 20 Rally is going to be held.
Final Word
This article aimed to discuss Is the Cork 20 Rally Still On? The fact of the matter is that even after several relaxations during the COVID pandemic, several major rally events are struggling to return. The truth is that no one wants to take the risks. If something was to go wrong, the future of a rally event could become cloudy. Therefore, the stakeholders are waiting for things to settle down so that the meetings and discussions could proceed to rally events being held.