At the start of the year, Pettigo’s Kevin Eves played down his chances of causing an upset in this season’s NAPA Irish Tarmac Rally Championship title fight after making the big decision to switch to the Rally 2 class.
A former National and Modified champion, Eves has been a familiar sight along with regular co-driver Chris Melly in their light-blue Toyota Corolla twin cam.
But this is now a step up, as he attempts to show his undoubted talent along with some of the big guns in the sport as he competes in a Ford Fiesta built by, and sourced from, M-Sport in England.
Speaking about the decision to change to Rally 2, Eves explained: “We’ve been in modified cars for eight or nine years in the Corolla, so the Rally2 cars are the pinnacle of the sport, you are challenging for wins and championships and it is I suppose, to scratch that itch and to see if you can race on the sharp side of things.. We got the opportunity to do it and got a package put together and we will give it a go for a couple of years, and see where we end up.”
Last time out, in the Cavan Stages Rally, things began to click into place as the pair secured third place overall.
Having been seventh in the West Cork Rally, going out of the Circuit of Ireland Rally with mechanical issues, and being ninth overall in the International Rally of the Lakes (Killarney), this was significant progress.
“Every event you are trying to hopefully jump up a few pegs and get closer to the top boys’ times,” he explained. “We did a lot of work on the car in Killarney, and learned a lot over that weekend and I felt that we went to Cavan finally comfortable with the car. From the first stage we knew what the car was going to do. It’s nice when it comes naturally and you are not having to force things.”
They are running at number 18 and he feels that there is no great pressure on them. But Eves being Eves, he will be driving hard.
Despite being a regular in the Donegal International Rally, he has had more than his fair share of disappointments down through the years.
In 2014, his first Donegal, he retired. In 2016, he was 66th overall. Back in 2017 he ended up in hospital and had to have surgery on a foot after he went off on Knockalla.
In 2018, he finished 15th overall and fourth in the modified sector. The following year he had the same overall standing and was seventh in Class 14.
And he hasn’t finished the Donegal Rally since then.
Last year, their car broke down on the very first stage over Malin Head, so they will be keen to get a good recce done over the Inishowen stages.
Looking ahead, he said: “We won’t try and force anything. We will sit in. Donegal is one that everyone throws everything at, so we know that we can’t hang around, but we will not be risking anything crazy either.”
Asked who he thinks will win the overall honours this year, he feels that there will once again be fierce competition.
“I think if you get to half way through Saturday anyone within the top seven or eight can do it. The top five or six will probably go to war, but the joy of that is people fall over. There are so many quick boys there, there will be no mercy for anyone who holds back. You just have to hope for the best and see what happens,” he said.
