Galway Motor Club members are turning out in force for their home event on Sunday, 23 August, with over 30 local crews making up a massive entry list. Over 200 entries have been received, leaving organisers with the task of whittling the field down to the maximum permitted 150 starters at rally headquarters in the Shearwater Hotel, Ballinasloe.
Craughwell co-driver Ayrton Sherlock carries strong local hopes as he continues his Triton Showers National Rally Championship push alongside Leitrim driver Keelan Grogan in a Class 5 Ford Fiesta. Having already secured two second-place finishes this season at the Circuit of Munster and the Yeats County Forestry Rally, Sherlock will be hunting for an overall national win on home tarmac.
“I’m really looking forward to our home event. The Galway Summer Rally is run every two years and it’s always a real highlight for me,” Ayrton said. “It’s great to be back out on local stages to build on the pace we’ve shown this year. We’ve had a good national run so far, including a second-place finish in Munster, so hopefully we can build on that momentum. It’s brilliant to be starting at the sharp end and build on what we’ve already shown this year.”
“Fair play to Galway Motor Club and the whole organising team around them for putting three challenging stages for Sunday. It’s going to be very interesting to see how it plays out. With a full entry list, the competition will be strong right throughout the field, so it should be a fantastic day for the club and the event as a whole.”
“It’s a real privilege to be starting at the sharp end of the Galway Summer Rally. From my early days growing up and watching the event, I have so many great memories spectating there, so now, to be competing is a brilliant feeling.”
Craughwell-based driver Dean Raftery stands out as a dark horse in the field, having taken a Class 5 victory at the Galway International Rally in a Ford Fiesta Rally3.
“The Summer Rally is always a highlight on the calendar for Galway Motor Club,” Dean Raftery said. “After getting the class win in the International back in January, it’s great to be back out on the local stages. Craughwell Tyres is delighted to support the event as an associate sponsor, and hopefully, we can put on a good show on the stages too.”
Another crew eyeing a major impression high up the leaderboard are Meath driver Tom Jnr Holton and Galway Motor Club co-driver Stephen Joyce. Running in Class 5 in their Ford Fiesta, the pair have shown impressive speed this season and are more than capable of mounting a challenge for a top-ten overall finish.
Carnamore’s Stephen Greaney and Jonathan Folan from the Claddagh in Galway City line up in another Class 5 Ford Fiesta, also targeting a top-ten overall finish.
Galway Motor Club crews will also be vying for the Conroy Cup, one of the most coveted awards in the club’s sporting calendar and presented each year by the Conroy family of Loughrea.
Local drivers and class contenders
Athenry driver Trevor Keane and navigator John Conneelly compete in Class 2 in a Ford Fiesta Rally4, taking to the stages to raise awareness and support for official charity partner The Gavin Glynn Foundation.
Event sponsor Adrian Quinn Junior, representing Labane-based Adrian Quinn Car Sales, chases Class 4 honours in a Renault Clio alongside Des Sherlock. Menlough’s Des Lyons makes his home debut in a Ford Fiesta Rally3 in Class 4 alongside Monaghan co-driver Aishling McArdle.
Gort’s club stalwart Tommy Flanagan, who competed in the 1985 Galway Summer Rally, returns alongside his son Niall Flanagan in a Class 12 Ford Escort. Returning after a break, Abbeyknockmoy brothers Damien Boyle and Joseph Boyle bring out their Ford Escort Mk1 in Class 12.
Fellow Class 4 contenders and Tuam brothers Stephen Hernon and Ivan Hernon return following a fourth-in-class RC4 finish at the Galway International Rally in January. Galway City father-and-son crew Pat Kelly and Jonathan Kelly bring their Ford Fiesta R5 to the start line, aiming for Top Part West Coast Championship points.
Athenry’s Jason Ollerenshaw returns to the driver’s seat after 14 years away, navigated by Alesha Gannon in a Class 11F Peugeot 206. Newcomers Christopher Adair and Nathan Biggin tackle their first local rally in a Class 11F Honda Civic EK4, joined in the class by South Galway’s Cathal Keane and Cathal Kelly, Brian Martyn and Conor O’Connell in another Honda Civic, as well as Mike Dolan from Athenry.
Loughrea’s Gerard Daly has University of Limerick student Betsy Nguyen on pacenote duties in a Peugeot 106 Cup Car. Tuam’s Damien Connell and Gary McWalter look to repeat their early-season form in Class 11F after taking second in class at the Galway International and a class win at the Mayo Stages Rally.
Mullins family out in force
Kilcolgan’s dad Colin Mullins and son Shane Mullins step out in Class 2 in their Peugeot 208 Rally4
Anther son Cathal Mullins and Michael Lafferty aim for better luck in their Honda Civic after early season retirements. And in the juniors, a third son Darragh Mullins and his Oranmore co-driver Sophie Byrnes makes a second appearance of 2026 in another Class 16 Civic.
Claregalway’s Eoin Cullinane and Nathan Maloney make their second appearance of the year in another Honda Civic EK4.
Also from Claregalway, Brendan Burke and Daniel Fahey make their fourth rally start in a Class 11F Honda Civic, while Galway City’s Padraic Millane and Gavin Bird target a finish in their Civic.
Loughrea publicans Justin Comer and Adrian Comer return in a Class 13 Ford Escort, making their first rally appearance since the 2024 Galway Summer Rally. In Class 2A, Turloughmore’s Jason Gorham debuts a Ford Fiesta R2, while recent Monaghan Rally Class 2A winner Craughwell’s Gemma Hallinan competes in her Ford Fiesta.
Junior ranks and supporting entries
Class 16 for Junior drivers features Kilcolgan son-and-father duo Eoghan O’Boyle and Mike O’Boyle in a Peugeot 206 XSI, alongside North County Galway’s Cian Hynes and Cathal Fallon in a Honda Civic EK4. In Class 23, Loughrea cousins Jake Devine and Jack Devine share a Dacia Sandero.
Cross-county pairings include Galway Motor Club brothers from Athenry, with Declan Gannon co-driving for his Limerick-based brother Ivan in a Class 5 Ford Fiesta. Local co-driver Sean Mitchell navigates for Mayo’s Colm Connor in Class 11F, while international entry Brian Heneghan from the USA pairs with local navigator East Galway’s Jonathan Herwood in a Class 13 Ford Escort Mk2.
