Creighton ready for Portuguese challenge

Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy driver William Creighton will head for his third FIA World Rally Championship outing of the season this week, as he tackles Vodafone Rally de Portugal [9-12 May].

Creighton and co-driver Liam Regan will embark on their first WRC2 round on gravel, and the difficult, sandy stages will present a real challenge for the Irish pairing as they aim for a positive result in their M-Sport Ford Fiesta Rally2.

Just a few weeks ago, Creighton would blast to second overall in Wales, taking his second Probite British Rally Championship podium of the season with a strong performance on world-class stages such as Hafren and Myherin. That result was enough to remain second in the championship, closing in on the BRC lead.

Soon after, he would head for the asphalt of Rally Croatia and after a tricky opening day, Creighton maintained a strong pace against the WRC2 regulars to add another WRC finish to his tally. Now, he returns to the gravel as Portugal marks the next event in his WRC2 campaign but is aware of the challenges ahead.

“There is a nice flow to our season at the moment. We are entering another busy period and having these events so close together means it feels much more comfortable when you get back behind the wheel” says Creighton. “We have done a lot of asphalt this season, with our Irish Tarmac, BRC and WRC outings so it was nice to see we had a strong pace on the Welsh gravel last month, considering I hadn’t really been over those stages before. But looking ahead to Rally Portugal, similar to previous years it’s going to be a big challenge with extremely rough stages in hot conditions. We will be doing our best to be consistent across the weekend.”

And Creighton knows just what is required to conquer the deep sandy ruts found in the stages, having contested the rally twice before.

“I always look forward to Rally Portugal and I’ve enjoyed it every time I’ve contested it,” he says. “It’s a difficult rally though and running a little down the order brings its own challenges with ruts and the possibilities of punctures. That can be a challenge, so a good strategy will be key. But like all WRC events, there are three long days ahead so a consistent pace will really be important to secure a positive result for us. I want to continue to build as we go this season and I’m eager to get back to the WRC and see how we get on.”