Sunday's Jim Walsh Cork Forest rally is round five of the 2013 Valvoline Motorsport Ireland Forest Rally Championship.

This series has been competitive all year, with three different winners in four events and each rally claimed by less than ten seconds.

The Cork forest rally is the penultimate round of the 2013 Valvoline series with the final event hosted by the Omagh club on the Bushwhacker rally on September 28th. The Valvoline   has now reached the business end and there are at least three strong candidates for the title still standing. Bonus points and dropped scores will be crucial in deciding the final outcome of the series.

Top of the leaderboard on 94 points is Mick O' Brien who claimed victory on the Moonraker in addition to a second and two third place finishes. Unlike his pursuers O' Brien has already collected his bonus points but he has the powerful Focus WRC at his disposal for the fast Ballyhoura tests.

Philip Morrow (EVo9) is second with 80 points. The Lisburn driver is the only driver to win twice this year and he also has two third places to his credit.

Owen Murphy (Evo9) will pull out all the stops in an attempt to win his home rally. Murphy is a former Billy Coleman Award winner (2006),and
was the Forest Rally champion two years ago. He won this rally last year and he has nominated his home event for bonus points this year. His results in the 2013 series include a win, a second and a third. While he may look a distant third on 59 points, when dropped scores are taken into account Murphy will be right at the cutting edge.


The Cork forest rally consists of 85km over 8 stages and will be run within the Ballyhoura Mountains on the Cork-Limerick border. The format includes service after every two stages, rally h/q at the Corbert Court Hotel, Ballyhea and service at the nearby Charleville Show Grounds. First car is away at 09:00, returning at 17:30.