In September 2008 Keith Cronin embarked on his very first International Rally on the British Mainland when he tackled the ‘Trackrod’ International Rally of Yorkshire and did not fail to impress, taking 3^rd overall, beaten only by two former British Rally Champions!

On that occasion the rally was undertaken primarily as a testing session to gauge his pace against the British Rally Championship regulars and to gain experience in writing his own pacenotes. 

Last year he made a very famous and memorable return to the Yorkshire Forests as he won both the event and the British Rally Championship, becoming only the second Irishman ever to win that championship.

This year, the Yorkshire event is again the final round of the British Rally Championship and there are just 85 miles of Yorkshire Forest track between the 24year old and his second British Championship Title.

Although the Championship has been led for much of the year by Jonny Greer, who has a single point lead over Cronin as they enter the final round, Cronin has the advantage when the dropped scores are brought into the equation. Point totals are decided from the competitors’ best 5 results from the 6 rounds involved. As Greer as consistently scored well but Keith had a non-finish on the Pirelli International Rally, Keith will be dropping a zero score and Greer will have to drop 13 points. In addition to this, for the final round, based this year in the coastal town of Scarborough, all competitors will be awarded 50% bonus points which in effect means that a number of other drivers retain a mathematical chance of taking the title.

Speaking about the event Keith said “People might think that there will be no pressure as I only need to finish seventh on the event in order to retain the Championship Title. However, rallying is so unpredictable that a puncture could cost a minute or even the Rally, as we found out on the Pirelli International when the punctured tyre ripped the wiring loom. We will also have the Team Championship in mind, as that’s likely to be decided in Yorkshire too. I’m really looking forward to the event, as I have such fond memories of last year.”

If Keith does successfully retain his title he will join an elite list of people who have won back-to-back titles. Among that list are Roger Clarke, Jimmy McRae, Colin McRae, Mark Higgins & Guy Wilks.