A year of memorable moments on both two and four wheels…

The past year was one of tremendous success for local competitors on two and four petrol-powered wheels.

Now we have reached the end of those 12 months it’s time for me to pick my personal highlights of the year gone by but it’s particularly difficult this time because there are so many memorable moments to choose from.

2021 started off with Dungannon’s Kris Meeke making his debut at the spectacular Dakar Rally in Saudi Arabia where, despite an electrical fire on the first of 14 days, he managed to finish the event, which bewitched him.

After that, the World Rally Championship got underway with Fintona’s Aaron Johnston flying the Tyrone flag alongside Oliver Solberg at Rally Monte Carlo in WRC2 with Hyundai Motorsport. They went on to win Rally di Alba in Italy in a full WRC machine during a largely frustrating campaign before the highly regarded co-driver moved to Toyota Gazoo Racing where he will remain for a full WRC season in 2022 alongside Takamoto Katsuta.

In the Junior series, Kesh driver Jon Armstrong showed everyone the talent those in the know already realised he had by winning the first round in Croatia to begin his season-long title challenge in style. Unfortunately, an engine issue in Portugal when he was dominating and two small mistakes in Spain cost him the Championship.

Even further afield, Galbally duo Darren Hamill and Martin Harte caught the eye with a sensational debut behind the wheel of a R5 Ford Fiesta in New England, while Gary Mills came from nowhere on the final round of the Western Australia Championship to win the two-wheel-drive title.

Closer to home, Dromore’s Owen McMackin claimed four titles after a thrilling end to the Welsh and BTRDA Championships, Paul Barrett and Gordon Noble led the five-day Roger Albert Clark Rally before disaster struck on the final day, while Donaghmore’s Adrian Hetherington finished third overall ahead of Cookstown’s Keith McIvor and Dungannon’s Alan Jardine, who both conquered the event and Storm Arwen.

In the Northern Ireland Rally Championship, there were titles for Galbally’s Barry Morris and Castlederg’s Andrew Bustard, while Mountfield’s Patrick O’Brien produced a stunning drive to win Omagh Motor Club’s Bushwhacker Rally and Drumquin’s Ashley Dickson was a class winner in the British Rally Championship.

Victoria Bridge driver, Jason Mitchell and his Dunamanagh co-driver Peter Ward started the year competing in the European Rally Championship alongside Dromore’s Cathan McCourt but ended it on Irish stages. The supremely talented 42-year-old won the Carlow Rallysprint and then finished a superb ninth overall in the Ulster Rally, pipping Aidan Wray on the last stage to leave the Clady man in 10th. McCourt, meanwhile, claimed third place overall in the prestigious Killarney Historic Rally in his new Mk II Ford Escort and claimed bronze in his Rally2 Ford Fiesta at the year ending Turkey Run Rally where 18-year-old Galbally lad Paidi Hamill impressed with a top 10 finish on his debut in an R5 machine.

In the Northern Ireland Autotest Championship there was a peerless season for Stephen Ferguson who won every round to retain his crown, although he was pushed all the way by Newmills man, Mark King in a Vauxhall Nova.

And in the Northern Ireland Sprint Championship there was a thrilling all-Tyrone battle for the class 6B crown between Dungannon’s Steven Colbert and Omagh’s Dermot O’Hagan, with the former prevailing.

Meanwhile, in the World Endurance Championship, behind the wheel of the D’Station Racing Aston Martin Vantage, Donaghmore’s Andrew Watson had a largely positive season of individual performances, which culminated in a podium finish at Monza.

On two wheels, four-time British champion, Keith Farmer hung up his leathers for the final time as 17-year-old Killyman lad Cameron Dawson enjoyed a dominant season on his MSS Performance Kawasaki to win the HEL Performance British Junior Supersport Championship. And Omagh’s Jamie Lyons also set tongues wagging in the paddock by belying a significant height and subsequent weight disadvantage on a tiny Moto3 machine to win at Silverstone in the British Talent Cup en route to fourth place overall in the series. Meanwhile, Aughnacloy’s Andrew Smyth competed in the British Junior Superstock Championship where he will be joined by Dawson and possibly Lyons in 2022.

In the Ulster Superbike Championship, Cookstown racer Gary McCoy again caught the eye with a series of stunning performances on his Mad Bros machine, being the only rider to stop Alistair Seeley from winning every 600 race in 2021. The 25-year-old also impressed on his superbike and won on his maiden outing for Ryan Farquhar on one of the Dungannon legend’s KMR Supertwins to cap another outstanding year. Dungannon’s Stephen McAdoo started the season impressively with a podium in the opening superbike race of the campaign only for a crash later in the season to end his charge. There were also some eye-catching rides from Adam Brown, Kevin Lavery and Adam Crooks to name just three other local racers producing the goods on our short circuits.

And off-road, two local motocross stars were tearing it up as Castlederg’s Cole McCullagh claimed a British title at the first attempt and Omagh’s Lewis Spratt clinched the Scottish crown. The two youngsters then teamed up as part of the Ireland squad for the Coupe de l’Avenir in Belgium.

There were also sensational performances across Ireland and Britain by the next generation of bike racers in the mini bike scene, as Lewis and Paige Mullen, Jack Burrows and Boyd Knipe all impressed, while Mike Browne and Adam McLean both excelled for Burrows Racing and McAdoo Racing respectively at the Armoy and Cookstown 100 road races.

Those are just some of the fantastic achievements and performances produced by our local racing heroes and below are my personal top five highlights of 2021 in no particular order….

1 – McMackin’s magic

AFTER a near miss in 2018 when a run of bad luck over the final three rounds cost him the BTRDA title, Dromore’s Owen McMackin was determined to achieve success this year.

And that he did. And in thrilling style too to pip Gary Mills to the first place on my list for the most exciting way to win a championship!

McMackin went into the final round of the Welsh Championship in a three-way tussle for the two-wheel-drive crown with David Crossen and Ashley Davies and following a weekend of drama and no shortage of serendipity, he returned home with the RAVENOL UK Welsh Challenge title, the BTRDA Silver Star crown, the Pirelli Welsh two-wheel-drive championship and the W12 class winner’s title.

But that was so nearly not the case as he and co-driver Lee Taylor exceeded their maximum lateness on stage two after suffering two punctures and having to borrow a second spare off a fellow competitor.

However, every cloud has a silver lining and when Crossen’s throttle cable snapped and Davies gearbox gave up the ghost on the final stage, the sun shone on McMackin who took the titles after three previous seasons in the Welsh forests had ended in disappointment.

2 – Jamie’s joy

THE problem with the British Talent Cup is that it’s not a level playing field and as such Jamie Lyons takes the place on my list for winning against the odds.

Unless you’re about three feet tall and weigh as much as a dried out leaf you have little to no chance of achieving success in the BTC because the bikes are so small and relatively underpowered.

So, imagine you’re 16-year-old Omagh lad Jamie, who at around six feet in height has his competitors headbutting his kneecaps as he walks around the paddock!

Not that the fact he’s almost twice the height and therefore twice the weight as most of his rivals stopped the Omagh Academy pupil – not a bit of it.

He went into the season thinking he might not be able to race due to a painful hip issue and an elbow injury but battle on he did and he was rewarded with a sensational race win at Silverstone during MotoGP weekend, as well as podium places at Thruxton and twice at Silverstone to finish a stunning fourth overall in the series and the top privateer following a season he, nor those who watched, are ever likely to forget any time soon.

3 – Flawless Ferguson

IT’S never easy to retain a title but to do so with a perfect run is something special.

And that’s exactly what Stewartstown’s Stephen Ferguson managed to achieve in 2021 and that’s why he takes the third place on my list for earning his clean sweep.

The supremely talented wheelman went into the Northern Ireland Autotest Championship as the title holder and with the likes of Drumbo’s Robin Lyons and Newmills’ Mark King gunning for him he knew he needed to be at his best.

And boy was he ever! He was almost perfect from start to finish, winning all eight rounds to regain the crown and write himself into the record books as the first competitor ever to achieve the feat.

4 – Dominant Dawson

KILLYMAN’S Cameron Dawson went into the 2021 HEL Performance British Junior Supersport Championship as one of the favourites for the title and determined to deliver.

And boy did the 17-year-old do just that to earn the overall title and fourth place on my list for keeping it interesting until the end!

After claiming two second placed finishes at round one at Donington Park, Cameron dominated the series, winning six of the next eight races, finishing second in the other two, to build a commanding lead in the standings.

It wasn’t just the run of results that was impressive, it was the style in which the Tyrone teenager achieved them, stamping his authority on the series with comfortable start to finish victories.

However, in the remaining six races of the season things didn’t go to plan, as he claimed just one win following a couple of individual errors as Ash Barnes mounted a late-campaign charge only to fall short by 10 points in the end as Dawson deservedly claimed the crown with one race to go at Brands Hatch to cement his place as a rider to keep an eye on in the years to come.

5 – Amazing Armstrong

JON Armstrong just pips Patrick O’Brien as the comeback kid of 2021 and the final place in my top five.

The Kesh man went into the 2021 Junior World Rally Championship season with plenty of pressure on his shoulders. Not only had he secured the backing of his employers, Codemasters, but he also wanted to prove that he had learned from a huge crash in Sweden a year earlier.

And the 26-year-old, who won the 2018 eSport World title, delivered throughout a sensational season, winning the opening round in Croatia, going on to dominate in Portugal before the engine in his Rally4 Ford Fiesta gave up the ghost.

He bounced back in Estonia, where he finished second and won again in Belgium at Ypres Rally. Unfortunately, in the decider in Spain, he made two small mistakes, which cost him and co-driver Phil Hall the win and his fourth placed finish left him second overall behind Sami Pajari.

And while Armstrong was disappointed not to have claimed top prize, he did make his mark on the series and proved to the watching public, and to himself, that he can compete against the world’s best.