Author: Graham Baalham-Curry

Graham is a photojournalist and motoring writer with over 20 varied years of coverage from manufacturer press launches to international motorsport and motoring events throughout the world. Graham is a full member of the Guild of Motoring Writers and Ulster Motor Writers Association.

WRIGHT WINS CLOSEST BATTLE IN MCGRADY INSURANCE NI RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY AT THE EUROCABLES BELFAST KIRKISTOWN STAGES! Stephen Wright and Ger Conway emerged victorious at the Eurocables Belfast Kirkistown Stages Rally after one of the closest finishes in the history of the McGrady Insurance Motorsport UK Northern Ireland Rally Championship! The Ford Fiesta R5 powered crew held off a hard-charging Jonny Greer and Brian Crawford to win the event by just one-tenth of a second after six hard-fought stages around County Down’s Kirkistown Race Circuit. Organised by North Armagh Motor Club, the event attracted more than 70 entries from some…

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This year’s ANICC Hillclimb Championship was all to play for and the Millers Oils backed series returned in force with just eighteen points splitting the top three overall at the end. After a shortened season last year due to government restrictions still being imposed, drivers were eager to get stuck into this year’s championship which looked set to be a good one from the onset. Some fresh faces on the start-line were joined by old faces who, having held onto their machinery, were all welcomed equally to this year’s paddock which made its traditional start in the hills above North…

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The majority of road users will recognise the name ‘Curran’ as it graces a fleet of lorries and trailers thanks to Bangor based outfit, D Curran and Sons… Around the turn of the millennium, the firm’s unmistakable yellow, orange and red logo found its way onto a Mitsubishi Evo when owner, Dickie Curran, was finding his feet in rallying. Around this time, Dickie’s son, Mike, was also finding his feet in the sport, albeit in a very different way. He was on his way to being crowned as a World Rally Champion. Sadly, Mike’s name doesn’t sit beside the likes…

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LOCAL CREW SECURE SENSATIONAL JUNIOR WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP DEBUT WIN IN SWEDEN… Creighton, 25 from Moira in Co. Down was the star of the field, setting fastest time on an unrivalled nine stages during the event. His pace would see him build a lead of over 40 seconds against his nearest rivals, before his Fiesta bonnet flew up and blocked his view, losing almost a minute in the process. Starting the final day of the event, Creighton and Belfast co-driver Liam Regan found themselves 19 seconds away from the leader and in a truly fascinating masterclass of top-level driving, Creighton…

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Saturday 21 January 2023 was the date of the 2022 SW Adair Tyres Northern Ireland Sprint Championship prize giving and Night of Champions in Edenmore Golf club. This was a new venue which had not been used before, but it saw a fabulous evening’s craic and some outstanding food. It was also one of the best supported speed championship awards dinners of recent times, with 144 people in attendance to collect prizes from the SW Adair Tyres Northern Ireland Sprint Championship and the Millers Oils Hillclimb Championship. As usual, there was a fair bit of banter amongst everyone which, as…

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The Motorsport Marshalling Partnership (MMP) is most grateful to Alan Cassells and David Evans, for facilitating the Partnership to hold its annual Prize giving at the ANICC SW Adair Tyres Sprint and Jem Oils Hillclimb Awards 2023 in the Edenmore Country Club, Magheralin on Saturday, 21st January 2023 – a night where all the attendees enjoyed superb food, terrific service, convivial company and well received awards presentations. It was a truly memorable night. The MMP, now nearly a quarter of a century in existence, continues to Recruit, Train, Mentor and Reward volunteer Marshals who give freely of their time to…

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Our annual championship awards night took place on Saturday 21st January at Edenmore Golf Club. With over 140 people in attendance representing both speed championships, the MMP, and members from ANICC, this was quite an increase in numbers compared to the previous year. The new venue was a hit with everyone, providing great food and service on the night. A change to previous years, there was also a DJ in attendance, for those who stayed after for a dance and celebrations, although they wouldn’t have made it into strictly come dancing with some of the moves! The overall 2022 champion,…

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Saturday 5th March 2022 seen the resumption of the McMillan Specialist Cars NI Autotest Championship after its winter recess. The lay-off hadn’t blunted Steven Ferguson’s edge at all and he pretty much picked up his winning ways where he left off in September, coming out top of the timesheets at eight of the ten rounds of the championship, securing the Stewartstown man his eight overall championship win. Nowadays, the “specials” don’t necessarily have it all their own way, and at two rounds it was David Thompson in his “Large Saloon” (Class D) Vauxhall Nova who pushed Steven off the top…

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The Millbrook Lodge Hotel in Ballynahinch was the venue for the ANICC McGrady Insurance Motorsport UK Northern Ireland Rally Championship and Northern Ireland Forest Rally Challenge awards on Saturday 28 January 2023. Not content with having just two championship winners present on the evening, Ballynahinch and District Motor Club attracted fifteen former Northern Ireland rally champions to the ceremony which was attended by around two hundred guests. Easily accessible records show that since the late 1970’s a total of twenty-one drivers have won the championship. So to have this many champions in attendance is nothing short of commendable. It is…

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As the automotive industry moves towards a greater use of renewable energy Ford offer mild hybrid, hybrid, and plug-in hybrid technology globally on six models within their range. With one additional vehicle offering full electrification, which is priced just shy of £51,000 the Ford Mustang Mach-E has raised the eyebrows of purists of the Blue Oval. To most, the picture of a sleek sports car with a throbbing V8 engine up front and questionable handling is what they would see when the words Mustang and Ford are mentioned together. What Ford give us with their new Mustang Mach-E however is…

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When it comes to electric vehicles I have always struggled to get excited about them that is until I drove the Honda e. Right up until spending a week with this quirky little Honda, I have never found an EV that I would actually wish to own. Many that I have experienced all carry merits in various areas, but none of them drove particularly well. Living semi-rural, I feel that the extra weight carried in these vehicles, thanks to their batteries, isn’t absorbed pleasantly via the chassis nor through the suspension on our rural roads network. They often feel very…

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Electrification is said to be the future of motoring and there is one electric vehicle that has been gathering accolades throughout the UK since its launch last year. Korean manufacturer Kia has quite a large family, with something in the region of ten models on offer. A few of these models have a different body styles available, adding to the family size, and a large percentage are available as hybrid. In regards to electric vehicles, the award-winning Kia EV6 is the brands first dedicated one. Built upon the new E-GMP platform, it is the first of eleven all-new BEV’s to…

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