#msirl @FormulaSheane Rounds 1 & 2 @500MRCI (with Rob Parks) pics via @Autosportpics

The Formula Sheane championship revved in to life at Kirkistown this weekend with two thrilling races that left everyone on the edge of their seats all race long.

The weather was amazing and not at all Irish which made for fantastic racing. The day started off with qualifying. Track conditions were very good. It was a battle between Brian Hearty and Mark Dunleavy with switching about throughout the session. Finally Brian Hearty took pole position joined on the front row by Mark Dunleavy, with Robbie Allen and David Parks on the second row. Very little separated the top four.

As all the cars were lined up on the grid for race one the 5 second board popped up and the tension between the drivers could be cut with a knife. When the lights went out it was Mark Dunleavy who took the early lead through Debtors and colonial there was a huge four way battle for the lead throughout the race with Brian Hearty making a brilliant comeback, with David Parks and Robbie Allen up there looking for the top step too. The race finished with Brian Hearty taking the top stop only barely from David Parks second and Mark Dunleavy third.

Race two started with a little bit of oil on the track which made for some very interesting race conditions Chris McCabe took the early lead in race two with a great drive from Chris throughout the race. As the race progressed Brian Hearty took the lead followed closely by David Parks and Mark Dunleavy.

The battle for fourth and fifth was also a one to be watch between Gary Corcoran, Kevin Sheane , Chris McCabe and Robbie Allen until Robbie Allen yet again had to deal with the very unfair mechanical gremlins that had plagued him all weekend long. Toward the end of the race David Parks was forced to retire because of a broken rose joint and not long after Brian Hearty was forced to retire with a broken throttle cable.

Mark Dunleavy was then leading followed by Chris McCabe and Kevin Sheane who where battling for second place. Further back the grid Leslie Shaw had a great race in the scholarship championship, but towards the end of the race Leslie also suffered from a broken rose joint and Charlie Linnane was also forced to retire due to a misfire. It would be wrong not to mention also the great drive newcomer Martin Rafferty had and showed some strong pace all weekend. The end result from race two was Mark Dunleavy in first followed by Chris McCabe and Kevin Sheane.

Mark Dunleavy now leads the championship after this weekend. All in all a great start to the season with some very gripping races from the Formula Sheane class. Onward now to Pembrey race circuit in Wales on the 20th and 21st of May.