Latest news with #Offaly
Irish Daily Mirror
14 hours ago
- Automotive
- Irish Daily Mirror
Irish prodigy Alex Dunne gushes with emotion when he sees Dad after F1 debut
Irish racing prodigy Alex Dunne gushed with emotion as he met a proud father following his Formula 1 racing debut on Friday. Dunne was let drive for Team McLaren in place of Lando Norris for this afternoon's FP1 session and exceeded the lofty expectations thrown his way as he clocked the fourth fastest time, behind only George Russell, Max Verstappen, and Oscar Piastri. And the 19-year-old was emotional throughout the day as he embraced his father, Noel. "I don't even know where to start. Super, super happy. It's safe to say it went pretty well," Dunne told McLaren's social media team after the session. "We knew going through the session that the goal wasn't necessarily for performance, it was more to help out with the car, help Lando, and help the team improve as much as they can for FP2, FP3, and then onwards into the weekend. To have the pace that I had and show was I am capable on the F1 stage is something pretty special." On concluding the session, a delighted Dunne said: "I want to thank everyone. A little boy's dream came true; that was definitely the best day of my life. Thanks, everyone, [it] means a lot." By competing on Friday, Dunne is the first Irish racing driver to feature on the stage since Ralph Firman in 2003, and there will be justifiable hype surrounding the Offaly teen. Dunne currently sits top of the Formula Two standings, and a strong finish to the season, accompanied by some more opportunities, could mean he could make a real name for himself in the sport. McLaren team boss Andrea Stella took time to speak to Sky Sports after the race, where he branded Dunne 'diligent' and 'impressive' while also tempering expectations, saying his fast lap times came later when his fuel was down.
Irish Independent
17 hours ago
- Automotive
- Irish Independent
Alex Dunne flies the flag for Offaly as the Irishman tests with F1 giants McLaren
Alex Dunne flies the flag for Offaly as the Irishman tests with F1 giants McLaren.
Irish Times
18 hours ago
- Automotive
- Irish Times
HSE begins ‘urgent examination' after two ambulances catch fire in a week
An urgent examination is under way after two HSE ambulances went on fire over the last week. The HSE said a new community paramedic response ambulance, awaiting entry to service, caught fire in a vehicle commissioning facility in Tullamore, Co Offaly on Thursday. It said a recently-commissioned emergency ambulance was destroyed in a blaze while parked adjacent to Castlebar ambulance station in Co Mayo early last Saturday. The HSE said neither vehicle was in use at the time of the fires and no patients or staff were injured. READ MORE 'While the two vehicles affected are different makes, models, and types, an initial technical examination has identified a possible issue, which is now being urgently explored in further detail with vehicle suppliers,' it said in a statement on Friday. In line with health and safety requirements, all staff on duty had been alerted to the two incidents, it added. The HSE said staff have been advised to remain vigilant and reminded of fire safety, vehicle evacuation and incident reporting procedures. It said services operated by the National Ambulance Service (NAS) for the public were 'unaffected by the current precautionary measures, which will remain under constant review'. The NAS currently has 437 patient-carrying vehicles, including emergency and critical care ambulances and intermediate care vehicles. The HSE said all NAS vehicles were subject to a crew inspection at the commencement of each shift, as well as a safety inspection every eight weeks. It said all vehicles were constructed in line with the relevant national and EU standards, were serviced and maintained in line with manufacturers' guidelines, and replaced at five years or after covering 350,000km, in line with the NAS fleet replacement policy. 'A serious incident management team has been established, and both incidents are being managed in line with the HSE's incident management framework,' it added. A HSE internal audit of the national ambulance fleet last year found the budget allocation for last year was 50 per cent deficient in terms of the funding needs of the service. It identified that some emergency ambulances were being kept in service outside the recommended usage of five years, with 66 ambulances listed as five or six years old.
RTÉ News
18 hours ago
- Automotive
- RTÉ News
Alex Dunne shows his speed during F1 practice debut for McLaren in Austria
Alex Dunne set the fourth fastest time in Austrian Grand Prix first practice for McLaren on Friday as he became the first Irish driver to compete in a Formula One session for 22 years. The 19-year-old Offaly man, who is a McLaren development driver, currently races in the FIA Formula 2 feeder series, and got behind the wheel of the F1 constructors' championship-leading MCL39 for the first time during a grand prix weekend, sitting in for Lando Norris, who is second in this season's F1 drivers' standings. Under the rules for 2025, F1 teams are required to field young drivers in free practice twice during the year, increasing from one in previous seasons, and this was Dunne's first opportunity to take the step up, with Dino Beganovic the other non-F1 driver involved, the latter in place of Ferrari's Charles Leclerc. In the process, Dunne became the first Irish driver to feature during an F1 grand prix weekend since Ralph Firman 22 years ago. English-born Firman raced for Jordan in the 2003 season under an Irish licence through his Newbridge, Kildare-born mother. Dunne, with his father Noel watching on from the team garage, was the second driver to emerge from the pitlane for the start of practice around Austria's Red Bull ring, lining up behind seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton of Ferrari, before setting out on his initial out-lap. He was the only driver not to set a time in his initial run of laps before returning to the pits. But when he reemerged, he resumed testing out the McLaren's new front wing and on his eighth lap, set a first flying lap of 1:08.520 which had him 20th and last, before he improved on that almost immediately with a 1:07.196. However, later on the soft tyre and with a quarter of an hour left in testing, Dunne showed his speed on his 18th lap with a time of 1:05.766, the fourth fastest at that point and within a tenth of current F1 championship leader Oscar Piastri in the other McLaren. George Russell of Mercedes was fastest overall ahead of Red Bull's four-time champion Max Verstappen. Dunne eventually completed 29 laps, particularly impressing on the high speed corners at Spielberg. After the session, Dunne took to the team radio to thank his engineers for making "a little boy's dream come true" and described it as the best day of his life. Speaking to Sky Sports' Ted Kravitz after the session, McLaren team principal Andrea Stella described the young Irishman's efforts as both "diligent" and "impressive". Dunne will now have to quickly switch focus back to F2 qualifying, which begins later on Friday, as he bids to bolster his chances of extending his points lead in the FIA's second-tier championship this weekend. Driving for the Rodin team, he has won two F2 feature races in Bahrain and Imola this season, and currently leads the driver standings by three points ahead of the Netherlands' Richard Verschoor. He is .
Irish Daily Mirror
21 hours ago
- Automotive
- Irish Daily Mirror
Austrian GP Practice 1 LIVE updates as Ireland's Alex Dunne takes to McLaren car
The Formula 1 Austrian Grand Prix is upon us this weekend, and first practice offers the drivers the opportunity to get dialled into the circuit ahead of qualifying and the race. McLaren hold a healthy lead in the constructor's championship, while Oscar Piastri will hope to extend his driver's championship lead. The championship leaders will give Offaly's Alex Dunne a run out in Lando Norris's MCL39, making him the first driver from Ireland to compete in an F1 weekend in 22 years. The F2 championship leader will have a busy morning, having topped the F2 practice session earlier on before stepping into the McLaren. After the session he will have to dash back to Rodin Motorsport to participate in F2 qualifying. It's a hectic weekend in Spielberg as the Red Bull Ring hosts both F2 and F3 this weekend. The chasing pack have made steps in recent weeks to eat into McLaren's advantage after George Russell's victory in Canada last time out.
