Eamonn Boland took the victory on the Circuit of Ireland International Rally, the second round in the 2008 Global Group Irish Tarmac Rally Championship.
Boland eventually finished 4.9 seconds up on his closest rival, after a nail-biting finish in which his lead was cut right back in the final two stages, when he had windscreen wiper problems.
Speaking at the finish Boland was delighted to have taken his first win on the three-day event.
"We have finished second a couple of times so it's great to win," Boland told the championship's official website.
"We had some problems in stages 18 and 19 after service with water on the windscreen. I have never driven as hard as I did on the last stage," added the 47-year-old.
Gareth meanwhile had to settle for the runners-up spot in his Focus WRC, despite gaining some 30 seconds in the final two tests, while Tim McNulty was third and Aaron MacHale came in fourth.
John McGlaughlin rounded out the top five in his Lancer Evo - and also took the Group N win, while Brendan Cumiskey was sixth.
In total only 14 runners were classified at the end - with round one winner, Mark Higgins and Derek McGarrity both sidelined early on due to mechanical issues.
"We were fastest on the third stage extending our lead, but it all went wrong on the start line of the final stage of the day, stage four," Mark explained on his personal website.
"As we launched the car, the prop shaft broke and our rally was over. It was a massive disappointment for the rally to end so suddenly."
The 2008 Global Group Irish Tarmac Rally Championship now resumes with the International Rally of the Lakes, which runs from May 2-5.
