Creighton to drive Toyota Yaris in BRC title bid
Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy driver William Creighton will drive a Toyota GR Yaris in his bid to win the British Rally Championship in 2025.Former Junior World Rally champion Creighton and co-driver Liam Regan narrowly missed out on winning the BRC title last year in a M-Sport Fiesta Rally2.They will now link up with the Melvyn Evans Motorsport Rally Team in a Castrol-backed Yaris - the car which won the teams' title and drivers' title with Chris Ingram in 2024.Creighton said he was "incredibly excited" to make the switch to the Yaris after picking up five podiums from seven rounds last year."I aim to pick up where I left off in the BRC in 2024," said the 26-year-old, who won the Junior BRC title in 2021. "I certainly have unfinished business there and thanks to the support of the Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy, I'm able to return with the knowledge of last season and confidence that I can really fight for it again. "It's a big year, but I can't wait to get going in Yorkshire in a few weeks time." The six-round BRC season begins with the East Riding Stages rally in Yorkshire on 23 February.Creighton will be joined in the Castrol MEM Rally Team by Meirion Evans in a two-car attack on the teams' championship.
Rally Sweden 'will be like nothing else'
Meanwhile, Josh McErlean will compete in his second event in the World Rally Championship in Sweden from 13-16 February.The 25-year-old from Northern Ireland finished seventh on his WRC debut with M-Sport in Monte Carlo in January.He says competing on the snow-covered roads in Sweden "will be like nothing else I've experienced before"."It's such a specialist event that takes years to master," said the Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy driver."So, pretty much like Monte, our expectations remain realistic and that is quite simply to do our best for the M-Sport team and try to gain some points for our season."Rally Sweden is the only event on the WRC calendar that is run entirely on show and ice, which presents a unique challenge for McErlean and co-driver Eoin Treacy.Despite some testing in his Ford Puma Rally 1 in those conditions, McErlean admits it will be another steep learning curve. "We have been able to conduct some winter testing to enable me to get a feel for the Puma on the ice and snow, but I'm fully aware that getting the most out of the car will take some time from my side" continues McErlean. "Rally Sweden is always incredible. It's always a special event with the unique challenge of the surface. The grip these cars can generate with the studded tyres is something else."
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