Shaun Gallagher will take part in the opening round of the Junior World Rally Championship (WRC) in Mexico this weekend with hopes of building upon last year’s WRC Rookie of the Year title.
The Letterkenny driver had a fantastic championship last year in the Citreon C2R2 and will be hoping to go all the way in his more powerful Citreon C2 Super 1600 this year. It will be a big
step up for the 28-year-old, but as well as driving a superior car he will also have the full support of the World Rally Team Ireland crew.
Another change for this campaign will be his co-driver, with Waterford man Michael Morrissey taking over in the passenger seat. He will bring plenty of experience with him, having previously competed in the WRC and the Middle East Championship.
Team Ireland boss Tommy Mullen is supporting Gallagher all the way and hopes that he will have the necessary infrastructure to allow him to go all the way. He has said Gallagher is “a true world
champion [who] has huge potential for the future”
The Letterkenny driver’s impressive performance in the Rookie category will lead to hopes that he can go all the way in this year’s competition. The standard will be a lot higher this time around but success could lead to a chance to drive with a factory team in the WRC.
Few drivers have won the Junior WRC in their first year, with Sebastian Loeb and Danni Sorbo being the only ones to achieve this feat so far.
Gallagher will only have one chance to repeat their achievement.
Mexico is the opening round of the WRC and is known to be a difficult course to navigate. It will be the first of seven the Donegal man will face in his aim to become the new Junior Wchampion.