William Creighton launches Junior World Rally Championship bid
Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy member William Creighton will make the biggest step in his career by mounting an assault on the coveted FIA Junior World Rally Championship in 2021.
Creighton, 23 from Moira in Co. Down will compete for one of the biggest prizes in rallying in the most hotly contested series in the world, with all crews vying for a chance to scoop a brand new M-Sport Fiesta Rally 2, 200 free tyres from Pirelli and registration into the WRC3 category in 2022, seen as the next step on the WRC ladder of opportunity.
Joined by regular co-driver Liam Regan, Creighton will contest the formidable five-round series behind the wheel of an M-Sport Fiesta Rally 4 with each championship contender driving identical machinery, making it one of the closest championships in the world.
The Billy Coleman Award nominee will be backed by Creightons and the PRM Group during his campaign which begins at Rally Croatia at the end of April and Creighton is excited by the prospect of joining the World Rally Championship tour.
“This really is an unbelievable opportunity for me and my career,” says Creighton.
“The Junior World rally Championship is the pinnacle of the sport for aspiring young drivers who want to progress and to have the chance to prove myself in such an iconic championship is pretty overwhelming to be honest. But if ever there was a time to grab an opportunity with both hands, this is it. It doesn’t get much better than this”.
Creighton has enjoyed a dynamic and successful motorsport career. Starting on the racetrack, he became the Ulster Kart champion in 2012 before moving into rallying and the Junior 1000 series, developing into one of the most experienced Junior drivers of the current era, honing his skills on the British and Irish stages since the age of 14.
The two-time Junior British Rally Championship runner-up made the switch from a Peugeot 208 R2 to a Fiesta Rally 4 for the 2020 season, winning the category at the Cambrian Rally before the COVID-19 pandemic halted the series.
An outing on the FIA European Rally Championship circuit at Rally di Roma in Italy offered valuable experience of the Fiesta Rally 4 in Europe and with a new look to the JWRC calendar for 2021, Creighton believes this is the right time to tackle one of the biggest series in the world.
“I`m only 23 but time does tick by very quickly and we really did see this year's Junior WRC as a great opportunity in so many ways. When you look at this year’s series, there are probably a few events in there that many of the crews haven’t done before and when there are guys in there doing the championship two years in a row, the pace becomes that much quicker from the drivers who have been to that round before.
This year, it creates a slightly more level playing field I guess and it’s a real bonus I have experience of Ypres from my British Rally Championship campaigns”.
After the Croatia opener, rounds in Portugal, Estonia, Belgium and Spain make up the series and Creighton believes being as prepared as possible will be the key to his championship results.
“The Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy has been key to this campaign and its fantastic to have their support and knowledge alongside me this season. Along with my sponsors Creightons, PRM Group, DGM Sport and Race and Rally, we have a fantastic opportunity to look forward to and it’s down to Liam and I to make the most of it. We don’t know where we will be in terms of pace yet, but we do know that it will be mega, so we really need to bring our A-game and I`m really looking forward to pushing myself to see what we can do.”
Creighton enjoyed a positive pre-season shakedown last weekend at the Kowax Valašská Rally ValMez in the Czech Republic, taking six class stage wins on his way to second place in the RC4 category.
“I`m excited for this year's campaign and last weekend was the perfect opportunity to get back into the groove ahead of the JWRC season. The seat time was valuable and it's important to go beyond your comfort zone in the JWRC so Rally Valmez helped build the confidence. It’s great to have everyone’s support for this very special campaign - I can’t wait to get going”.
You can follow Creighton's progress at this weekend's event and his Junior World Rally Championship campaign this season by following him on his social media channels: Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.