Kilkenny’s Brennan named young driver of the year

Kilkenny’s Jack Brennan was named Young Rally Driver of the Year, by Motorsport Ireland at its annual awards lunch in Dublin on Wednesday.

Motorsport’s governing body in Ireland honoured its champions at the Crown Plaza Hotel in Santry where Motorsport Ireland president Aidan Harper announced 19-year-old Jack Brennan as the Billy Coleman award winner for 2023.

The 19-year-old Jack Brennan, who hails from Mooncoin, Co. Kilkenny was nominated for his success in this year’s Motorsport Ireland Junior Rally Series, where he dominated all year in his Renault Clio Rally5, before going on to further success in the later stages of the year with a newly acquired Peugeot 208 Rally4.

Brennan becomes the youngest ever recipient of the Billy Coleman award, beating a record previously held by the late Craig Breen – his here- since 2009.

As part of the award, Brennan will receive support to the value of €50,000 from Motorsport Ireland and Sport Ireland for the 2024 season as well and a further €50,000 has been pledged by the Team Ireland Foundation thanks to support from John Coyne.

He will also receive support and guidance from the Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy for the year ahead.

“ I’m delighted to be able to follow in the footsteps of the likes of Craig Breen. To be the youngest-ever winner of this prestigious award is a huge honour for me. I look forward to next year, getting back to the stages with the backing of the Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy once more,” he said.