Rising British rally star Chris Ingram is set to begin his first full season on the European stage in Latvia next week. The 20 year old will tackle the FIA European Junior Rally Championship in a Peugeot UK supported 208 R2.
Ingram comes into 2015 on the back of an impressive performance last season on selected events in the ERC Junior series. The Briton took second place on the Rally Azores and third in Ypres ending up 7th in the championship standings at the end of the year. Ingram was also leading the junior field on the Circuit of Ireland before crashing out and his performance netted him the Colin McRae ERC Flat Out Trophy. The 20 year old finished out the year by dominating the RC4 class on Wales Rally GB winning by over 2 minutes.
The first round of the ERC Junior Championship will see crews travel to Latvia for Rally Liepaja where Ingram and co -driver Gabin Moreau will face tough competition from local competitors and many other crews more experienced in the art of rallying in freezing conditions. With this in mind Ingram says securing a good result will pay dividend later on in the season.
“Our aim will be to maximise our scoring potential before the races that we feel will be the stronger rounds for us – in Ireland, the Azores and in Belgium for example.”
Ingram and Moreau got some valuable ice driving practice at last weekend’s Rallye Monte Carlo and the crew have spent the winter break training and preparing for the forthcoming season.
The Briton says that the successful results achieved last year on the European stage mean that overall victory is the ultimate goal for this season.
“We believe we have a very strong chance of success in the European Junior Rally Championship title this year, after gaining valuable experience last year and having the perfect car and team for this year’s battle. We are going in to this with the objective of winning it, sure in the knowledge we have a really good chance, and I am delighted to have the full backing of Peugeot UK.”
Rally Liepaja kicks off on February 6th and is also Round 2 of the FIA European Rally Championship. Competitors will tackle over 125 miles of competitive driving, spread over 12 timed stages all culminating with a spectator stage in and around the host town of Liepaja.
