As a country that loves inspirational stories about Irish sportsmen reaching the top of their sport, we’re surprised that there hasn’t been more national coverage about Derek Tohill in recent years.
When we were recently developing a sponsorship brochure for Derek, we were struck by the fact that he was the first ever double European champion in Rallycross Touring Cars (2010 and 2013). He’s never finished outside the top three in the FIA Championship since 2010. And as he makes his first foray into the new FIA World Rallycross Championship this year, we’re pretty sure he’ll keep up the high standards that he’s set for himself.
Lining up against the likes of former F1 champion Jacques Villeneuve and WRC champion Petter Solberg, Derek is confident of making a strong start to the season in the Supercar category. On his first test-drive late last year, Derek said, “It’s a great opportunity to drive a Supercar. It’s is the fastest car I’ve ever driven, the startline performance is shocking, amazing, there’s nothing you could possibly do to match that.”
A qualified stockbroker and owner of a successful distributor for high quality vehicle parts in Rathgar and Blanchardstown, Derek was announced as Motorsports Ireland‘s International Driver of the Year in 2013, following in the footsteps of racing legends such as Bertie Fisher and Eddie Irvine.
The 12-race season kicks off in Portugal in May at the renowned Montalegre circuit. Hopefully Derek’s future achievements will help to increase the awareness of motorsport in Ireland: we’ll be following this inspirational Irish champion with keen interest in 2014.