To mark the one-year anniversary since the loss of much-loved World Rally Championship driver Craig Breen, an auction was set up. The Hyundai WRC team, which Breen drove for from 2019-2021 and in 2023, supported it by donating a host of items.
The list of items up for auction included crash helmets worn by WRC drivers Thierry Neuville and Ott Tanak last year, a pair of Dani Sordo’s Hyundai WRC overalls and a passenger ride in a Hyundai WRC Rally1 car.
The auction closed on Tuesday night having reached €51,982. Neuville’s crash helmet attracted the largest price topping out at €10,010, while Tanak’s helmet went for €6,101. Sordo’s overalls will have a new owner following a bid of €2,800.
The funds will go directly to the Craig Breen Foundation which was set up last year. The foundation’s goal is to carry on Breen’s legacy by helping young drivers through the rallying ranks, a cause the late Irishman was particularly passionate about. It currently provides financial support to young drivers competing in Ireland’s J1000 Forestry Series.
The foundation has announced it will support the championship for a minimum five-year period.
Prizes on offer for drivers in the championship range from financial support to funded drives in the Spanish and Portuguese Hyundai i20 Cup with the Sports & You team, which Breen competed for in the Portuguese Rally Championship last year.
The Hyundai WRC team paid tribute to Breen at last weekend’s Croatia Rally by running a special tribute livery on its three i20 N Rally1 cars driven by Neuville, Tanak and Andreas Mikkelsen.
