Josh McErlean has been nominated for this year’s Motorsport Ireland Billy Coleman Young Rally Driver Award for his performances in the period January to April.

19 year old Josh from Kilrea, Co. Derry currently leads the Junior British Rally Championship in his Peugeot 208 R2 following maximum scores on the West Cork and Pirelli International Rallies. McErlean also took a class win on the opening round of the Valvoline National Forestry Championship in January in Carrick-On-Suir.

Josh has been competing for the past 4 years and is a former Northern Irish and British J1000 Rally Champion. Following those successes, which he ranks among his best achievements to date, he stepped up to the R2 class, starting in a Citroen C2 before moving to a Ford Fiesta and now, a Peugeot 208.

With an 8 point lead in the Junior British Rally Championship, McErlean plans on seeing out the remaining 2 rounds of the series and realising his ambition of becoming champion, emulating the previous successes of former Billy Coleman Award winners, Robert Duggan and Callum Devine, who are both previous winners of the Championship.

Josh is a Mechanical Engineering student in Jordanstown University, and has just completed his first year of studies. His principal sponsors are Woodland NI, SDC Trailers, Truck-Lite and Revolve Ireland. Josh is particularly grateful for the support of his family and friends, especially all the Macsport team who prepare the car and his co-drivers who have partnered him in 2019, Gerard Conway, Liam Moynihan and Keaton Williams.