Rallying: Fraser catches eye of British champ Matt Edwards

Fraser, 16, recently visited the forests of Wales which are a regular haunt of the top rally drivers in Britain and the world to receive some tutoring from reigning British champion Matt Edwards.

And so impressed was Edwards by the young Shandon resident’s talent that he has offered Fraser the chance to compete in his own team in the British BTRDA Rally R2 Cup and selected British Junior Rally Championship events in 2020 – with an eye on a full entry in the British junior championship the following year.

That means that Fraser, who is competing in only his second season of racing, has opted not to continue in the Junior 1000 Ecosse Challenge series – in which he currently tops the standings after two wins and a second place in the first three events of the season – and instead to focus on testing the R2 throughout 2019 in preparation for 2020, and also on the tough task of raising the budget to compete in a much more challenging discipline next year.

Fraser said: “Matt will be managing the team, preparing the car and providing an M-Sport Technician for each event and hopefully Darren Garrod, Matt’s British Championship winning co-driver from 2018, will be my co-driver for the season.

“I am totally honoured that he current British rally champion has noted my potential and offered to be my mentor and build a team around me – and hopefully I can achieve my ambition and progress in the world of rallying.”

Fraser's first session with Edwards, in a left-hand-drive Fiesta R2 in early April, had to be abandoned because of snow after just eight miles.

But he was back in the R2 with Matt at the Phil Price Rally School two weeks later, completing 70 stage miles and impressing the British champion with his ability to learn and maintain a consistently fast pace so early on.

That was followed by a further session on May 9 at another Welsh venue, Forest Experience.

“I again completed 70 miles in the R2,” Fraser added, “and after this session, Matt then made the proposal of being my mentor and entering the Fiesta R2 Cup in 2020.”

Fraser is now hoping that prospective sponsors will get to hear of his rapid progress so far and get on board with the team by offering help with the considerable cost of a full season’s rallying – tyres, fuel and travel to name but a few.

If you’re interested, you can contact Fraser’s dad George on 07891 813062 or get in touch by emailing georgeande@btinternet.com or fraserandersonrallying@gmail.com.