Waterford's Craig Breen overcomes tragedy to lead Ford’s rally fightback

Craig Breen is no stranger to tragedy. The Waterford man found out the hard way just how dangerous motor sport can be, back in 2012, when a crash on the Targa Florio rally took the life of his then co-driver Gareth Roberts.

It was a gut-wrenching thing for a young driver to face, and Breen’s career since then has had, as he puts it himself, “more than a fair share of twists and turns.”

Just last week, the rally community was reminded once again that disaster is only a heartbeat away, when Cork driver Eoin McCarthy was killed in an accident during the Killarney Forest Rally.

Pausing for a second during our interview, Breen speaks for all motor sports fans: “I’m desperately, desperately sad about that. He was only 22, and just getting started in the sport. At that level, it’s all about pure fun and pure enjoyment, so for it to end that way is just such a tragedy.”

On a happier note, 2022 could be the year when they truly get to see the capability of Breen, and his co-driver Paul Nagle. The Irish pair have joined the Ford World Rally Championship Team, which is run out of Cumbria by the M-Sport team, headed by rallying legend Malcolm Wilson. On the first rally of the season, the famed Monte Carlo, M-Sport’s Puma was the car to beat, displaying a rare blend of high speed and driver-friendly handling.

The rally was won by France’s Sebastian Loeb – a man who has won nine world rally titles and who is driving for Ford on an occasional basis this year. A nice little part-time retirement gig you might say. In second place, driving for Toyota was another Frenchman called Sebastian; Sebastian Ogier, who has won eight titles in the sport, and has more individual rally wins than any other driver.

In third place was Breen, taking a