BEWDLEY teenage racer Tom Rawlings is off to a flying start in the British Junior 1000 Rally Championship.

The 15-year-old former karting champion has now progressed onto the rally stages and competed in the first event of the racing calendar in Anglesey, Wales on March 19.

Tom, with his navigator Alan Gilbert, was pushing hard on the first stage when he made a mistake and overshot a corner costing him the stage win.

Throughout the day he was very closely matched with a fellow competitor with only a few seconds separating them at each stage.

After eight stages and around 50 miles of rallying in high winds and pouring rain, Tom finished second out of the 19 junior drivers, just 12 seconds behind the winner.

Tom Rawlings said: “My mechanic Chris Woodhouse of Woodhouse Brothers has done an amazing job of prepping the car and I am really pleased with the start to the season, setting fastest times on three of the stages, I will be pushing hard for the win at the next round at Harlech Airfield in Wales”.

The Hagley RC High school pupil is no stranger to success having won several championships in karting including the NKRA UK National Championship.

He receives sponsorship from Visual Security Services, Affinity Vehicle Hire and Woodhouse Brothers who are helping Tom achieve his endeavours.

The championship for 14 to 17 year-olds hosts rounds in England, Wales and Scotland fielding the best of rallying’s young talent who race their 1000cc rally prepared cars across nine stages.

Having begun in 2009 it has grown dramatically and some competitors have graduated to race in the British Rally Championship.