Fri 04 Oct 2024

O’Donovan pays tribute to family effort behind title triumph

Patrick O’Donovan was the class of the field in Euro RX1 in 2024, but after deservedly clinching the coveted crown in Portugal last month, the rising British star joked about a time when he hadn’t looked to be destined for such great success...

Somewhat ironically, during the course of a stellar campaign in the FIA European Rallycross Championship’s top-tier, Montalegre was the only event that O’Donovan did not win, taking the chequered flag third in the final after a slow start and contact into Turn One had forced him onto the grass and down to the rear of the pack.

 

By that stage, however, it no longer mattered, as the 20-year-old – who is aiming to become a three-time British Rallycross Champion this weekend – had already done enough to seal the deal in the semi-final. He duly went down in history as the first British driver to win a European title in the dual-surface discipline since Richard Hutton back in 1994.

 

“It was amazing, and such a huge effort by the team,” reflected O’Donovan. “There’s a running joke that Sam Clennell who manages the team has been on a non-stop holiday for the past few months, but to be completely serious, he has been in the workshop relentlessly. He has such incredible drive, and for us to come and do this, it honestly means so much.

“This has been a massive family effort throughout. I grew up watching my father (2007 British Rallycross Champion, Ollie O’Donovan) race. He actually taught me how to drive. There’s a funny story that after my first few races, he said I wasn’t his son! I think I’ve since disproved that a little... Without such steadfast support from both my dad and my mum, I would never have been able to achieve this.”

 

The Team RX Racing ace admitted it had not been the most straightforward of weekends at Montalegre, and while he had a bit of a buffer in the points table, he knew he could not afford to take his eye off the ball too much with a rival of the calibre of Yury Belevskiy ready to pounce on the slightest error.

 

“It’s quite a difficult position to be in, to be completely honest,” O’Donovan mused. “I prefer to be the hunter doing the chasing, rather than the hunted having to try to manage the gap – that’s a new skill I’ve had to pick up over the past few months!

“Our race starts were really up-and-down over the weekend, but in the semi-final, I got an insane launch. We tried to replicate that in the final, but it turned out to be too much of a gamble as I ended up stalling on the line!

 

“We were last into Turn One, and into the braking zone, I received a touch from [Tamás] Kárai that put me onto the grass. To recover from there to third was a cool comeback drive and I pulled off two pretty cheeky overtakes along the way.

 

“I was really happy to see Yury win the final. He has done an amazing job all year, constantly on my rear bumper and pushing me round. For him to finish almost five seconds clear was super-impressive. It’s brilliant to race against such tough competition – it makes it even more rewarding when you win.”

Japan
Starts: Thursday, November 21, 2024 at 12:00:00 AM
Poland
Starts: Friday, October 11, 2024 at 9:30:00 AM
Turkey
Starts: Saturday, November 9, 2024 at 9:00:00 AM