Hyundai to mark Breen anniversary with tribute livery, charity auction support

The popular Irishman lost his life on 13 April last year after succumbing to injuries sustained in a testing crash, driving for Hyundai ahead of the Croatia round last year.

To mark the one-year anniversary of the tragic loss, Hyundai has set up an online auction of special items with all the proceeds going to the Craig Breen Foundation.

The foundation was set up to help aspiring young drivers through the rallying ranks, a cause Breen was particularly passionate about. It currently provides financial support to young drivers competing in Ireland’s J1000 Forestry Series.

The auction is set to go live from 9am [CEST] on 16 April before concluding at 9pm [CEST] on 23 April.

Items currently listed in the action range from Thierry Neuville and Ott Tanak crash helmets from last year and a pair of Dani Sordo’s Hyundai WRC overalls. To take part in the auction, click here.

Hyundai has also announced that its i20 N Rally1 cars, driven by Neuville, Tanak and Andreas Mikkelsen, will be adorned with an Irish flag on the roof and bumper to pay tribute to Breen at next week’s WRC round in Croatia.

This follows a stunning tribute livery the team ran on its two cars at last year’s event.

Looking ahead to what will be an emotional rally, Hyundai team principal Cyril Abiteboul said: “Croatia Rally is the first full tarmac event of the year, but after a milder Rallye Monte-Carlo, we have already had a taste of how the Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid can perform on this surface.

“We have seen success here in the past; we know both Thierry and Ott can put a car on the podium in Croatia, and with Andreas’ capabilities on tarmac, we believe he can also score good points next week.

“It is of course emotional coming to this event following the loss of Craig one year ago, but we want to honour him on our return and have tried to do so through both our charitable efforts and the addition of the Irish flag on our car.

“For both championships, and for Craig, we want to finish as close to the top step as possible – a win would be a fitting end to the weekend.”