Drift king Conor gearing up to test out his wings
TEENAGE drift sensation Conor Shanahan is revved up and ready to ahead of the 2021 Drift Masters European Championship (DMEC), which will launch in Greinbach, Austria on May 29.
The 17-year-old Killavullen drifter and Red Bull driver is eagerly anticipating his first full series behind the wheel with Red Bull after signing up with the team last year.
He had been due to take part in last year’s series, which was due to feature a round at Mondello Park. However, like numerous other sporting events it fell foul of the Covid-19 pandemic and was delayed and eventually cancelled altogether.
As those who follow the sport will be aware, Conor is no stranger to drifting having taken up the sport at the tender age of nine, having already cut his teeth racing go-karts. Although that would not have come as a great surprise to those who know the Shanahans, as their name has become synonymous with Irish motor sports for many years
His older brother Jack is a double British Drift Champion, his father John was a rally champion and his mother Valerie is the only woman to have won a national Autoglass Championship.
At just 13 he famously went headto-head with world renowned ‘petrolRichard Hammond of Top
Gear and Amazon Grant Tour fame, comprehensively out-drifting him - scoring 27 points to Hammond’s two.
On the weekend of his 15th birthday Conor made his debut in the Drift Masters European Championship beating DMEC and Irish National champion James Deane from Castletownroche in Poland.
He went on to become the youngest driver to win European, British
and Irish professional drift events, is now a formidable force in the sport and looking to be a regular podium finisher in 2021.
The 2021 race calendar is comprised of five rounds beginning at Greinbach in May and ending on September 5 around the city-centre streets of the Georgian capital Tbilisi, with all of the events to screen live on Red Bull TV.
The driver line-up will be its most
diverse to date with over 25 countries represented on the starting grid and after the disappointment of last year’s cancelled series he said he cannot wait to pit himself against the best drifters Europe has to offer.
“I’m really excited for the new season. It’s been a super long 12-months and it’s good to finally get behind the wheel again. This year will be my first full series with the support of Red Bull and I’m planning on spending it all season long,” said Conor.
New to the calendar is the scenic Lillesand Arena circuit in Norway which features extreme elevation changes and high-speed sections. DMEC will also be crowning a new ‘King of Riga’ in 2021, when the series returns to the popular Bikernieku Trase Circuit, the highest speed circuit on the tour with competitors entering at 150km/h.
“Riga is one of my favourite tracks, it’s the fastest and the smallest mistake can bring you unstuck,” said Conor, who is also relishing the thought of the streets of the Georgian capital.
“Tbilisi is going to be insane! It’s something very different and exciting and I can’t wait to find out what the race layout is going to be.
“Racing in the middle of a city is definitely going to put us out of our comfort zone and it’ll be great to take our unique sport to the people,” he said.