Eighteen-year-old Jordan Dempsey from Westmeath has been named as the Beta Tools/Motorsport Ireland Irish International Racing Driver for 2018.
Dempsey, who was the 2017 Young Driver of the Year recipient, became the first Irishman to win an FIA approved International Motor Racing series when he won the Chinese F4 Championship.
He made the switch from Racing in the USF2000 series to compete with the Irish-owned Pinnacle Motorsport outfit run by Kildare’s John O’Hara and took the championship win in the final round at the Ningbo street circuit.
The Manley Memorial Award for Irish International Driver of the Year goes to... @jdempseyracing! pic.twitter.com/wSeKYdHQSy
— Motorsport Ireland (@MotorsportIRL) December 4, 2018
The teenager now hopes to continue up the motorsport ladder by contesting the Chinese F3 series in 2019.
Dempsey ended his season by finishing third in the recent Walter Hayes trophy meeting at Silverstone.
Twenty-two-year-old Charlie Eastwood, who hails from Belfast, is the Young Racing Driver of the Year
Eastwood is in the middle of his first year in the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC), driving an Aston Martin.
He has achieved three second places from three races in his debut year and is on track to add to his World Karting and Porsche Carrera Cup GB championship titles by the time the series finishes at the Le Mans 24 hour race in June 2019.
Well done to all our champions and runners up and thank you to @MansionHouseDub for being such wonderful hosts! pic.twitter.com/il7d7tgloV
— Motorsport Ireland (@MotorsportIRL) December 4, 2018
Eastwood received the Sexton Trophy and €50,000 to help continue his motorsport career
James Wilson, aged 24, from Armagh received the Billy Coleman award as the Young Rally Driver of the Year
Young was the 2018 Valvoline Motorsport Ireland National Forest Junior Rally Champion and secured a podium finish in the Junior British Rally Championship on the Ypres Rally in Belgium.
This internationally recognised award also comes with a prize valued at €50,000 in support to help the winner develop their career.
Previous Coleman Award winners are Craig Breen, the first ever driver from the Republic of Ireland to secure a World Rally Championship (WRC) works seat, record breaking four-time British Rally champion Keith Cronin, and the current award holder Callum Devine, who came fourth in his first attempt at the Junior WRC this season.
