Irish rally driver Craig Breen was killed in an accident on Thursday during reconnaissance ahead of Rally Croatia (April 20-23), his Hyundai team announced, a tragedy that comes 34 years after the last death in the category queen of the rally. “It is with deep sadness that Hyundai Motorsport confirms that driver Craig Breen lost his life today (Thursday) in an accident during reconnaissance for Rally Croatia,” the South Korean manufacturer wrote. in a brief statement.
His co-driver and compatriot James Fulton himself “came out unscathed from this accident which occurred just after noon”, said the team, without giving further information as to the circumstances of the accident. According to Croatian authorities, the accident occurred near the town of Zlatar in the north of the country. The car “left the road and hit a wooden post,” police said in a statement. For now, the exact circumstances are not yet known.
Engaged in a partial program
Breen, who had already driven for the South Korean brand between 2019 and 2021, was engaged in a partial program this season, sharing his driving with Spaniard Daniel Sordo. On Croatian roads, the 33-year-old driver was preparing for his second rally of the season after the one in Sweden disputed in February, which he finished in second position.
He had not participated in the inaugural round of the season, the legendary Monte-Carlo rally in January, nor in the Mexico rally, the 3rd stage of the season contested in March, giving way to Sordo.
Nine WRC podiums
The son of former Irish champion Ray Breen, Craig began his karting career in Ireland before making his rallying debut in 2009, when he won the International, British and Irish Fiesta Sporting Trophy titles. That year he was also crowned Irish Young Driver of the Year. The native of Waterford, in the south-east of Ireland, joined the top category of the discipline, the WRC, in 2016 with Citroën, grabbing a podium in his first season in the elite (a third place in the rally of Finland).
Although he has never won a WRC victory, Breen has won a total of nine podiums between 2016 and 2023, with six second and three third places. Before the tragedy, he was in sixth place in the WRC world championship, expected from April 20 to 23 in Croatia for the fourth round (out of 13) of the season. “I can’t believe I’m writing this now. Life can be so fragile and unfair… I can’t believe we lost you buddy!” The 2019 world champion reacted on Twitter on Thursday. Ott Tänak (M-Ford Sport), Breen’s former teammate at Hyundai.
“We were texting and at one point you didn’t answer me, I’m going to miss you my friend, so, so, so much…”, continued the Estonian. The last WRC driver to have died at the wheel of his car was the Portuguese Augusto Mendes during the Rally of Portugal in 1989. Since then, four co-drivers have been killed in the race: the Frenchman Francis Malaussene in Monte-Carlo (1990) , New Zealander Rodger Freeth in Australia (1993), Briton Michael Park in Wales (2005) and German Jörg Bastuck in Spain (2006).