Promising teen driver named as victim of rally crash

The motorsport world is in mourning after a double fatality during a rally in Northland on Sunday which took the life of a promising young driver.

The driver and co-driver died in the single-car crash at about 2pm during the Arcadia Road Rallysprint in Paparoa, held by Hibiscus Coast Motorsport Club.

The fatalities occurred when the car left the road and became submerged in a swollen river, according to a police serious crash investigator. Because the crash occurred while the road was closed, the events will be investigated by WorkSafe and MotorSport NZ.

Tributes reveal the driver was 15-year-old Brooklyn Horan, who was showing promise behind the wheel despite his young age.

A social media post by Hodgson Motorsport shared a photo of Horan competing and winning in Kiwitrucks competitions in under-10s.

"It is with a very heavy heart that today we heard the absolutely devastating news that Brooklyn passed away doing the very thing we grew to love together as families," the tribute reads.

The post then remembers Horan’s "cheeky smile" and offers condolences to his family and friends.

"Brooklyn, you were an amazing, kind, loving, happy kid and that hadn’t changed years later when we crossed paths again."

Another tribute by Racer Products also said Horan was a "great kid to deal with".

"His future was bright and he will be missed."

Offroad Racing NZ said Horan was "super-fast in any machine, on any surface".

Horan - the son of well-known competitor Raana Horan - had already achieved coming second in the SBT Group Taranaki Tarmac Rally in 2023.

Despite being 14 at the time, Horan was allowed to compete on closed roads and his co-driver at the time, Michael Connor, drove on the open road sections.

Car submerged in river

Police serious crash unit investigator Jeff Cramp surveyed the scene of the crash on Sunday, with his report being sent to WorkSafe and MotorSport NZ.

The crash occurred when the car came off an unsealed road and into a river swollen by rain and safety equipment in the car may have made it harder for the pair to get out, he said.

"Rally cars have whoopsies all the time when competing, just the difference in this one is the fact the car went into a swollen stream and was submerged.

"Tragically, they couldn’t get out of the vehicle. That’s the fundamental difference: the fact that it went into a swollen river and submerged."

MotorSport NZ president Wayne Christie earlier said it would co-operate with all investigating agencies, as well as undertake its own full and thorough investigation.

The whole motorsport community would understandably be shocked and upset by the terrible tragedy, he said.

"Our thoughts are with the family and friends of these two competitors and all involved with the Arcadia Road Rallysprint. We will be offering support to all those involved in the coming days," Christie said.