Meet the Shropshire teenager making waves in British motorsport before passing driving test

He may not yet be legally allowed on the roads, but a Ludlow teenager is already racing his way to success in British motorsport.

Rhys Tipton has been tearing up the track and recently celebrated becoming a national champion in autograss racing.

For the 17-year-old, racing runs deep in the family bloodline. Wearing the famous “Ludlow 1” number once used by family members, including his mother and grandfather, Rhys has been immersed in the sport since childhood and has quickly emerged as one of its brightest young talents.

“I turned 17 in March, so it's getting closer,” Rhys joked about being legally allowed to drive on the roads.

“It begins back to my granddad in the early 70s. It's been generation after generation.

“I became the national champion in 2023. But my latest achievement was becoming the British Autograss Series champion, which I won over five rounds.

“Then I also won the Young Guns Championship, which is for competitors from the age of 10 to 21.”

Autograss racing typically takes place on dirt oval tracks, with heavily modified production cars battling wheel-to-wheel at high speed.

Rhys has competed in a stripped-out Toyota Yaris, retaining its standard engine but fitted with a lightweight frame and distinctive livery. His car is primarily blue with flashes of lime and white, proudly displaying the iconic ‘Lud 1’ number.

Rhys’ journey in the sport began at a young age, watching family members race before getting behind the wheel himself at around nine years old and soon beginning to compete.

“I used to drag him there as a baby,” said Rhys’ Mum Shelly who also raced.

“By the age of two and three, he knew every car number and everything. He used to shout for them and, yeah, really got into it.”

When he is not working as a tree surgeon, the teenager can usually be found where he has spent much of his life - at the track, practising, tuning cars and racing.

“In the race season, I am out near enough every day or every couple of days, just trying different stuff,” Rhys said.

Next up for the young star is a move into senior racing. But while autograss has already brought him early success, his ambitions stretch far beyond the dirt tracks, with dreams of one day reaching Formula One - whether behind the wheel or working within elite motorsport.

The teenager said: “I am moving into the seniors now, it's going to take a little while to get used to it. But I'd like to win another national title again.

“It'd be lovely to go into a different motorsport, like Formula One. It'd be a dream.”

The teenager is now taking a year out from competing while a new car is being built ahead of his return to the track and the beginning of a new chapter in senior competition.

For Shelly and the rest of Rhys’ family, watching him naturally take to the sport and bring titles back to Shropshire means everything.

“I am massively proud,” she added. “We tried it for years to do it, and for Rhys to do it so young, to win all that, it was just, shocking.

“It was just like he was born to do it. Grandad did have a tear in his eye.”