A Torfaen teenager, who is the UK’s only male Deaf racing driver, has made another podium finish.
Caleb McDuff, 17, is a former Cwmbran High School pupil, races for Team BRIT, the world’s only competitive team of all-disabled racing drivers.
He races in a McLaren 570S GT4 and has teamed up with Noah Cosby, who is paraplegic following a motocross accident.
The pair competed in round 3 of the Britcar Endurance Championship at Snetterton on Saturday 31 May. Their car is fitted with innovative hand control technology which means that Noah can race with Caleb using the steering wheel only, placing him on equal terms with able-bodied drivers.
Technical issues in the morning meant that the pair were unable to compete in qualifying, placing them at the back of the grid for the first of two x 45 minute races.
Noah was the first to drive in race one, making up an incredible nine places before handing over to Caleb, who fought brilliantly, finishing fourth in class.
‘Fantastic work of the crew’
In round two, thanks to the fantastic work of the crew, the technical issues with the car had been resolved. Noah started once again, and bad luck struck again when he received contact from another car, causing him to spin out and placing them at the back. Noah battled back magnificently before handing over to Caleb who fought on, bringing them over the line 4th overall and 2nd in their class.
Caleb said: “It was a challenging weekend, since we had technical issues in qualifying, meaning we had to start at the back of the grid for race one. Thankfully, the mechanics got the issue fixed in no time, and we could show what we can do in this car
‘We did brilliantly’
“In race two we did brilliantly. Noah made his way through the first half and got us into third for me to take over. I kept fighting to get higher up the podium and came second.
“It was a really nice ending to our race weekend and we have a trophy to come back home with – to show our family and everyone who supports us, what we’re working so hard for.
Caleb races again at Thruxton on Saturday 5 July.
He was named as the Young Deaf Sports Personality of the Year in the national Deaf Sports Personality of the Year Awards.
Caleb was diagnosed as Deaf when he was two years old, having suffered severe ear infections as a baby, but now has a moderate level of hearing thanks to cochlear implants. The team has created a technical solution to enable him to use his implants and communicate with the team pit crew, whilst wearing his racing helmet.