Aaron Morgan is a professional racing car driver part of Team BRIT, driving an Aston Martin V8 Vantage GT4 in Class 4 of the endurance Britcar championship, a lifelong dream.
His co-driver Bobby Trundley is autistic and together they are the only disabled team in the event. They have won two races so far and are currently in fourth place overall with one race to go.
“I don’t see myself as disabled. I’m another racing car driver. When I put my wheelchair to the side of the track and get into the car, all I want is to win – just like all the other drivers,” says Aaron.
Team BRIT has developed the world’s most advanced hand controls for a racing car so disabled drivers can compete on a level playing field against able-bodied drivers.
By day, Aaron is an IT networking specialist with CDW and will share his perspective on accessibility in the workplace at Diversity Network’s free INCLUSION 2021 online DEI conference running between 19 and 21 October.
Aaron began motorsport when he was just seven years old, competing in motocross. But an accident while riding a jump on his favourite track broke his spine and left him paralysed from the waist down.
He was in a coma for almost a month but recovered and underwent months of rehabilitation in hospital, during which time he turned 16.
When he was told that as a disabled person, he was allowed to take his driving test at 16 rather than 17, he started having lessons in hospital.
With a determination to make the best of his situation, Aaron returned to college and was accepted to Brunel University where he gained a 2:1 in Sports Science.
He became the youngest person in the UK to achieve a National B racing license and his racing car debut was in 2011 on the Production BMW Championship grid.
He was so successful that he won Driver of the Year during his first season.
In 2015 he moved to the prestigious BMW Compact Cup Championship with his best position as 8th in 2018.
In all these competitions Aaron has been the only disabled athlete competing with able-bodied driver. His next goal with Team BRIT is to take part in the world’s most iconic motorsport race, the Le Mans 24-hour challenge. “It’s infamous. It’s a massive challenge but one Team BRIT can achieve,” says Aaron.
