'Our presence on the track makes a difference'

Two drivers from the world’s only competitive team of all-disabled racing drivers have achieved their lifelong ambition of racing on a famous European circuit.

Northamptonshire pair Noah Cosby and Asha Silva competed for Team BRIT Racing at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium.

Cosby, from Towcester, suffered a T6 spinal cord injury which left him paralysed from the ribs down, while Silva, from Kettering, was diagnosed with ADHD and adult autism.

“Once you [start to] notice that us being on track does make a difference to other people’s lives… there’s nothing better than that,” Cosby said.

“It’s more rewarding than taking home any trophies… it’s what we do outside of the track that matters most to us.”

Speaking to Robert Constantin and Charlotte Vowden on The Motorsport Show, Cosby and Silva described competing at Spa as “surreal”.

“It’s so overwhelming how grand the track is, but it is a feeling I haven’t replicated anywhere else before,” Cosby said.

“It was an extremely amazing experience,” Silva added.

Cosby, who was paralysed after a freestyle motocross accident, said he “won’t let injuries like this [get in the way] of the sport”.

“Turning to a different form of motorsport that I could compete at a level playing field with was the biggest thing for myself mentally to get beyond this life-changing injury,” he said.

Silva’s neurodivergence means loud noises and strong scents can be overwhelming, and have caused her to pass out in the past.

Despite it being noisy and full of fumes at a racetrack, stepping inside a race car is the only place where Silva’s brain is “silenced” and “focused”.

“As soon as I get in the car, everything is switched off,” she said.

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• Team Brit racing team