BINGLEY-born Sam Bilham will race for the first time since winning the DMACK Fiesta ST Trophy in September when he features in the Rally North Wales on March 24.

The 21-year-old sold his car after winning the title and had admitted that a drive this season looked unlikely as he saved up for a new vehicle.

However, having agreed to support F1000 Junior contender Eddie Lewis as a co-driver this year, Lewis' father Nigel offered Bilham the use of a newly-acquired Vauxhall Adam Cup for next month's race.

"This really is a fantastic chance to get acclimatised to something more up to date than the old Fiesta ST and I'm very grateful to Nigel for this amazing offer," said Bilham, who won five of the six rounds contested in the single-make Fiesta series last year.

"The Fiesta was proven, of course, but the Adam Cup has a fully sequential gearbox and while it may be lower-powered than the ST, it should be a great way to ease my way into one.

"Ultimately, an R2 car is where I want to be, but we don't have the budget for that at the moment. So I just plan on enjoying the experience and learn as I go."

The outing will be a one-off for Bilham but he is hoping it will be a drive that could help him in driving an R2-spec machine in the future.

"There isn't that much between the Cup and a full-blown R2, so it will give me a good idea of what lies ahead," he said.

"I know I have the pace – I proved that last year – but the leap into, say, the British Championship is just too great budget-wise.

"I'd really like to contest the Rally2 Championship, as it offers a great mix of events plus some night stages too. So for now, I'm heading out to enjoy this and see where it leads."