KID WITH A HUGE HEART AND A BIG RACE IN LIFE

Some of you may have heard of Leighton “Heartstopperkid” Leevard, the boy who not only had numerous health concerns growing up but had to have a heart operation at two years of age.

Leighton is also known for his love & amp; commitment for drag racing along with his charming whit and smile in showbiz.

Leighton is raised by his mum Roberta, who tries to encourage and support Leighton with everything he does, including drag racing. You may think this is crazy for someone so young to be involved in but Leighton grew up around the track and has a love for the sport.

Leighton was lucky enough to be able to participate in his first season last year at the age of 7, which is the legal age here in New Zealand. In order for Leighton to be able to race another season he needed to seek sponsorship, unfortunately this has fallen through and I know this leaves his mum in the position of having to withdraw Leighton from something he not only showed natural race ability in but something he is so passionate about.

This is where I come in on behalf of the community, I know this little boy and how hard he works at school along with his sport. He has such a huge heart for those around him and being able to see the smile that is brought to his face when he races is rewarding.

For someone who’s life could have been taken away in an instance, I would like to see this boy out on the track and I know the season opportunity is looking glim now that the sponsorship has fallen through. This will also remove any stress his mother is now facing to try and arrange a way to see Leighton out on that race track for another season.

After a very costly first season with a smaller chassis car that had mechanical issues through the season, we had managed to source a larger chassis which will need a full rebuild. The idea for the season ahead was to fully rebuild the larger chassis as that will take Leighton through another 9 years of racing as opposed to spending more funds on the smaller chassis where Leighton is becoming too tall for.

To fully rebuild the larger chassis car on an entry level setup, custom length trailer and running costs for the season will seek $15K In this rebuild cost will see the car through for another 8-9 years where remaining seasons moving forward will only require maintenance & running costs of approx. $3-4K.

If the smaller chassis is to be run this season due to funds, it will cost approx. $7k and may face mechanical issues along the way with it being an older car.

Why not rugby you ask, everyone has their sport they have passion for and drag racing is it for Leighton. He dreams to be a professional racer when he is older and all while his mother supports him as much as she can she isn’t one to ask for help or accept help for that matter, but WE want to see Leighton out on that track he has shown he has what it takes as a driver to go far!

If you wish to hear more about who Leighton is or his story, you can check him out below

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/national-

video/news/video.cfm?c_id=1503075&gal_cid=1503075&gallery_id=193887

Any funds raised will be greatly appreciated and any not used this season will be put towards seasons to come.