A TINY autistic six-year-old has overcome his disabilities by discovering he can beat the big boys at motorcycling.

Joel Wright suffers from a range of conditions including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, speech problems and autism, and as a result he has difficulty communicating.

But two months ago his dad Neal introduced him to motocross and he took to it "like a duck to water".

"He hasn't looked back," said Mr Wright, of Ramsons Close, Malvern.

"It can be very difficult to raise an autistic child because it has to be one-on-one all the time.

"He would think nothing of smashing the telly and just standing there laughing."

But Mr Wright said that all changed when 2ft 10ins Joel got on a bike.

"A lot of clubs were turning us down, saying he was on medication so it was dangerous.

"But now he's come 13th out of 40 in his first race so it's shown them.

"We were fighting a losing battle to calm him down but this tires him out naturally without taking away his personality."

The tablets he takes to suppress his hyperactivity also make Joel, who attends Grove School in Malvern, lose his appetite. As a result he only weighs three stone.

Mr Wright said he could hardly lift the trophy he won for finishing 13th at the Wilden Lane Motorcross Club in Kidderminster.

"He would hardly ever speak in school but suddenly he goes in saying, 'I beat so and so' or 'I did this in the race'," said Mr Wright.

"The teachers are encouraging him to communicate and to use the racing as a way to understand things.

"For example, they ask him how many racers outside the top 10 finished in front of him."

And Mr Wright hopes Joel's newly-found passion will help him later in life.

"He washes his bike and he's got his own little tool kit so he can understand what I'm doing when I do the mechanics.

"That's how we're trying to help him."

Joel is already sponsored by Infosigns and English Braids, but needs support from other companies. Call Neal Wright on 01684 560742 for more information.