Anyone that follows Trackstar or Matt on social media would have seen the excitement in the weeks leading up to tonight’s event, and it’s clear to see why. The 34th staging of the Unlimited Bangers World of Shale sees 150 cars booked in with some of the biggest names in the sport set to feature for the biggest prize on shale.
455 Rikki Finney took the double chequers after going through a strenuous battle twelve months ago in what was one of the hardest individual races of the year. The Silver Boys driver is set to feature again tonight in the pursuit of defending the gold stripes, and you can catch his thoughts on defending the title later on in the programme.
There’s a whole host of home favourites looking to keep the title within the Trackstar realms. 123 Kieran Gray made the switch from Spedeworth for this season and he made that pay off by winning the World of Shale qualifying points and he will be among one of the favourites heading into the event. 271 Ashlun Woods has had a brilliant season, which started with claiming the Whites & Yellows Championship earlier in the year and he pushed Kezza all the way taking a narrow second place in the WoS qualifying points. 790 Nathan Young has probably wondered what has happened this year. Not only has been finishing races, he’s been putting in some strong displays seeing him take a third in both the King of the Fens and Nutcracker titles, and although he’ll be hard pushed to secure the title, he’ll relish the experience. 69 Brad Bartram has been knocking on the door of a big title. The current leader of the Trackstar National Points has been one of the most consistent drivers on the Norfolk shaleway, and whilst his rear-wheel drive experience may lapse a little in comparison to others on the grid, he knows how to win races and that experience could prove vital. 178 Kieran Bowman is one of the biggest stars in the scene currently, and is also a local favourite. Slim will be looking to go for the win after losing his gold earlier in the year. He has won most titles here at the Adrian Flux Arena, but there isn’t any bigger than the World of Shale. Last year’s runner-up 299 Tommy Callaghan has now been on the podium twice in this event, and will be hoping that this year is his year to stand on the top spot. Tommy has the capability to do so, and if things had been slightly different last year, he would have been. 267 Martin French has proved many a time that he can pedal a car around the Adrian Flux Arena and if he is in the mood for it today, could well become the World of Shale Champion. There’s a trio of Barton Boys set to feature on the grid, and that number could rise after the last chance races, but 183 Mitch Banton, 279 David Rushton and 704 Connor Siddalls could potentially club together to ensure one of them takes the title home. There’s also plenty of Aftermath on the grid, with 23 Sonny Parsons, 84 Will Cole, 604 Ross Cooper and 707 Alfie Nottingham making the grid, as well as 750 Rhys Parrin who guested for the team at the War of the Worlds back in July. The latter two being stand-out drivers that have graduated from the Junior Bangers this season and it amplifies how strong the formula is with both already making it onto the grid of a major title. They could potentially mix it up once again with the Barrows as they did at the May fixture with both 347 Rhys and 357 Jason qualifying. We can’t finish off the Trackstar seeds without mentioning a couple of top entertainers. 214 Connor Osborne won the Trackstar Entertainers League last year and certainly made his presence felt in the World of Shale race last year as he barricaded turn 4 with his Lincoln Town Car Limo which triggered most of the pile up. Connor will look to liven things up once again this evening, whilst current leader of this year’s entertainers league, 51 James Licquorice will be looking to get the front bumper stuck in too we are sure. Don’t be fooled, however, as James can pedal a motor when he wants to and we’re sure the place would erupt in applause if he emerged victorious.
It’s not just about the Trackstar seeds however, there are plenty of drivers representing the visiting promotions that are more than capable of taking the honour away. Spedeworth’s 459 Blake Platts stands out as one of the major threats – his experience here at the Adrian Flux Arena alone boads well with numerous race wins and he is consistently among the placemen. He’ll be looking to emulate his teammates success from last year and is a driver not too far away from that big win. 670 Max Eaton is the other Spedeworth representative, and the youngster is definitely a future World Champion. He came close to taking the Micro UK title here a few seasons back and has only progressed in his ability since then. 916 Luke Thomas’ stock rose almost immediately as he took a strong win at the Autospeed World Championship down at Taunton in July; making those that didn’t know about him begin to pay attention and he will look to continue to make an impression as he displays the gold roof on the shale for the first time representing his home promotion. 91 Sam Bartlett also represents the South-West promotion. Sam put in a good showing in his Jaguar XJ at the recent Pre 80 meeting and will be hoping for more of the same tonight. Crimond’s 230 Scott Patterson nearly pulled off a shock win back in 2019 when he took the runner-up spot behind 01 Kyle Shires and he’ll be looking to go one better on his return to the Adrian Flux Arena. BRCM duo 252 Steven and 262 Rob Bugler are two of the best all-rounders in modern Bangers, and although we don’t get to see much of them here, they displayed how good they can be on the shale at the Icebreaker earlier in the year and could mount a challenge here. Mildenhall’s 673 Darren Fendley has taken numerous race wins here over the last couple of seasons and will be one of the favourites going in to tonight. He’s been a podium finisher before but you can’t rule him out of taking the win. It’s great to see mainland Europe well represented. 488 Addy Pelikaan will be hoping for better fortunes than his last visit here when his Daimler DS420 Limo got well and truly snapped at the Nutty Nige Testimonial. Team No Name’s 986 Daniel Kooiker and 988 Richard Boer also featured heavily at the Nutty Nige Testimonial and it’s great to see them back for more. 171 Tommy West, 173 ‘Hotsocks’ Steve Reynolds, 180 Sean McConnachie, 180 ‘Sparky’ Mark Foster, 215 Leonard Dunn, 275 Joe Morgan, 388 Stevo McGrath and 935 David Gurney make up the rest of the visiting seeds looking to secure the win.
Looking at the last chance hopefuls, and again there is plenty of talent that will be aiming to make their way onto the grid. 209 Tom Waller lifted the Unlimited East Anglian Championship two years on the bounce and has been one of the quickest on the Norfolk shaleway all year and should be one of the early picks for a qualification. 348 Sonny Sherwood won the title back in 2008, and continues to win titles here having claimed the Unlimited Nutcracker back in December. It’s weird not seeing 830 Lee ‘Stretch’ White in the main race, but he’ll be gunning to be in it and has the capabilities to do so. 639 Tye Williams is another to have put in some top displays this season here, and should he be Supra powered, should be confident of booking his spot on the grid. 133 Terry Hill, 155 Sam Coote, 224 Lewis Canham, 229 Harry Cobb, 309 Michael Lane, 466 Dalton Steele, 2L World Champion 577 Alfie Lee, 634 Ben Green and World of Dirt champion 823 Jamie Murrell are all names that could feature high among the positions. It could be carnage out on track though, and could well be survival of the fittest with strong line-ups of Barton Boys and The Bears who are sure to go head-to-head. Throw in the likes of 114 Liam Lake, BRCM duo 333 Charlie Randell and 440 Macauley Mills, Posh Wash’s 195 David Forrest, 2022 champion 828 Jordan Sharpe, 570 Jordan Cumming, Surrey Street Squad, Grey & Black, The Levellers, Gravediggers and numerous other entertainers – we are certainly in for a treat!
It’s looking set to be another corker of a World of Shale event, and one which we are buzzing for! We hope the action on track emulates the buzz, and if so we will be spoilt for action.
