With six and a half seasons of 410 Sprintcar racing to his name, Alex Orr was yet to experience a feature-race podium with the class; however, that all changed at Sydney’s Valvoline Raceway last Saturday night, when he achieved the feat while contesting the Sid Hopping Shootout.
While his maiden podium has been a long time coming, Orr’s 2017-18 season campaign at Valvoline Raceway indicated that he wasn’t far from realising the milestone, having picked up a trio of fifth-place finishes throughout the season.
Knowing that qualifying towards the front of the feature-race field would be crucial in order to come away with a positive result in last Saturday night’s event, which coincided with the fourth Ultimate Sprintcar Championship NSW round, that’s exactly what the 25-year-old racer did, winning his heat race and ending up third in the pole shuffle, which determined his inside third-row starting position.
Holding his own against a formidable field of competitors on what was a tough track, Orr managed to retain his starting position throughout the duration of the 30-lap feature race, remaining consistent and going on to greet the chequered flag in the final podium place aboard his NSW # 43 Meander Village supported Maxim.
“So much hard work and persistence has gone into our car over the years to make it competitive, so to finally make it onto the podium is a fantastic feeling for the whole team,” expressed Orr, from Tacoma South on the NSW Central Coast.
“I had a great car from the beginning of the night, which allowed me to qualify towards the front of the feature-race field, and that has been something that I’ve previously struggled with for various reasons. I can’t thank my team enough for their efforts both at the track and in the shed, as this podium is a great reward for them.
“The track was quite challenging in the hot conditions on last Saturday night, but having been able to manage that has instilled great confidence in the whole team for the Christmas-New Year period as the warm weather continues.”
Planning to contest the remainder of the 2018-19 season schedule at Valvoline Raceway, Orr will also be travelling to Victoria later this month to participate in the annual Max’s Race at Warrnambool’s Premier Speedway on December 15, which will be his first visit to the track before he returns there for his maiden Grand Annual Classic attempt in late January. The next appearance for Orr and his team will be on the Saturday night of December 8 back at Valvoline Raceway.
Orr would like to thank the following 2018-19 season sponsors for their support: Meander Village, Kangy Grove Estate, Michael’s Mechanical & Speedway Repairs, and Marland Fire Technology. He would also like to give special thanks to his mum and dad (Tracey and Anthony) and uncle Chris, his pit crew Daniel Field, Michael Butt and Tony Hopping, along with the rest of his family and friends.
To find out more about Orr and his team, LIKE them on Facebook by searching ORR Racing.
