LIMESTONE Coast speedway driver Matt McCallum is celebrating after claiming the SA 2 plate for his car after a second-place finish in the South Australian Limited Sportsman Title last weekend.
In just his second season in the class, McCallum battled through the heats at Tolmer Speedway, Bordertown and started the feature event out of eighth position, but worked hard to remain close to the leaders as the laps wound down.
The lead changed close to 20 times throughout the feature, with a dramatic finish that saw third place Shaun Hutchins cross the line backwards, while McCallum crossed the line sideways and airborne, sustaining car damage, but it was enough to gain second place on the podium, behind Jock Baker.
McCallum said he was pleased with the result on a tough night of racing.
“I am really happy with it, it was not what I expected, because I did not have the best heats,” he said.
“I started out of eighth in the feature and worked my way up.
“On the last lap we were three wide going across the finish line.”
McCallum said he struggled through the heats due to car setup, but once the feature arrived the conditions suited his car, allowing him to run at the front of the field.
“I finished fourth in heat one, but then heat two started on pole and dropped back to fourth,” he said.
“The car setup was not quite right so I struggled through the heats, but come the feature, my car suited the track conditions.
“It was all in the set up, the tyre pressures.”
It was a reward for the hard work and financial outlay from McCallum leading into the season, after previously running in the street stock class.
“I have forked out a bit of money this season to try to stay at the front with the bigger boys,” he said.
“It is a big change going to an open wheeler from a street stock – I did that for a season then decided to go open wheeler and give that a go.
“It seems to be paying off now.”
The title was the first race of the season, with plenty of action to go.
“I have quite a few meetings pencilled in this season,” McCallum said.
“I’m hoping to stay at the pointy end of the field for the rest of the season.”
While the result was certainly a highlight of the night, McCallum topped that when he dropped to one knee and proposed to his girlfriend Lily.
“It was a plan to do it, but I did not expect to have such a good night as well,” he said.
“She was none the wiser, was very blown away and speechless.”
McCallum joked that after some hesitation, Lily accepted his offer, capping off a big night.
McCallum thanked his parents, friends Mark and Jill along with Lily and his sponsors for all the support on the night.
