PREMIER Speedway welcomes more American flavour this weekend when Pennsylvanian Lucas Wolfe lines up for his fourth assault on the Lucas Oil Grand Annual Sprintcar Classic.

Wolfe, 28, who hails from Mechanicsburg, kicked off his Australian campaign at Avalon on Wednesday and completed his preparation at Mount Gambier last night.

He said the hectic lead-up allowed him to re-familiarise himself with the intensity of sprintcar racing, especially since he hadn’t raced since October last year.

Wolfe will suit up for Warrnambool businessman and sprintcar owner Harry Droste, who was last year represented by Tasmanian Shaun Dobson.

“I raced for Harry Droste back in 2011 and enjoyed that, and now I’ve got the opportunity to do it again and I’m looking forward to that,” Wolfe said.

“I’m just glad we could get something to come together to get back over here.” 

Between preparing the sprintcar and finalising pre-race commitments, Wolfe became the first driver to sample Flying Horse Bar and Brewery’s special Classic Ale.

The brew has last year’s Classic winner and fellow countryman Tim Kaeding’s name imprinted on the label. 

Wolfe was impressed with the uniqueness of the initiative, which he said goes hand-in-hand with the “mainstream” nature of sprintcar racing in Australia compared to the United States.

He also praised Premier Speedway, saying it was a track which ranked among the best in the world in terms of management and operation.

This year, the opportunity to have their name on the label will again be open to any of the Classic participants — a distinction the Pennsylvanian does not believe is out of the question for himself.

He is positive about his chances.

“We have the ability and equipment and the opportunity to be as competitive as anybody,” Wolfe said. 

“So that’s certainly what we’re going to try to do, but it certainly is a tall task.

“Some of these are the largest car counts that you’ll see anywhere in the world and the cars come from all over. 

“That’s what makes it fun to be part of. You get to gauge yourself against the best. 

“The team’s in great shape. They have fresh engines and fresh cars. 

“The competition continues to get tougher and tougher, especially seeing as the guys here have been racing and I haven’t raced for a couple of months.”