AMERICAN driver Cory Eliason is ready to test himself on an unfamiliar track on Australia’s biggest speedway stage.
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The Californian will make his Lucas Oil Grand Annual Sprintcar Classic debut on Saturday night.
“The only thing I’ve seen is the Premier Speedway sign on the wall when we drove past it,” he said.
“I like bigger tracks at home, so hopefully this one is a little bit bigger than what we’ve been running on (so far here in Australia).”
Eliason, 25, made an impressive start to his first overseas season, winning the All-Star 360 Challenge at Simpson Speedway in just his second meeting on Australian soil.
He wants to emulate that feat in the Adam Currie-owned 410 sprintcar he’ll drive at the classic.
“To win it, that’s what we’ve come here to do,” Eliason said.
“I know it’s a big deal and Kyle Hirst, who’s won it, we race with him weekly back home, so it should be pretty tough but I think we should stand a good chance.
“Everybody loves to win – I like to win but I just can’t stand losing more... so that’s probably more of a driver for me.”
Eliason, who will race at Mount Gambier in preparation for the Allansford showcase, said he had adjusted to his new car.
“I’ve always wanted to come down and Adam got ahold of me and asked if I’d be interested in coming down and driving,” he said.
“He came over to America in 2006 and I worked with him, so that’s where we met, and we’ve kept in touch so he finally got me out here.
“The first go was a little rough because it took us time to get used to the car and get used to the time change but I think now we’ve got it changed more to my liking.
“We were really fast at Simpson so I expect to carry that speed into Mount Gambier and then the classic.”
Eliason, who returns to the United States on January 24, is soaking up the Australian culture during his whirlwind trip.
“We went to a wildlife reservation, so I got to see the kangaroos and koalas, and then we went to the beaches and hung around town in Adelaide.”