'Definitely possible': US drivers out to break nine-year classic drought

Ten Americans have won the classic with Kyle Hirst the last to do so in 2015.

Macedo, who finished third in the famed World of Outlaws series in 2023, is part of a nine-driver strong US contingent this year that includes decorated racers Rico Abreu and Sheldon Haudenschild.

The Californian believes there's every chance an American could be standing atop the podium at Premier Speedway on Sunday, January 21, 2024.

"I think it's definitely possible," he told The Standard.

"You look over the course of the races that have been run this year in Australia and I think a lot of the races have been won by Americans this year.

"So it's definitely not going to be easy, we know that the task ahead is going to be tough but we're up for the challenge and we think that if we put our best foot forward and we all do our jobs correctly there's no reason why we can't be standing at the top spot at the end of the weekend."

Macedo, who is racing for Dyson Motorsports, has come close to a classic victory before, finishing runner-up to Warrnambool's Corey McCullagh in 2018.

He has won two races in Australia during the past month and believes he is as well-placed as he's ever been for classic success.

"This is probably the best that we've ever been over here hands down," he said.

"Sean (Dyson) has sorted out a lot of things on our race car that have really made us be leaps and bounds better. I feel like we've hit on some stuff that's helped a lot.

"I'm feeling really good as a driver. I feel confident in my car which makes a big difference in this game being confident and knowing that your stuff's going to be close. That is half the battle probably.

"So just have a lot of confidence rolling in, this is probably the most confident that I've ever been rolling into the classic. I feel like we've got just as good a shot as anybody does and that makes me excited for the weekend ahead."

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Macedo relishes contesting the classic and has raced every edition for almost a decade.

"It just seems like the atmosphere never changes, it's always full of people, the hill's full of people, the competition as far as other competitors is always stout," he said.

"It seems like there's always 100 cars which makes for a big event. You see guys coming all the way over from WA. You see guys coming from all over the country in general to come meet up on the biggest stage of the year.

"As a competitor if you're not excited like an event like that, well then you probably shouldn't be doing it. It's one of my favourite by far of the year.

"It's just a good event. It's just something that's been built up over time and got a lot of history behind it so it's easy to get excited about."

Macedo headlines entries for night two of classic qualifying on Saturday, January 20. His half of the field includes former winners James McFadden, Lockie McHugh, Australian champion Jock Goodyer and 2023 runner-up Sheldon Haudenschild.