Mancunian racer Alex Walker is set to join SV’s ranks for the forthcoming Michelin Cup Series with Protyre ‘Autumn Cup’ event at Rockingham Motor Speedway (16-17 November).
The Oldham-based youngster will be part of a large six-car assault on the ‘Autumn Cup’ event, which will be used as part of SV’s off-season preparations for an extended campaign in the burgeoning Michelin Clio Cup Series in 2014.
A prolific Karting career spanning four years, where he swept all before him between 2007 and 2010, was followed by an ultra-successful graduation to single-seaters.
The Lancastrian finished second overall in the 2011 Inter Steps Championship, while taking race wins in his maiden Formula Renault 2.0 UK Championship outings on the Rockingham and Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuits.
After a two-year hiatus from the adrenaline-fuelled world of motorsport, Walker is preparing to make a resplendent comeback to racing, reverting to tin-tops and the Michelin-backed Clio Cup Series.
A full and productive testing programme with the London-based SV team during the second half of this year has yielded encouraging results and 18-year old Walker is now a prime candidate for the 2014 KX Akademy – a bursary programme funded by KX Energy Drink designed to assist young, talented drivers on their ascent up the motorsport ladder.
These stellar testing performances will stand Walker in good stead when he contests the Michelin Clio Cup Series’ ‘Autumn Cup’ event at the Corby-based Rockingham Motor Speedway this weekend (16-17 November).
Competitors will race to the regular 20-minute sprint format on the Saturday, before taking part in an extended 45-minute ‘enduro’ on the Sunday and Walker hopes the meeting will be a precursor to a full Renault UK Clio Cup campaign with KX Akademy backing in 2014.
“It was a great disappointment to have to spend the last couple of years away from motorsport and it’s difficult to express how hard I’ve been working to generate enough funding and get back into racing,” said Walker. “However, I’ve recently completed an intensive testing programme with SV and I now have a fantastic opportunity to reignite my career. I’ve taken massive strides forwards and adapted my driving technique to suit the front-wheel-drive Clio Cup cars with the help of Danny (Buxton) and feel ready for the challenges that lay ahead.
“My ambition is to contest the 2014 Renault UK Clio Cup as part of the KX Akademy. To be associated with a brand like KX would be a dream and I’m looking forward to demonstrating my potential in this weekend’s Michelin Clio Cup Series’ ‘Autumn Cup’ event at Rockingham.”
SV Director, Danny Buxton, added: “Alex has tested pretty solidly with SV throughout the second half of this season and he’s really starting to come up with the goods in terms of pace. At Snetterton he’s currently only a couple of tenths away from the fastest lap set during this year’s UK Clio Cup round and that’s on heavily worn tyres, so there’s no doubting his potential.
“He has already applied to the KX Akademy and, with such a prolific career in Karts and single-seaters, I believe he’s a prime candidate for the programme in 2014. Having said that, the standard of this year’s KX Akademy entry is very high and still he’s up against it. But this is why the Autumn Cup event will help. It will be another string to his bow as he tries to make his big and triumphant comeback to racing.”
For more information on Alex Walker, please visit the officialwww.alexwalkerracing.co.uk website, ‘like’ his Facebook page or follow@alexwalkerrace on Twitter.
And for more on SV’s racing activities, please ‘like’ the team’s Facebook page or follow @ScudVittoria on Twitter.