Horsham-based racing driver, Alex Reed, has been nominated as one of ten Race Of Champions (ROC) Factor finalists, competing for the chance to drive against current and former Formula 1, Le Mans and World Rally Championship stars in this year’s ROC Skills Challenge presented by TAG Heuer (20-21 November).
Reed, aged 17 from West Sussex, showed a natural flair from his very first outing in a Kart and ascended the ranks quickly before making a successful transition to car racing in the 2013 Fiesta Junior Championship, in which he achieved several podium results to finish fourth in the overall points.
Successful outings in the Ginetta Junior Winter Series, MSV Trackday Trophy and Michelin Clio Sup Series preceded full-time Lotus Cup UK campaigns and a prolific 2015 season has seen the rapid teenage racer notch up seven class podiums, three pole positions and two race wins.
The Race Of Champions brings together the world’s finest racing drivers from every two and four-wheeled discipline, sending them into battle on the same track and in identical cars to determine who’s the greatest.
The annual event is a knockout tournament in a unique stadium setting and this year’s edition, which will be held in the London Olympic Stadium (20-21 November), boasts a star-studded line-up that features four-time F1 World Champion Sebastian Vettel, his former Red Bull Racing teammate Daniel Ricciardo and eight-time Le Mans winner Tom Kristensen, to name but a few.
The ROC Factor initiative, meanwhile, provides up-and-coming talents with a chance to win a wildcard entry for this year’s Race Of Champions and, while the nomination is something of a coup for Reed, it’s a testament to his rising stature within the motorsport community.
A public vote, which closes on Friday 6 November, is being held on the ROC Facebook page and the top three drivers will be invited to the London Olympic Stadium ahead of the main event to compete in a ‘drive-off’, where their performances will be judged by an esteemed panel.
The overall winner will go on to compete against some of the biggest names in motorsport on 20-21 November.
To select Alex as a ROC Factor finalist, please vote for #9 on the Race Of Champions Facebook page: https://apps.facebook.com/my-polls/rocfactor?from=admin_wall
“Being invited to the Race Of Champions is probably one of the best things I have ever encountered in my life,” said Reed. “When I first found out I was lost for words, I really couldn’t believe what I was hearing. The Race Of Champions in Wembley in 2008 was where my passion for motorsport started, to compete there seven years later is truly something I’ll never experience again!”