Junior Formula 500 driver Koby O'Shannassy - December 16, 2023 - video Dailymotion

Warrnambool junior Formula 500 driver Koby O'Shannassy speaks to The Standard at Premier Speedway on December 16, 2023.

Transcript

00:00 So Toby, you're in the Formula 500 category.

00:05 How does it feel being at Premier Speedway tonight?

00:08 Yeah, it's such a good feeling.

00:10 It's the biggest track, one of the most famous tracks in Australia.

00:13 It's good aroma, you know, I love it here.

00:16 It's a home track as well.

00:18 How does it feel to always be able to come here in front of friends, family

00:22 and get that home crowd support?

00:24 Yeah, it's a lovely thing.

00:26 I love when my family comes, especially.

00:29 I'm like an hour away, so yeah, I love that.

00:31 So you've had your first heat race now before. How did you go?

00:34 We went alright. We were leading for around six laps.

00:39 And then Hugo Chavelle, he just passed me.

00:41 But second, I'm still pumped with that, so yeah.

00:44 Hoping to build on that through another heat race and then going into the final as well?

00:49 Yeah, hoping to just keep our consistency up and hopefully get top three in our next heat race.

00:54 But yeah, whatever happens, happens. I'm not complaining about anything.

00:57 You're 14, you're in your third season competing.

01:01 How's it been over that time to continue to strive to get better?

01:06 Yeah, it's always hard. It's a hard thing to do.

01:09 But it's always heaps of fun coming to the track and I love it.

01:12 It's just every weekend, it's just learning and learning.

01:15 What first got you into motorsports?

01:18 Well, my dad actually raced super rods and he just raced a bunch of different speedway classes.

01:23 And I was always in the speedway and always wanted one.

01:25 So when I was five, my dad got me a junior quarter midget.

01:28 And then we raced that for a few years.

01:30 And then when I turned, when I was eight, we sold the quarter midget, then got a go-kart.

01:36 And then we raced that for about a year.

01:38 And then dad said, save a thousand dollars by the time you're 12 to get a Formula 500 here.

01:43 I did that and we got a Formula 500 and I've just been doing that ever since.

01:48 Do you have any aspirations in the sport? Any further ones for higher up in the N+?

01:53 Yeah, I want to race sprint cars, but my favourite driver is Kyle Larson.

01:56 And James McFadden, they're the people that I look up to.

01:59 I just want to be able to go to America and just, I don't know, just be like them I guess, yeah.

02:03 Is it nice to be in the same pits as them and James is just over there and you can...

02:08 Yeah, it's such a good feeling, especially when he says hello.

02:11 That's not what most people don't really have done and I'm kind of happy about that.

02:15 Yeah, but it's good to sort of be friends with him and I love it, yeah.

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