An Interview with National Banger racer Diminoc 785 Dom Ambrose
(interview published May 6 2015 in the lead up to the 23rd annual Pre70 National Banger meeting at Mildenhall Stadium on May 23)

Age: 20
Home Town: Cambridgeshire
Occupation: Apprentice Mechanic
Family: Single
Started racing: Aged 16 in National Bangers at Mildenhall

You are booked in to race at this year’s pre 70 National Banger meeting at Mildenhall, is this a meeting you are particularly looking forward to?
I am, there is a few reasons why for me. I’ve only done the meeting once which was two years ago which was the Undertaker’s (520 Derek Caton) retirement meeting and I had a fantastic night and really enjoyed it but it was a really special night for the whole (WI Engineering) team because everyone was out racing and it was just a brilliant night so it was really great to be a part of that and especially for it to be my first pre 70 meeting. It was also my first time racing a rear wheel drive car so the meeting in 2013 has a lot of happy memories for me. Also the meeting is the memorial for Dan (‘Odd Job’ Hollingsworth) so it’s even more special for the team. I didn’t get to know Dan very well, I had just joined team before he died but he was always very good to me but I did get to see the impact it had on the entire team and the friends he had and that was massive and that really showed me how great of a guy he was and so it will be nice to be able to race at his memorial again. It also has the Tony Osborne Memorial trophy as well so it’s one of those meetings which really means a lot now to so many different people and I think that helps make it all the more special and it’s great to be a part of it again.

You missed last year’s meeting, did that make you more eager to race at this year’s event?
I think it did in a way. I didn’t really think about it too much at the time but this time last year I was still studying and so I didn’t have very much money for racing and just did a little bit when I could. Now I’m a little more fortunate when it comes to finances which has allowed me to do a bit more racing. I had a great meeting at the Hot Shots Championship last year which changed things for me quite a bit. It gave me a massive confidence boost and was probably one of the first times when I really thought to myself that maybe I was ok at this (laughs) and so when I got myself a bit more sorted out I was really keen to race a bit more and the Hot Shots meeting was a big part of that but honestly the pre 70 was a bit of a priority for me when I started to think a bit more about this year and the meetings I wanted to do. Again I’d had such a great time (in 2013) at the meeting and the pre 70 has so much special meaning to the WI Engineering team so it’s cool to be able to do it again.

Can you tell us about the car you have for the meeting?
I’ve got one of the smaller Rover P4s for the meeting. It’s been sat at Derek (Caton’s) yard for about three years now so it was in pretty bad shape when I got it but we’ve been working on it in phases and we’ve managed to get it into a pretty decent shape now for the meeting so it should be ok but it’s going to be pretty different for me because the first pre 70 I did is still the only time I raced a rear wheel drive car and that was in a Singer Gazelle so this is a lot different and I’m looking forward to racing with the bigger cars in the heat rather than the smaller cars. We’ve fitted it with an engine from a Toyota Cressida. Lurch (220 Tom Pavitt) used it when he raced a Standard Vanguard at Derek’s retirement meeting and the WI boys have even used it in a Jaguar before and it went ok so hopefully it will do well, I’m just worried about breaking it (laughs).

Last year there was a change to the racing rules for the pre 70 meeting with turning round outlawed until the Accumulator qualifier and DD, is that something you agree with?
Yes it is. Although it is still banger racing, these cars are just that much harder to find and build, which in turn makes them a bit more expensive and ideally you want to get a few laps from them if you can and don’t really want to get destroyed on the first lap by someone going the wrong way. To be honest I’m not sure why anyone would want to do that but there is usually one (laughs) but it’s good to know that it’s banned now and you have a slightly better chance of getting maybe a race from the car first, I think a lot of drivers prefer it that way now for this meeting.

Several drivers report a different atmosphere at this meeting, is that something you have noticed?
Absolutely although I suppose in a way that was always likely to be the case when I first did the pre 70 two years ago as it was Undertaker’s retirement meeting so there was a little extra attention on the team that night. I find most people to usually be friendly at Mildenhall but it was especially the case at the pre 70 before and there was a real difference in the pits because you had so many people coming over and looking at the cars and talking to you about them and that is something you don’t always get at a meeting so that was really cool.

You’re also set for action in the Hot Shots Championship, a meeting which as you mentioned you did very well in last year, again is this one you are looking forward to?
Yeah, I had a great meeting last year. It was a bit of a surprise really and I still don’t quite know where it came from (laughs) but I really enjoyed it. As I said that meeting was certainly my best one at the time and probably still is my best so far and it have me such a boost in confidence and made me start to think that I was ok at the sport and was a big motivator in when I got myself a bit more sorted to try and do some more racing so it will be good to do it again because this meeting means a bit to me on a personal level.

Have you any intentions or aspirations for the meeting?
Not really. My target every time I race is just to try and finish a race. If I can finish one race then I am happy, anything after that really is a big bonus for me. All I want to do is enjoy myself and have a laugh so as long as that happens I’m pleased but I’m always especially happy to finish a race so that is usually my target when the meeting starts.

Have you made any plans for the rest of 2015?
Not especially. I’ve managed to get a few more Mondeos so my plan will be to try and do some more (National) meetings. I know not everyone is overly keen on racing Mondeos but they are pretty good for me. There are plenty of them about and for whatever reason they seem to be a little cheaper at the moment, the last one I got I paid £100 for it which was pretty good for a car, especially when you can get a few quid back from the car when you are finished with it which all goes towards the costs I have for racing. The biggest problem I have with Mondeos is stripping them, that’s the hardest part but once that is done, building them is fairly straight forward but I find the best thing about racing Mondeos is that it’s easy to get spares for them and they are quite a quick car to fix. When Tom (Pavitt) was racing Vectras, we found that when you had to fix the car after a race, the same job on a Mondeo was a quicker job so I think it’s easier to get back out for the next race with a Mondeo. Also because they are such a hard car you have a decent chance of getting a whole meeting out of one, you’d be quite unfortunate to only get one race from a Mondeo really. I do hope to do some other things though in the future and I’m hoping to race an unlimited banger for the first time next year. Obviously there is a bit more cost and work involved in racing an unlimited but I really like to challenge and push myself so I’d really like to give one a go at some point and I quite fancy the Steamer meeting (Suffolk Open) as that’s usually a good meeting but I doubt it will be this year so hopefully next year.

Is there anyone else you would like to thank or mention?
Just the entire WI team but in particular Derek Caton, Lurch and his dad Mick for everything they do for me, I couldn’t do my racing without them, they are such a massive help.