An Interview with Dangerous 821 Ryan Preston
(interview published February 11 2015 in the lead up to the 2015 Unlimited Banger BBA Supreme Championship)

Age: 23
Home Town: Norwich
Occupation: Scrap dealer
Family: Girlfriend Chelsie and son Freddie
Racing career: First race was at Swaffham, aged 17 in Rookie Bangers

Congratulations on qualifying for the Supreme Championship for the first time, were you surprised to qualify this year and are you pleased and looking forward to the race?
It was a massive surprise when I found out because I had no idea that I had qualified and my first question was how on earth did I manage that (laughs)! When I found out it was from my result in the World Cup at Cowdenbeath it all made sense but I never gave it too much thought at the time because I had no idea that there were a few people who finished in front of me who had already qualified for the race, had I finished in the top three I may have given it a bit more thought. That was a brilliant weekend for me because I qualified for the Supreme on the Saturday and then on the Sunday I qualified for the (Spedeworth) World Final at Loch Gelly so that was a great couple of days in hindsight. I was very pleased to find out I’d qualified. I admit it’s not a race I have really given too much thought about because to qualify you need to do well in one of the big races in the year and I don’t get to qualify for too many and then I don’t usually have too much luck in them. The World Cup was a bit of an exception last year so the fact it’s got me a chance in this race is excellent and I’m looking forward to the race now. It’s also cool for me because it is a race that Bro (247 Lee Clarke) has won before and he’s a regular in it and it would mean everything for me to win it as well and have both our names on the trophy but that’s going to be a long shot, especially as I’m sure there will be a good few trying to stop both of us (laughs). Normally for these races the closest I get to taking part is driving Bro out for the parade lap but now I can have someone drive me out!

Do you think Bro will be upset not having you to drive him out for the race?
(laughing) I doubt it! He can have mechanic (Rug) take him out and I’ll get (Luke) Parfitt to take me. That’s another thing which is cool for me personally, Luke is something of an idol for me and whenever I qualify for a big race he drives me out for the parade so it will be cool to have him do that for me.

You were among the first to accept your place for the championship, was taking your place on the grid ever a question for you?
No, absolutely not and I think whenever you qualify for a race like this you really should take your place. It’s especially the case for me because I’ve never been in it before and it is a hard race to qualify for so you never know if you will get another opportunity to do it so there was never any doubt that I would be doing the race, as soon as I knew I’d qualified I was doing it. But I doubt I would have done the last chance race which is simply because on occasions like this if I’ve not qualified but Bro has I would prefer to not race and help him instead, I get just as much of a buzz from helping him and seeing him do well as I do racing myself sometimes and that is especially so on nights like this one.

In recent years the Supreme Championship has been one of the most destructive championship races in the sport, is that something which appeals to you?
It does because the race is something of a lottery which you don’t always get elsewhere. At quite a lot of championships you can look at the grid and pick pretty much the top three before the race starts. This can especially be the case at tarmac events where so much is down to the car and things like tyres. It’s not quite the same on shale because that evens things out but there are other things at Mildenhall too, being smaller and that you can turn round. You can fire someone out of the way and they can just turn round and stop you on the next lap so you never know what to expect. I don’t mind the turning round at Mildenhall, you know it’s allowed so you know what you are getting and also it’s a smaller track and the speeds aren’t quite as high so when you have a head-on there you don’t feel like your head is getting knocked off (laughs). I don’t agree with turning round at bigger and faster tracks because I think that is dangerous but at Mildenhall it’s usually ok and the unlimited meetings I have done there in the past have been good but it will be nice now to race in a big unlimited race there for the first time.

Have you given any thought to what car you will race for the championship and how do you rate your chances?
It will be a Lexus of some description, probably a LS300 or a Soarer. They are pretty good cars and we can get them cheaper than the Scorpios and we’ve plenty stocked up at the moment so they need building (laughs) and I think they are as good as anything else right now and again in the race I’m not too sure the car will make too much of a difference, it will just be down to your luck on the night really. I wouldn’t think I am a favourite or anything but hopefully I will do ok, it would be nice to do well but you can never tell in a race like that with so many top drivers. I’ve not actually looked at whose qualified or coming, I don’t really worry about things like that until I get to the meeting, I’ve not got the time (laughs). Another good thing about Mildenhall is that it’s not always the best cars which go the best there. I remember doing a Mondeo meeting there once and there was a guy in a Mk3 Astra who nearly won the race, I think he led until about three laps to go when really you wouldn’t have expected him to last three laps! I don’t think you would see that at many other tracks and again that’s one of the good things about Mildenhall and shows you don’t need the best car to do well there.

You’ve mentioned your trip to Scotland last year, was that one of the highlights of the season for you?
I think it probably was the highlight to be honest. It was a bit of a last minute thing, Bro was always going and then I decided to go as there was a place on the grid for me. I’d never raced there before and I loved (Cowdenbeath) and to have such a great night, it wasn’t just the World Cup that I did well in but I also did really well in the races afterwards too so it was a brilliant night all round for me. We had a great time away from the track too and then I went to Loch Gelly as well and won the wild card place in the (Spedeworth) World Final. Unfortunately it wasn’t confirmed straight away so it wasn’t as beneficial to me as it could have been as I carried on doing all the Spedeworth meetings for a while afterwards to try and get into the World Final but when it was confirmed it was a huge bonus to me because I could ease off a bit and enjoy my racing a bit more without the pressure of trying to get into the World Final.

On the subject of the Spedeworth World Final, the Banger World Series has been detailed for this year and there are no rounds scheduled on their East Anglian tracks, do you agree with that?
No, not at all, I think it is a bit crazy myself and I really can’t understand why they have done it to be honest.

Recent months have seen you increasingly involved in a battle with Team DWO alongside regular running mate Bro, is this battle something you have enjoyed?
I didn’t get involved for quite a while but I think it got to a point where I just couldn’t stand to see Bro taking them on single handidly all the time. He never asked for help and I’m not even sure how much help I am but he’s my friend and it just got to a point where I thought I can’t just keep watching this and that was how it started and I think I surprised a few people when I started taking them on (at the Yarmouth BWS round in 2014). It did cause a few comments but that’s part of it I guess. They are a hard team, probably one of the best teams for crashing and racing and hit as hard as anybody and harder than most so whenever you are racing against them you know it’s going to be rough but it’s a good buzz taking on drivers like that.

These battles have seen you take on the much talked about Chrysler Imperials, these cars have now been banned by the ORCi. What are your thoughts on that and also the decision to allow Toyota Previas again?
I think it was a good move to ban the Imperials. I think they would be ok at an all Yank meeting but that’s about it really because they are just too big and strong for a normal unlimited. I hit (341 Andy Jones’) one at the Gala Night meeting and it put my gearstick in my lap and he just drove away which is crazy really but if they have lorry chassis under them then I guess that’s why (laughs). I’m not so worried about the Previas because without a water tank I don’t think they are much cop, there really isn’t much at the front of one so if someone is happy to race one then that is up to them.

What are your plans for 2015 beyond the Supreme Championship?
Well I’m aiming for a different year really. I’ve registered with TSR this season and hope to do all their unlimited meetings and maybe just a few things elsewhere, I’d like to qualify for the World of Shale Championship, that is a target for me. There are a few reasons I’ve switched to TSR, one is that I simply don’t want to race so much which is because I want to spend more time with my family, especially my young son and not spend all my time on bangers. Banger racing will always be there but he won’t be this age forever and I want to make the most of it and I’m finding it harder and harder to compete on tarmac. Don’t get me wrong, I love the tracks but you have to spend so much money now to compete on tarmac and I just can’t do it. You don’t need to do as much on shale and I really enjoy racing at Lynn so I’m going to give that a go.

Is there anyone else you would like to thank or mention?
Chelsie for all her support, Luke Parfitt for everything he does for me and Bro, without him I wouldn’t be able to race, it’s as simple as that so I’m hugely grateful to him for everything he does to help me.

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