National Modified Title: Walters, Barrow and Berkley pumped for first taste of Albany clay in title bid

There are a host of Eastern States contenders in Albany chasing national title glory this weekend. Former national titleholder Kye Walters, Victorian young gun Dylan Barrow and Queensland star Joel Berkley are up for what Attwell Park Speedway has to offer. Walters is one of the leading Victorian chances, as he looks to emulate his feat of 2019. The 24-year-old from Bannockburn has never been to Albany before but was itching to get in the driver’s seat. “It looks like a pretty awesome race track, a nice facility, the town is very pretty and historic so it’s fun to be here,” he said. “We’ll give it a red hot crack, practice on Friday night will give us bit of an idea. “We always feel good, we’ve run the same equipment for a long time and know what needs to happen. “We’ve been fortunate enough to win a lot of big races but this is not just another race.” Barrow, a teenager out of Wandin North, was relaxed ahead of his first national modified title. The 16-year-old raced juniors last season but has stepped up to seniors seamlessly this season. “I’m very excited to be here, we’ve made the long trek over for my first national title,” he said. “I’ve run top five at T-Bar Nationals and Kings Royal so it feels like we have a fairly solid package with how we started the season off. “There is always is a lot of tough competition in this class, it’s just how it is. The way you have to look at it is you against 12 other cars in every other heat race and just take it as it comes.” Berkley heads to Albany in the best possible form, having captured the WA Modified Sedan Title in Esperance last weekend. Hailing from Maryborough, the 23-year-old is chasing his first national modified crown and expects the competition to be hot. “We got the WA title last weekend but this is a completely different ball game, double the amount of cars and double the amount of competition,” he said. “There is talent everywhere in the field and it’s going to be a feat in itself to even make the show. “I don’t know much at all (about the track), it’s a bit bigger than anything back home. “We should be right with a two-hour practice session on Friday to set ourselves up pretty nicely for the weekend. “We’ve won a national production title in the past but only just moved to modifieds this season. “If we were lucky enough to win national modified title that would be the ultimate but it takes people many years and some people don’t even do it, so if we have a solid weekend I’ll be happy.”