IT is all systems GO for the 2019-20 version of the Maddington Toyota Sprintcar Series.

The series was officially launched in the impressive showroom of naming-rights sponsor Maddington Toyota last Thursday night, in front of teams, crews, sponsors and even sporting personalities from the Perth Wildcats and Hockeyroos.

Highlights of the upcoming season were announced, including the naming of the first American locked in for the Speedweek Series over the festive period - Shane Stewart who will be driving for Dowling Motorsport.

The launch also heard from Maddington Toyota dealer principal Paul Davies who enjoyed great support from the WA speedway community last season in the first of a multi-year sponsorship deal.

The season will kick off with round 1 at the Perth Motorplex this Saturday, October 26, in the popular Powerpalooza format that features Drag Racing, Burnouts and Speedway in a condensed format.

A big crowd was on hand for the season opener last year and similar interest is expected this Saturday night.

A solid 20 teams have confirmed their nominations for the opening bout - headed by two-time and defending series champion Jason Kendrick who has already conducted a couple of test sessions in readiness for the new summer.

Callum Williamson, Geraldton, is another who is contesting the entire series and his reappearance on a regular basis here in WA is set to mix up the championship points.

Another likely to have a huge impact on the championship battle is Jamie Oldfield who is one of the most versatile racers in this country, having been successful in a big list of different categories.

In the off-season he has put in a huge effort and goes into the championship with determination and the support of an experienced crew as well.

Daniel Harding is another driver who will be contesting the entire series and has the skill set and the equipment behind him to be a serious top three threat every time he hits the track.

In more good news, Mitch Wormall and the impressive Wormall Motorsport operation will also be based here in WA and concentrating on the local championship this year as well.

Another aiming for the championship is Andrew Priolo who will not be in action in the first round due to a wedding commitment, but he will be in action for all the other shows.
Jason Pryde and the well-presented JPM crew are locked in for round one and they will contest all the local shows up until they hit the road for World Series Sprintcars commitments.

And speaking of WSS, local team J&S Drilling has teamed up with Queenslander Lachlan McHugh this year for the local and WSS season - using the early Maddington Toyota Series rounds as preparation for the summer ahead.

Kris Coyle, who has been out of action for a few seasons now, is back and will be racing the entire championship, thanks to a recent call-up from team owner Scott Chatwin and the Merger Contracting team.

He has already had a practice session and by the end of that night, looked a lot more at home in the #79 and it shouldn’t take long for Coyle to be on race pace.

Ben Ellement has once again teamed up with Mat Muir and they have benefited from the recent tour to Darwin to race in our off-season - they were also one of the first teams to nominate for this show.

The other early nomination was Darren Mewett who is looking forward to getting out on the track in his #55 entry - one of the drivers who has consistently raced in WA for more than two decades.

Another driver who has been on the sprintcar season for a long time, across three different divisions is Todd Davis, who we can again expect to see in his different cars last year - he got to have a few runs in the 410 division last summer and his experience behind the wheel held him in really good stead.

Taylor Milling, Kalgoorlie, is back for another season in the #W25 and he will be looking to build on some good results last year that included his first podium finish.

Teenager Tom Callaghan showed his hand in the last couple of shows last year in preparation for the 2019-20 season and following on from that he also cut some development laps up in Darwin in the off-season.

Shaun Bradford will again have a limited racing schedule but he has locked in his nominations for a few of the early shows, including this one, with brother Casey again helping out with crew duties - while these boys don’t race every show they are always fast and exciting to watch.

Aldo De Paoli hasn’t been seen in action locally for a few years and it is great to see the #96 back in action this weekend and hopefully we will see a bit more of this very strong racer a bit more this summer.

Matt Cross returns in the W94 after taking a season off and had a big smile on his face after his first practice session last week - he can’t wait to get back into the action this weekend.

Another driver who took last season off was Adrian Haywood and this talented throttle stomper is looking at having an impact in his limited racing schedule this summer - including this weekend.

The new livery on the car looks cool and is worth a look!

Ben Van Ryt ended last season with a few runs in the 410 class and from strong showings the #75 team has bitten the bullet and will only contest the Maddington Toyota Sprintcar Series this summer - hoping to do 10-12 local shows.

After racing wingless sprints, Trevor Jolly made his sprintcar debut up in Darwin over winter, thanks to the support of HRP Specialties and he will contest the first show and build on his race craft.

Robert Watson junior was the last nomination to come in, however that is no reflection on the talent of this guy - we don’t get to see him race enough but when we do, it’s always at full noise and the Watsons Express Transport crew will be chasing a finish that puts them up towards the pointy end of the field.