Speedway ace wins summer spot with premier US team

Brad Mosen's full-on driving style has won him a following at Western Springs.

New Zealand speedway driver Brad Mosen has secured a drive with one of America's premier teams for the US summer racing season.

The 18-year-old Aucklander meets his new team this week at its headquarters in Columbus, Indiana. Keith Kunz Motor Sport will put Mosen in the driver's seat of a factory Bullet race car for 10 rounds of the USAC midget series.

Team principal Keith Kunz is excited about giving the young Kiwi an opportunity to show what he can do.

"Brad will have some work to do to get up to speed and to get to grips with our schedule here," says Kunz. "But if he drives like he has in New Zealand I'll be a happy team owner."

The USAC national series has been running for 50 years and is the premier speedway series in the US. The series includes two-day meetings at the legendary Knoxville Raceway and the Belleville High Banks.

"It will be unreal to drive at these tracks, and having to run the Knoxville Midget Nationals in my second US outing will be a challenge," says Mosen.

"For me it will be about proving myself to the team and finishing races. Driving a race car in the US has always been a dream for me."

Mosen teams up with US stars Jay Drake and Bryan Clauson in one of three factory Bullet chassis cars powered by Fontana engines.

The Keith Kunz-designed cars are the latest incarnation of the US-built midget that Mosen has driven at Western Springs speedway for the past two seasons.

Driving a Kunz chassis is not the only connection Mosen has had with the team. California native and former Kunz team driver and world sprint car champion Cory Kruseman knows the young driver well.

"Brad's got real driving talent and ability and his no-nonsense approach to racing will take him a long way in the US," says Kruseman.

"He'll make a mark in the US for sure. He's got the right attitude and he sure knows how to stand on the gas."

Mosen has had a standout season in New Zealand, smashing the Western Springs speedway lap record on his way to winning more feature races than any other driver.

Western Springs promoter Bill Buckley is not surprised that the Kunz team offer arrived for Mosen.

"It has been great to see Brad's driving develop over the past four or five years," says Buckley.

"He has a lot of support here in New Zealand and has worked through the ranks in three different classes to become many fans' favourite driver."

Mosen will return to New Zealand in October.