A FORMER double banger racing world champion is embarking on a new challenge as a stock car formula makes its debut at Arena Essex Raceway this weekend.

Billy King, who won his world titles in 2006 and 2012, will be competing throughout this season in the two litre stock cars.

Unlike banger cars, which come straight off the road, stock cars have heavy offensive and defensive armouring, which means that despite the heavy contact between the cars, they shouldn’t bend too much and should see out the season.

King sees this as their main advantage. “It seems like a little less work than bangers and a reasonably fair formula that shouldn’t be too expensive,” he said.

After two outings over the winter down at Ringwood Raceway in Hampshire, which included a couple of wins, King is excited about the year ahead.

“The racing seems hard and competitive and a good bunch of drivers are involved. With the likes of Matt Fuller (another former banger world champion) and the already proven stock car drivers like Steve Davies to compete with, it should hopefully have some good racing.”

Davies runs a BMW in the class and will be the man to beat, with the majority of the rest of the runners, including Billy, all running Ford Sierra shells.

King bought his car from a former multi-champion in the class.

He said: “I bought my car from Billy Wood, so I am hoping to drive it as good as he did. I can’t wait to race it at my home track this weekend.”

The action on Sunday at Arena Essex begins at 1pm.

As well as stock cars, national banger racing returns to the venue with the annual destructive curtain raiser to the season, the “shakedown”.

The 11-16-year-old junior racers in the mini stox category also get a chance to show their pace. The venue is situated at Junction 30/31 of the M25 opposite the Lakeside shopping centre.