WHEN he sits in the cockpit of his mean machine, racer Simon Harrison is a man with a mission -- to be a winner.

He has faced up to the weekly crash, bang and wallop of Formula 2 stock car racing to emerge as a star of the future.

The 23-year-old roared to his first racing triumph in Coventry last weekend.

He said: "It's a big thrill to race and when you're whizzing round the track, it's an exhilarating feeling.

"When I won, it was like being on another planet and the adrenaline completely took over."

Formula 2 is not a sport for the faint-hearted, and the Farnworth racer, of Cemetery Road, has battled back from a spate of injuries and bad luck to stake his claim as a serious contender.

He broke his wrist after a crash in July and suffered a couple of engine blow-outs when heading the field. He said: "It's a physical and contact sport, and the competition can get quite ugly at times.

"You've either got it or you haven't.

"But I can look after myself on the track and I never let myself be pushed around."

Simon works as a refuse collector in Bolton, and spends his spare time practising and improving his car on a shoestring budget. He has managed to get his hands on the vehicle that was driven by eight-times world champion and stock car legend Rob Speak.

Simon is following in the footsteps of his father, Willy, who was a household name in Formula 1 stock car racing in the 1970s.

Stock car racing takes place on an oval track, across asphalt or shale surfaces, with drivers reaching speeds of up to 65mph.

The races pull in large crowds, with many events televised on the Men and Motors satellite TV channel. Simon travels to circuits across the country to race, including tracks as far afield as Essex and Aberdeen.

Next year, if his progress continues, he could take his place on the grid on foreign circuits in Ireland and Holland. His sister, Lindsey Finley, said: "Simon's a very talented driver and he just needs to stay in one piece and keep his car working to go right to the top."