Leonie Knight is thoroughly enjoying her first full season racing speedway, after the Brisbane, Queensland-based racer joined the AMCA Nationals class late last season in honour of her late father, Phil Mutton’s legacy.
With five race meetings already under her belt in the 2016-17 season, Knight has proved that she can get amongst her rivals, coming away with a career-best result earlier this month, when she finished just off the podium in fourth in a feature race at her home track: Archerfield Speedway.
“I feel that I'm improving with the more track time I get and the support from my team is playing a big part in my track performances and my understanding of the car itself,” expressed Knight, a successful businesswoman, who has two young daughters of her own.
“Racing speedway was something I wanted to do and started doing in memory of my dad, however it's now my own passion to enjoy doing something that I’ve always watched from the sidelines, so I decided to take up the challenge last season to get out there on the track and mix it up with the boys.”
Knight continued on by saying that apart from honouring her dad’s legacy, she’s also doing it for herself and to prove that women, no matter how old they are, can get behind the wheel of a speedway race car.
“Whatever your passion is, give it a go,” she said.
“Surround yourself with good mentors and supporters, work hard and listen. I’m really enjoying racing AMCA Nationals and even though all of my friends think I'm a little crazy, they think it’s great that I'm out there trying.
“My daughters are very proud of the fact that their mum is a race car driver and I want to show them, along with other women out there, that anything is possible if they put their mind to it – not only in speedway, but life in general.”
With her dad, Phil, being heavily involved in Sedan racing throughout the 1980s and ‘90s as a car owner and builder, Knight was brought up around speedway from an early age. When she reached her teens, Phil offered her the opportunity to race a speedway car, on the condition that she worked on the car in between race meetings. Knight never took up the opportunity, choosing to focus on her extracurricular activities and later her career.
When Phil passed away from a heart attack in June of last year, Knight, her mum and his crew restored her dad’s historic Pantera Super Sedan, which Phil purchased from Alec Campbell (another well-known speedway identity) and it now resides in the Ipswich Motorsport Museum. After taking it for a practice demonstration at a local showground, Knight was hooked and thus began her forage into competitive speedway racing.
Making her debut part way through the 2015-16 season in February at Archerfield Speedway after purchasing an AMCA National in late 2015, Knight contested a total of five race meetings, including the coveted Australian Title at Lismore Speedway and the Queensland Title at Archerfield Speedway, something she admits was very daunting but a great learning experience for someone who has never raced in any other category prior to AMCA Nationals.
The next appearance for Knight will see her head back to Archerfield Speedway on the Friday night of December 30.
Knight would like to thank her crew chief Michael Denning, as well as his fiancée Leea and dad Mark Denning, along with her mentor Daran Munro, her mum Kay Mutton, her daughters Georgia and Samantha, her dad’s pit crew Jeffrey Parnell, and the AMCA National teams, including Steve Potts and Mick Reidy, for all of their help, guidance and support.
Knight began racing representing Elf Racing Fuels to honour her dad and continues to support and promote Women of Australia Motorsport.
To find out more about Knight and her team, LIKE them on Facebook by searching Leonie Knight Racing – Helmets & Heels.