PROFESSIONAL race car driver Jack Barlow is set to enter the Love Island villa tonight.

Fans of the ITV2 reality show have been waiting in anticipation for the return of Casa Amor – a secret villa where contestants are sent to meet new Islanders away from their current partners.

And 26-year-old Jack, who grew up in Rye, has been announced as one of the new contestants.

“I’ve been single for about two years now”, Jack said before entering the Mallorcan villa.

“To be honest, I'm ready to meet the one. Not necessarily get married at this age but just experience life with somebody and start a new adventure.

“We’ve all been deprived of a bit of adventure over the last year.”

Jack, who attended Rye College, looks set to cause a stir and says his “competitive nature” means he is not afraid to fight for his dream girl.

He used to race in the Formula 4 Championship for MBM Motorsport and before that he was a successful kart racer.

But Jack shifted his focus to coaching after he was airlifted to hospital following a crash at the Thruxton Circuit in Andover in April 2014.

Jack said: “I started racing when I was 12-years-old. It started off as a bit of fun and I took to it really quickly.

“By the time I was 15, I was British champion and racing all over the world. My go-karting career took me off into car racing.

“I had an accident when I was 19 where I fractured my T9 vertebrae so my career expanded - it wasn’t solely just being a racing driver, that is when I started doing more on-track driving coaching and stunt driving.”

But away from the spotlight, Jack is no stranger to luxury having lived a jet set lifestyle before entering the villa.

His Instagram, which has more than 5,500 followers, is full of snaps of him visiting stunning destinations such as the Great Barrier Reef and of the Gili Islands in Indonesia.

Jack said: “I love travelling, I don’t mind getting on a plane by myself and going on holiday by myself or disappearing to another country and experiencing life.”

Love Island usually airs every night with a recap on the week’s events on a Saturday.

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