Joblin Forced to Skip Crucial Opening Round

With just over a week before the opening round of the New Zealand Production Racing Series, held at Pukekohe Park Raceway, Classic Cover Insurance driver Mark Joblin has been forced to take a step back and will not partake in the crucial first meeting.

The current pressure of work commitments for Joblin, who is also the CEO of Classic Cover Insurance, has forced the 2010 Class C champion to find a replacement driver to pilot the team's Nissan Skyline GT350 next weekend.

Young gun Andrew Higgins from Christchurch will act as replacement driver for this round only. The Marlin Motorsport team look forward to seeing how the talented southern driver performs in the Classic Cover Insurance Skyline 350GT against the field of NZPRS drivers.

Andrew Higgins' season of 2009/2010 ended on a high when he drove the Ken Smith Swift Formula Atlantic car to victory at the huge Bruce McLaren Festival meetings earlier in the year. His 2010/2011 campaign kicks off at the Lady Wigram meeting this weekend at Ruapuna where he is driving an ex-Vels Parnelli Team Lola T400 campaigned by Mario Andretti and Al Unser in the 1975 US Formula 5000 Championships.

The car has only recently been imported from Germany and Higgins has been using all his considerable historic race car restoration skills to get the car up to scratch for racing this weekend with little time thus far for actual testing.

Higgins will be a part of a two-car team headed by the evergreen Ken Smith in an assault on the Summer F5000 Series throughout New Zealand.

Adding to his busy season, next weekend at Pukekohe he may have his hands full with not one but two driving duties at the opening round.

"Andrew has been a successful campaigner in Formula Ford, the Toyota Racing Series and karting. He is just passionate about racing, not only will he be helming the Skyline this weekend but there is talk he may also be in a Ken Smith Formula Ford there as well." said Joblin.

"At this stage Andrew will be in it this one time and as business obligations allow I will be back behind the wheel of not only the Skyline but all three racecars including the Formula Ford and my newly aquired historic midget." he says.

With Mark Joblin not competing next weekend at Pukekohe he will not be able to match his remarkable 100 percent reliablity record of last season's New Zealand Production Racing Series where he completed 12 practice sessions, six qualifications and 18 races to finish as Class C Champion.