David Higgins Makes Return to American Rallying With McKenna Motorsport - Speedway Digest

Rallying legend and Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Famer David Higgins will make his long-awaited return to competition in the United States this weekend at the New England Forest Rally. Partnering with his longtime co-driver Craig Drew, Higgins will take the reins of a McKenna Motorsport Ford Fiesta for the first time in his return to the sport.

“I’m elated to finally be back behind the wheel of a top-flight rally car in the United States at New England Forest Rally this weekend,” said Higgins. “I can’t thank Barry McKenna and McKenna Motorsport enough for the opportunity to partner back up with Craig and get back on the stages. The team builds some of the best cars in American rallying, and we’re ready to get back out there and prove we haven’t missed a beat.”

“David Higgins is one of the most legendary names in rallying in the United States, and I couldn’t be more excited to welcome him to McKenna Motorsport,” said team principal Barry McKenna. “We’re committed to not only being the most competitive team that we can possibly be, but also strengthening the sport in America as much as possible, and having a 10-time champion in one of our cars for New England Forest Rally serves both of those goals.”

Higgins has a long history of success at NEFR. With the COVID-19 pandemic having cancelled last year’s rally, he and Drew are the most recent winners of the event from two years ago. His first of a record-tying five wins at NEFR came in 2003 as part of the factory Mitsubishi squad, when it was still named Maine Forest Rally and ran under SCCA sanction. His four subsequent victories all came with Drew in the co-driver’s seat at Subaru Rally Team USA; they scored back-to-back victories in 2014-15 and 2018-19. The duo also added four runner-up finishes in 2011-13 and 2017. The rally will also mark Higgins’ first competitive event after fully rehabilitating from injuries suffered in a road accident last year.

Beyond David’s return to rallying in the United States, it’ll be a big weekend for the entire Higgins family with competition across two continents. Matthew Higgins will also be in action in the Motorsport UK Kartmasters British Kart Grand Prix at PF International Kart Circuit in Lincolnshire, competing in both the Senior Rotax and X30 classes.

The 27^th New England Forest Rally serves as the fifth round of the 2021 American Rally Association season. The event will feature five stages on Friday, kicking off with two passes on the spectator-friendly Concord Pond stage, and an additional nine stages on Saturday. For spectator information, click here.

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Adam Sinclair

NHRA, IHRA, Motocross and other forms of motorsports Staff writer
About Me: Adam has been a race fan since the first time he went through the tunnel under the Daytona International Speedway almost 30 years ago. He has had the privilege of travelling to races all across the state of Florida (as well as one race in Ohio), watching nearly everything with a motor compete for fame and glory, as well as participating in various racing schools to get the feel of what racecar drivers go through every week. Adam has spent the last three years covering motorsports for Examiner.com., where he had the opportunity to see the racing world from behind the scenes as well as the grandstands. He invites everyone to follow him on Twitter, Facebook, and Google Plus, and looks forward to sharing his enthusiasm for all things racing with the readers of SpeedwayDigest.com.Be sure to tune in for his weekly sports talk program, Thursday Night Thunder, where he discusses the latest in motorsports news with drivers, crew members, and fans. The show takes place every Thursday at 8:00 pm EST on the Speedway Digest Radio Network.