Mark Higgins Rally Driver's Blog

Hello from Latvia!

As you may have already heard, I'm out here to contest the Kurzeme Rally in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X, run by MML Sports.

The Managing Director of MML, John Easton, asked me to come out and drive the car as they have made a lot of improvements to the new car which will give us a great opportunity for the rally.

I'll be driving alongside reigning Latvian champion Ivars Vasaraudzis and his team-mate Raimonds Kisiels in Mitsubishi World Rally Cars, and I came over to Latvia early to help some drivers with training before the event.

Really looking forward to the rally, it seems like a very long time since the last event in China and we'll be heading back out there again in a few weeks, so it will be great to get behind the wheel competitively again in a good car with a great team.

I came to Latvia straight from the Ulster Rally where I was working with the Team UK drivers again. All four of them contested the event - Martin McCormack, Dave Weston Junior, Adam Gould and Alastair Fisher - so it was great to spend some time with them on an event and be able to give them some hints and tips on an event I've contested many times myself.

I'll let you know how Latvia goes!

Mark

Despite not being able to contest this year's Rally Isle of Man, Mark took time to promote the event on the popular Total Rally radio show this week.

To listen, visit Total Rally.

Sorry it's been a while since I wrote a blog, it's been a really busy time. First of all I got put through my paces good and proper when I too part in the MSA Team UK marine training course with the Team UK guys. What a fantastic experience - even if it was 24 hours with no sleep and me and David Brabham trying to keep up with the younger drivers!

From there myself, David Brabham and Adam Gould drove to Ypres as part of my Team UK work to help and support Dave Weston Junior and Marty McCormack who were both competing on the event. When we got back from there I drove eight miles up the road to do another Legends race. Thanks again to Nick Power and Guttercrest for letting me use their Legend again. We finished seventh in the final after starting at the back of the grid for the heats because we missed the Saturday runs. Good fun though.

The next day I was doing some set up and tuition work on a MkI Escort, then flew to France that night to do tuition with some Russians in France and test some Evo Xs. Then it was straight to Goodwood for three days at the glorious Festival of Speed, and I head to Slovakia in the morning to do a few days tuition, then head to Rally Isle of Man.

The sad news is that I will be on the island, but not competing. We tried very hard to put a deal together to enter the rally, and we got very close, but it appears time was not on our side. I must confess I am not looking forward to watching everyone else compete without being in a car myself and we could have gone for a hat trick of wins this year which adds to the disappointment, but I'm looking forward to seeing how all of the Team UK drivers get on and helping them out.

It's quite a break now until my next rally out in China, but I'll keep you up to date with what I'm up to between now and then.

I might see you out and about on the Isle of Man.

Mark

As you are aware I was due to compete at Mallory Park on Sunday with the Legends. But when I heard the dreadful news from the Dukeries Rally on Saturday, I have to admit my head was no longer in competition mood.

Martyn Lewis, who was a friend of mine, died tragically on the rally. He ran the local tyre depot in Newtown, and was a great guy who would do anything he could to help anyone in motorsport. He was also a very talented rally driver himself. So as I went to Mallory, Martyn was very much in the forefront of my mind.

It was only my second event in the Legend, but I'm pleased to say I managed to pick up a podium finish in the second race. I must thank Nick and Ben Power for letting me use the Guttercrest Legend again, everyone who helped me did a great job.

But as I say, Martyn was on my mind throughout the event. He was a fantastic guy who thoroughly enjoyed making his own way in the sport and helping the rest of us at the same time. There are no words to describe this tragic event, but my thoughts are with his family and all who were lucky enough to know him, at this difficult time.

Mark

It's been a really busy time for me lately with lots of time spent training drivers - but this weekend it's me getting back in the driving seat!

Last October I did a Legends race and loved it. I'd never driven one before, but really enjoyed the challenge of getting into the middle of the pack for some fun. So I'm getting back on the track on Sunday.

Thanks to Nick Power for lending me his Guttercrest-backed car again, it's going to be a really enjoyable day. No championship points to worry about, just going out racing and having fun. We got top six finishes in all three races last time, so hopefully we'll manage that again at Mallory Park on Sunday. We won't have to start from the back of the grid this time out, so that's a bonus!

I am still really missing rallying in the UK this year, but hope to get out again soon. I would really love to be able to do Rally Isle of Man next month, it would be great to find the sponsors to do it, but at the minute it looks like I might be forced to miss it this year and I'll be gutted if that happens. It would be my first time missing the event in almost 20 years.

Well, we'll see what happens with the Manx, and I'll let you know how I get on on Sunday!

Mark

Well it's been a very busy few weeks again, I have just been in Los Angeles filming a car advert then I went straight to China for the second round of the Chinese Rally Championship. I am now about to head home after our first win – volcano permitting!

This is also my first gravel win for a little while so it feels very good, especially with the competition there is in China. The event was the first for myself with Phil Pugh co-driving, so I was a little worried it may take some time for us to work together as a team, but he did a fantastic job and we seemed to work perfectly together straight away.

The event started with a super special stage on the Friday that I drove a little carefully which put us down in fourth behind Patrik Flodin, my brother David and Jussi Valimaki with Patrik Sandell close behind.

Day two was two stages repeated three times and with a 20km and a 10km stage which were both very rough, we had a good suspension set up with the Evo 9 on the Tein suspension and pushed from the start. At the end of the first stage we were in the lead taking over a second a km out of all the other crews, this continued all day and we held a lead of 1m29s going into the second day.

Day two was shorter with a similar format and our goal was to manage the car and make sure we did not have a puncture, this went well and with the help of Pirelli we won the event by just over two minutes.

The rally was a gravel event, very twisty and rough a little like Greece, so this result was great for myself and the team who had not won since 2008. This now puts us in the lead of the teams championship.

Not sure what my next UK event will be, but I look forward to catching up with everyone soon.

Mark

Obviously our entry to the Pirelli was very last minute and we were very fortunate to be given the opportunity to compete, but maybe we should have taken more time to prepare for it. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, especially in rallying.

The rally started badly with problems with the dust for everyone except car number one. But 2km into the first stage we lost turbo boost pressure and had to do the remaining stages of the evening about 30 per cent down on power. The fact that we had not driven the car before the rally, and the dust, meant it was hard to get a feeling to make changes.

We ended the day 8th, the lowest position I've been in on a rally for 10 years, especially on the Pirelli where we've never been lower than second since 2000.

Day two was a fresh day and the team worked really hard to rectify our issues, so Nicky and I planned to have a good push.

Stage one was fine and we set a reasonable time, a second down on Keith Cronin and Gwyndaf Evans, and planned to get a good setup back at service later. Unfortunately in the second stage at the mid point a wheel broke on a rock. We went for about two miles but without a tyre damaged the rear suspension and were unable to continue as we would not have got back to service.

It was great to be back doing the BRC again 20 years after my first BRC event and 20 years since Nicky's last one!

Ramsport worked really hard especially with short notice. A huge thank you to them, Dave Weston, Nicky, MIS and all of their boys for the big effort everyone put in for us.

Hopefully we'll get out again soon, with a bit more preparation next time.

Thanks to everyone who cheered us on and came to say hello in service.

Mark

"Go Higgy" fans can rest easy tonight, in the knowledge that Mark Higgins has made a last minute entry to the Pirelli International Rally this weekend, thanks to Ramsport.

Higgins will be team mate to Dave Weston Junior, behind the wheel of a Subaru Impreza N14, co-driven by Nicky Grist.

"It's going to be a last minute rush to make the rally as we only got the call at lunch time on Wednesday," says Mark. "We may miss the first part of the recce and the first time we'll sit in the car will be on the first stage, no time for a test or to set the car up. But the aim is to enjoy the event and I can't wait to get out on the UK stages for the first time this year, especially on the classic Kielder roads. It's also brilliant to be running as team mate to Dave Weston Junior as we have been working together a lot in the past year."