Team Kiwi were last night searching for a replacement driver for the first race of the Australian V8 Supercar championship at Adelaide next weekend after Paul Radisich pulled out because of continuing problems with his left ankle.
Radisich injured the ankle in a horrific crash at Bathurst lastOctober and has been undertaking a rigorous fitness programme to be ready to debut Team Kiwi's new Ford in the two 250km races on the streets of Adelaide.
In Auckland early last week he was confident he would be ready, but after a two-day test at Winton this week he decided to delay his return to racing at least until the second round in Perth next month.
"We respect Paul's decision and we will be doing our utmost to have him back in the car for Perth," team owner David John said last night. "He has done the right thing by the team and we are still committed to him.
"The difficulty is to find another driver at short notice to step in and keep the car in good shape on a difficult circuit in the toughest two single-driver races of the year."
When Radisich was injured at Bathurst, Team Kiwi turned to former team driver Craig Baird and young Palmerston North rookie Chris Pither.
But John had not been able to contact Baird yesterday and he thought it unfair to ask an inexperienced driver to take on Adelaide.
Another Kiwi with Supercar experience, Matt Halliday, will drive the New Zealand A1GP car in South Africa this weekend. Fabian Coulthard, who teamed with Radisich at Bathurst, has signed up with Paul Morris for a full Supercar campaign.
One of Radisich's problems is that he uses his left foot for braking and it is difficult to change a style he has used for more than 20 years. Team Kiwi cannot withdraw from a round without costly penalties.
Because of the championship testing rules, Radisich cannot work on his fitness and driving-style adjustments between races in a V8 Supercar or anything similar.
