Squire drove a stockcar at the Riverside speedway, near Oreti Beach in Invercargill, last weekend.
It was an unexpected entry by the former Highlanders and All Blacks hard-man Liam Squire, whose last All Blacks test was in 2018.
Squire (31) has linked with the Beachlands club in Dunedin and the drive on the Invercargill track was his first competitive drive in the stockcar class.
Squire started off the back, and, mirroring his performance on the rugby paddock, was not afraid to put some big hits on his more favoured competition.
Race one was won by Central Motor Speedway driver Jacob Boulton, while Riverside’s Shanan Knight, back home after a stint overseas, took a hard-fought win in race two.
In race three, Squire had moved from back in the pack to sneak through and be the surprise leader. He then pulled away and registered his first race win which was acknowledged by the big crowd who got to their feet.
Squire showed he wouldn’t just be there to make up the numbers and having someone of his reputation is likely to bring punters trackside.
Squire retired from rugby last year in October following medical advice.
The 23-test All Black had knee and hip surgery in 2020 and returned to the Highlanders after cutting short a two-year deal with the Red Hurricanes in Japan. He played only two games before getting injured.
He first played for the All Blacks in 2016 and was in and out of the side due to injuries. He withdrew from consideration for the 2019 World Cup in Japan, saying he was not physically or mentally ready for test rugby.
By: Daryl Shuttleworth
