Australian champion Chris Holder admits the FIM New Zealand SGP on March 31 will feel “like I’m racing at home”, as his family and friends head to Auckland.

Australian champion Chris Holder admits the FIM New Zealand SGP on March 31 will feel "like I'm racing at home", as his family and friends head to Auckland.

With the 24-year-old racing the vast majority of his meetings in Europe, his extended family rarely get to see the world No.8 in action live.

So Holder, who has never even set foot in New Zealand, is delighted the World Championship opens in the land of the long white cloud this year.

He said:  "There are a lot of Aussies going there and a lot of my family are heading over. I'll be like I'm racing at home probably.

"New Zealand is the closest the Grand Prix will get to them for a little while, so I'm excited to go over and ride in front of them. It's going to be good fun."

FIM speedway guru Ole Olsen and his team will head for Western Springs a few weeks before the NZ SGP to give the sprint car circuit a makeover and ensure it is ready for World Championship speedway.

The circuit will be a whopping 413 metres - making it the longest track on this season's calendar.

Given that only wild card Jason Bunyan has previously raced at the venue, Holder is expecting an open contest on a great track.

He said: "They're putting in a lot of time and money and this is a World Championship round, so they'll be doing their best to make the track the best it can be for us.

"None of us have ridden it before, but I've ridden on tracks that big. I know what they're like and hopefully it is a nice one. I'll try to be fast and produce some good racing."

Holder will return to Britain next month before heading back to the Southern Hemisphere on March 25 for the NZ SGP.

Staying in his homeland would have saved Holder a 48-hour round-trip to the UK.

But with his Poole Pirates taking on Wolverhampton for the Elite Shield at Monmore Green on March 19 and Wimborne Road on March 21, the Piraterna and Torun man must return to Europe and endure the marathon flight to New Zealand with all of his European rivals.

He said: "I've got two meetings for Poole and I'm doing Shane Parker's farewell (at Sheffield on March 18).

"I'll also be getting all my bikes and stuff ready for when we return. When we come back from New Zealand, it's going to be pretty full-on."