Jean Baptiste Simmenauer, the current French karting champion, will take over the seat vacated by Lando Norris in the Toyota Racing Series.

Norris was forced to withdraw from the defence of his title earlier this week because of clashing commitments in the United Kingdom in January and February so will stay home to prepare for his first full tilt at the FIA European Formula 3 Championship in 2017.

Instead Simmenauer, 16, will take his place when the competition gets underway at Ruapuna on January 14 and 15.

He will be making his single-seater racing debut in the five-round, 15-race series which finishes with the New Zealand Grand Prix at Manfeild on February 12.

"I want to make a great preparation for 2017 by competing in the Toyota Racing Series," Simmenauer, who comes from Angerville, just south of Paris, said.

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He has been testing with several single-seater teams over the past few months.

"The goal is to compete in Eurocup Formula Renault in 2017," he said.

Simmenauer, who started karting in 2012, graduated to the Italian Tony Kart Team which he won the French title for this year and finished third in the German championship.

He will join fellow Frenchman, 17-year-old Thomas Neubauer, from Paris, who has already confirmed his entry in the TRS.

Neubauer had 11 races in Formula Renault in France this year, scoring one podium place as he stepped up to single seaters from karting.

He finished third behind Simmenauer in the French Karting Championship this year.