Paddon wins BOP but Hunt still holds title sway
Hayden Paddon completed another dominant event to win Rally Bay of Plenty and move closer to an eighth Brian Green Property Group New Zealand Rally Championship victory.
Paddon (Hyundai New Zealand i20 Rally2) finished three minutes and 13 seconds in front of a rejuvenated Emma Gilmour (Vantage NZ Citroen C3) while championship rival Ben Hunt survived a puncture to be third in his Skoda New Zealand Fabia Rally2 and maintain a 12-point championship lead.
Hunt popped a tyre off the rim in the first pass through the legendary Manawahe stage to fall to fifth and essentially hand the title destiny over to Paddon.
But he fought back to come second to Paddon in the power stage and claw his way back to third.
It was an emotional break-through podium for Gilmour – her first since her debut win back in 2016 – as she showcased the talent that has made her a factory driver for McLaren.
Youngster Zeal Jones (Smith & Sons Skoda Fabia R5) endured a challenging day with minor incidents plaguing his run to finish fourth while Robbie Stokes (Stokes Motorsport Ford Fiesta AP4) suffered a cracked manifold that took him out of contention.
Defending champion Dylan Thomson (Ford Fiesta) stormed to victory in NZRC 2WD and overall 2WD to secure both titles with a round to spare.
His job was made a little easier with all three of his rivals running into problems that forced them out.
Dave Strong (Honda Jazz) clawed back some valuable championship points in Open 2WD as he claimed the class win over championship leader Willy Hawes (Toyota 86) and Murray Percival (Ford Escort).
Anthony Jones made a winning return to the Historic 2WD class in his Ford Escort despite stopping in the second stage to help tow his son Bryn out of a dangerous position.
Jones was able to storm back to beat championship leader Paul Fraser (Ford Escort) while Mike Cameron (Mitsubishi Lancer) was third.
Caleb Macdonald (Mitsubishi EVO 6) made up for the disappointment of a DNF after completing the final stage at Daybreaker Rally to win the Rally Challenge 4WD class and close to within 11 points of championship leader Andrew Graves.
Carter Strange made a good fist of his first outing in the North Island to be second in his Mitsubishi Lancer EVO 10 while Bay of Plenty local Gavin Feast (Subaru Impreza WRX) edged good mate Andy Martin (Subaru Impreza WRX) for the final podium spot.
Jared Parker extended his Rally Challenge 2WD class in his Toyota Corolla after limping through with some damage to his car.
Title rival Pat Norris (Toyota Yaris) did not finish.
Bay of Plenty’s Jay Pittams triumphed in the Group A Challenge in his Subaru Impreza.
The championship heads north to Whangarei for the final round next month.
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